[ToroRosso]

Originally Posted by NinadJoshi

Does your car computer tell you when to change oil (based on miles between resets and/or % of oil purity), .

Thanks Ninad, Car doesnt tell me squat, its the Entry level Mazda 6 :(. The manufacturer recommended interval is 7.5k miles.
Everyone one in my office swears my the 3k mile oil intervals, all of them has a ride that has an average of 200k miles, and i just hopped onto the bandwagon.

I was thinking about stretching to 5k miles if i go the synthetic way.

Btw, do we need to carry special filter to the dealer if if i go the synthetic way..

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by ToroRosso

Thanks Ninad, Car doesnt tell me squat, its the Entry level Mazda 6 :(. The manufacturer recommended interval is 7.5k miles.
Everyone one in my office swears my the 3k mile oil intervals, all of them has a ride that has an average of 200k miles, and i just hopped onto the bandwagon.

I was thinking about stretching to 5k miles if i go the synthetic way.

Btw, do we need to carry special filter to the dealer if if i go the synthetic way..

The dealer should be having synthetic oil in stock, along with the oil filter. I dont think you require a special oil filter for synthetic though.
As for the 3K mile oil change thing, here is an interesting article from edmunds. See if you can get your colleagues to read it and find out what they think :
http://www.edmunds.com/car-care/stop...-your-oil.html

[ToroRosso]

Originally Posted by amitoj

See if you can get your colleagues to read it and find out what they think :
http://www.edmunds.com/car-care/stop...-your-oil.html

Heh, Believe me I tried a lot of reasoning. Doesnt help that i am the only Indian guy around and all of them are from Manufacturing background and have a work exp thats more than my age..

I just fwded your post to them ..

[NinadJoshi]

Originally Posted by ToroRosso

Thanks Ninad, Car doesnt tell me squat, its the Entry level Mazda 6 :(. The manufacturer recommended interval is 7.5k miles.
Everyone one in my office swears my the 3k mile oil intervals, all of them has a ride that has an average of 200k miles, and i just hopped onto the bandwagon.

I was thinking about stretching to 5k miles if i go the synthetic way.

Btw, do we need to carry special filter to the dealer if if i go the synthetic way..

You should easily be able to put off oil changes to 8/9/10Kmiles with synthetic if you manufacturer recommended (= conservatively stated) change itself is at 7.5K.

Changing minerals at 3K (or synthetics at 5K as you mentioned) is an overkill unless you have a future collectible in your garage I'd take Mazda's word over Jiffy Lube's on this.

Don't worry about the filter either. It comes with the oil change.

[Jomz]

Originally Posted by amitoj

Yeah but it still does not say that your warranty will be denied if you dont use a "recognized" branded oil. It is only recommended to use API certified oil.

Besides, Chrysler warranty runs out after 5 years or 100,000 miles anyway.

That website is the pits, btw. A 10 year old can do a better job of designing a website.

Again from the charger (2012) owners manual
Page 539

"Engine Oil – 3.6L Engine Use API Certified SAE 5W-30 Engine Oil, meeting the requirements of

Chrysler Material Standard MS-6395. Refer to the engine oil fill cap for correct SAE grade

Engine Oil – 5.7L Engine Use API Certified SAE 5W-20 Engine Oil, meeting the requirements of
Chrysler Material Standard MS-6395. Refer to the engine oil fill cap for

correct SAE grade"

They have asked for API certified oils. & QB is not API certified

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by Jomz

Again from the charger (2012) owners manual

Here is what i have, again from the charger 2012 manual:
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 Chrysler Material Standard MS-6395.

Also,
You may use synthetic engine oils provided the recommended
oil quality requirements are met, and the recommended
maintenance intervals for oil and filter changes
are followed.

And here is another source:

The language in some owner's manuals suggests that using an oil other than the one specified by the manufacturer will void the car's warranty. This is not the case, says Thom Smith, Valvoline's vice president of branded lubricant technology.

According to the Magnusson-Moss Warranty Act, the onus would be on GM or another automaker to prove that a non-manufacturer oil damaged the engine. If dealers deny the warranty claim without first investigating it, they are in violation of the act, Smith says.

http://www.edmunds.com/car-care/do-i...urers-oil.html

[Jomz]

THe manual copy which I have says, USE, not recommend. I have copied and pasted the relevant lines in my previous post

The reason why I say that is, manufacturers have verified the durablility of the engines on Certified oils. I'm out of this topic- Use whatever floats your boat.

