Oil life gauge

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keith.C.2313

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Wondering how much I should rely on the oil life gauge. I'm so used to changing my oil every 3-4 thousand miles but the oil life gauge says I have 57% remaining after 3500 miles. Just wondering if anyone follows it or changes theirs at the usual 3-4. I do use mobile 1, don't know if that factors in.

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WillO

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South Florida
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Wondering how much I should rely on the oil life gauge. I'm so used to changing my oil every 3-4 thousand miles but the oil life gauge says I have 57% remaining after 3500 miles. Just wondering if anyone follows it or changes theirs at the usual 3-4. I do use mobile 1, don't know if that factors in.

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I change every 3k, life gauge always reads about 60% I think


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Punishher7

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Many trust the meter. I personally have never let it get below high 30%. 5-6K miles max for me. I also run full syn.


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Ferro

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Personally I don't use it. My oil gets changed every 3500 Miles.
 

Kapt

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I've been changing my oil every 6,000 miles for as long as I can remember. Now that I have an Ecodiesel I do what the dealership told me and change it every 10,000 miles
 

shibby927

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I change mine about every 6,000 miles with synthetic, no reason to change it any less unless you're driving a ton of inner city miles. Makes it easier to do the tire rotations at the same time as well.
 

82Crew

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The Oil life gauge just goes off of calculations and has no clue what the oil is like. I am a firm believer in 3k or 5k on a diesel. Vehicles that go by the OLM have black oil by the time they get to 100k and I see cars everyday with 200k+ that have done oil changes every 3k and the oil is clean and you can pull the valve cover and it still looks new. A huge factor is the quality of oil filter you use. And for as cheap as it is to do an oil change why wouldn't you keep the inside of you engine clean?


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7777xm

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I go by the gauge and use Dino oil. The engineers designed it and I do what's recommended. Oil and engine tech has come a long a ways.

There is a few threads floating around and those who did 10k oil changes and did oil analysis all came back fine.

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clh1220

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I go by the gauge and use Dino oil. The engineers designed it and I do what's recommended. Oil and engine tech has come a long a ways.

There is a few threads floating around and those who did 10k oil changes and did oil analysis all came back fine.

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Allot people are still doing the oil change the old school way. 3000 is too soon, you're just wasting oil. The oil is better now. I run mine 8k on full synthetic with a fram synthetic filter.
 

tripleplay

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6k and full Penz synthetic from the dealer..
 

abbttb

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Every 5000 for me running full synthetic

2016 RAM 2500 Trademan Crew Cab 4x4
 

bruce219

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8k and not using synthetic
 

satxwy

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I normally change mine at about 30% on the gauge, which for my driving (mostly highway) translates to about every 7500 miles. I use regular, non synthetic.
 

jschwanke84

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Unless you have an older vehicle, there is absolutely zero reason to change oil any sooner than 5000 miles. 15-20% is when you want to change and on modern trucks that is perfect. Usually works out to between 7500-10k miles. It might feel weird because a lot of folks are used to the old school every 3000 miles stuff, but that really is not necessary on newer vehicles.
 

Farmer Fran

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You guys actually change your oil? IMHO it is a total waste of money.


I joke.

I follow the DIC (so 6 to 10K) and use Valvoline Full Synthetic
 

Quint

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It also depends on the type of driving that you do. I do mostly city driving, with short trips especially in winter where my engine (let alone oil or tranny) rarely reaches full operating temps. That's harder on the oil so it should be changed more often.

The tech at the dealership said never to follow the EVIC for oil life, but I also assume that his bosses want the extra oil change money. Below is what the owners manual says for my 2015. I do tend to trust the manufacturer more than any dealership or folks on the internet. If they say you can go up to 10,000, I wouldn't worry about getting there unless I was driving under harder conditions (which I am) so I change more in the 5k-7.5k mile range.

Change Engine Oil
The oil change indicator system will remind you that it is
time to take your vehicle in for scheduled maintenance.
Refer to the “Maintenance Schedule” for further information.
NOTE: 1500 Models Only
• Under no circumstances should oil change intervals
exceed 10,000 miles (16,000 km) or twelve months on
1500 trucks, whichever comes first.
2500 – 3500 Models
• Under no circumstances should oil change intervals
exceed 8,000 miles (13,000 km) or twelve months on
2500 – 3500 trucks, whichever comes first.
Engine Oil Selection
For best performance and maximum protection under all
types of operating conditions, the manufacturer only
recommends engine oils that are API Certified and meet
the requirements of FCA US Material Standard MS-6395.
 

malatu

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I follow the EVIC and have been for years. A while back I did a lot of reading about how it works as well as about the quality of modern oils and modern engines. Right or wrong, I believe the in the technology of the EVIC and if you change your oil any earlier than what is recommended, you are wasting your money. Again, right or wrong, that's what I do. With that said, I've never known, heard or read about anyone wearing out an engine because they changed their oil every 8,000 miles instead of every 3,000 or 5,000 miles.
 

BigRed4x4

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I do every 5,000+ tire rotation. I think my oil change place gets irritated when I only bring it in for the free tire rotation and oil change at 5,000 when they want me for the oil change every 3,000 and tire rotation every 6,000. They can eat it though, I've spent $2,500 buying tires through them when I could have saved money going else where. Also my evic just alerted me that I have a an oil change due but that's because it wasn't reset a few oil changes back so it's off.
 
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