Engine oil life indicator--reliable?

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nonickatall

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There are 2 things that come to mind. First, is the truck inside all the time and temperate? Or outside with humidity, and wild temp swings?

Secondly, I'd probably just do a yearly service no matter what just to keep it consistent and fresh.
What effect should that have on Oil? Oil at a running engine reach approximate 230°, what should happen to the oil in a car, which is due to weather between -40° and +120°?

The water that would accumulate over the years through condensation is marginal. In contrast, when the engine is operated for short distances and gets hot and then cools down again, quite a lot of water gets into the circuit. Which can also be seen from the fact, that vehicles mainly operated over short distances, often have light brown oil foam on the oil cap.

And oil does not get old. You can store oil for 100 years and then use it 2123 in the last gmt800. Will be no difference.

What wears oil is the mechanical breakage of the long hydrocarbon chains in the oil that provide the lubricating effect and the input of harmful chemicals via the combustion process and water.

So if you want your engine to get old, you should stick to the manufacturer's oil change intervals, use good oil, don't install cheap oil filters, don't neglect the rest of the maintenance and, above all, react and repair defects immediately.

And you should avoid driving a car too often for short trips. Anything under 2 Miles can also be done by bicycle or by car, where it doesn't matter if it dies, e.g. a Ford. :Big Laugh:

And you should warm up your engine before stepping on the gas. And driving at full throttle should be avoided anyway, especially with American V8 engines, which are simply not built for high revs.

I think an LQ motor can get very old, if you stick to these things. and if something breaks, it is really easy to repair and the supply of spare parts is excellent.

In contrast to the shit engines that Germans are now building..

Do i say that as a German? Fck, yes ....
 

SilverSport

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I feel the OLM is another tool for the toolbox...remember the algorithm was written with the OEM oil type installed but I prefer to use full synthetic oil in the proper weight...with my other GM vehicles I usually hit the time interval rather than the mileage which has come down to about 10 months/just under 5K miles...

I usually can find full synthetic motor oil on sale or with rebates at least as cheap as trying to find Dino oil and use at least an AC Delco oil filter or better...

good luck with your choice...I think the OLM is helpful in making mine

Bill
 

Marky Dissod

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Y'know how running the fuel tank empty and dry is generally considered a very bad idea,
and most people try to refuel well before the fuel tank hits 0%?

Finish the oil life monitor analogy for yourselves as you see fit.

My suspicion is that most of you don't drive as many stop'n'go local 'city' miles as NYC cabdrivers - which makes most of you lucky in that respect.

May we all hit 300,000 trouble free miles ...
 

Stonefort

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Mine is usually at 30% when I hit 5k miles and change it. Work is only 2.9miles away. I use Euro Blend Quaker State 5-40w, it's a light 40w and has been good for me here in Tx.
 

iamdub

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Great footage, i love that sound.

Thank ya! I think that was with the cutout open.


But should you do that with a pushrod driven engine regularly if you want to since it's getting old? :cool:

I do a lot with this fat old bish that I shouldn't. I've taken it faster/higher RPM than that a couple of times since. I've upgrade the valvetrain to be what should be plenty stable for 6K RPM. As for the rest of it- crank, rods, pistons, all associated bearings... They're the original 223K mile pieces.:oops:

It's not my daily driver but I still don't want it to blow up. I know I'm pushing it.

GM is famous specifically for doing what they do with a pushrod engine. They've dabbled with OHC and 24- and 32-valve stuff but continue to match and beat with pushrods and 16 valves what the competition has moved to OHC to accomplish. 6K isn't much. The LS6 spun faster and the LS7 spins even faster than that.
 

clogan2

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For our Tahoe, I follow the oil life monitor, and change it at 15% or so. That usually equates to ~8,000-9,000 miles. I use the oil recommended in my owner manual: DEXOS 0w-20.

For my 'Vette and pick up truck, I change it annually, and that equates to <3,000 miles.
 

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