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by kraft.wagen

Any Venza owners or experiences?

My initial impressions are the V6 is very powerful, great mpg, super luxurious. Lacks SUV feel though

My colleague was looking for a SUV. He considered Venza. Was put off by the quality of interior plastics and a rattling interior during test drive with just 2k on odo. Though the seats were comfortable and roomy enough to be comfortable.

As a passenger during the test drive, i found ride quality not too good. It was bumpy and shaky (typical toyota). While handling was meh! as the body rolled a lot. I also noticed noise insulation was not good and could hear the engine working a lot. We did 3 miles on freeway and could make out that road noise was a lot possibly due to tires.

I can't say about steering feel as i didn't drive it but since its a Toyota, i think it will be light, vague and feedback-less steering.

That colleague ended up with a CR-V EX-L. For the price i had consider other options like Edge, Highlander, Murano.

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by Jomz

THe manual copy which I have says, USE, not recommend. I have copied and pasted the relevant lines in my previous post

The reason why I say that is, manufacturers have verified the durablility of the engines on Certified oils. I'm out of this topic- Use whatever floats your boat.

Appreciate the effort. And its not just the manufacturers, but also oil companies that verify the quality of their oils. No manufacturer can force you to buy a certain brand or type of oil, threatening to void the warranty otherwise. It is not so easy to deny a warranty claim.

[aah78]

Originally Posted by Jomz

Wrong info.
BP and castrol (BP's oil) are API certified
http://eolcs.api.org/brandSearchResults.aspx

That reference is for BP gasoline, not lubricants.

As a comparison to the QB lubricant, I mentioned BP gasoline (petrol) isn't in the Top Tier fuel list.

Originally Posted by ToroRosso

The manufacturer recommended interval is 7.5k miles.
Everyone one in my office swears my the 3k mile oil intervals

I was thinking about stretching to 5k miles if i go the synthetic way.

Btw, do we need to carry special filter to the dealer if if i go the synthetic way..

Stick with the manufacturer recommended intervals & oil.

3k, is just pouring money down the drain unless you're driving a '70's / '80's car.
5k intervals on synthetic is a waste of more money.

Same filter should work.

[Technocrat]

Originally Posted by Jomz

Again from the charger (2012) owners manual
Page 539

They have asked for API certified oils. & QB is not API certified

Originally Posted by amitoj

Here is what i have, again from the charger 2012 manual:
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 Chrysler Material Standard MS-6395.

Originally Posted by Jomz

THe manual copy which I have says, USE, not recommend. I have copied and pasted the relevant lines in my previous post

The reason why I say that is, manufacturers have verified the durablility of the engines on Certified oils. I'm out of this topic- Use whatever floats your boat.

You are both right as both of you are referring to different Page numbers of the same manual.

Dodge Charger 2012 manual

Amitoj is quoting from page# 496 & Jomz from 539

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by NinadJoshi

You should easily be able to put off oil changes to 8/9/10Kmiles with synthetic if you manufacturer recommended (= conservatively stated) change itself is at 7.5K.

Changing minerals at 3K (or synthetics at 5K as you mentioned) is an overkill unless you have a future collectible in your garage I'd take Mazda's word over Jiffy Lube's on this.

Don't worry about the filter either. It comes with the oil change.

Originally Posted by ToroRosso

Everyone one in my office swears my the 3k mile oil intervals, all of them has a ride that has an average of 200k miles, and i just hopped onto the bandwagon.

I was thinking about stretching to 5k miles if i go the synthetic way.

Btw, do we need to carry special filter to the dealer if if i go the synthetic way..

California has started an initiative that helps you calculate how many miles to go between oil changes. This is to keep oil changes in check. I find it very useful.

Here is the site. Just plug your model in and it will show you. Please keep in mind that it is based on oil that came from factory so if you have switched to synthetic its has to be adjusted that ways.

http://www.checkyournumber.org/

My corvette has a on board oil calculator. So i go by it. It uses synthetic and it can easily do 12k miles or more. I believe that if GM has built the calculator in they must be confident that the engine must be capable of handling the oil change interval since they provide warranty for the same.

I don't see why your mazda6 can't go upto 7500 miles on factory oil. If you do 3000 miles, it just waste of oil, time and money.

Those 3000 miles are so 1980s and 1990s thinking that i can't help laugh thinking it can be done to a 2012 model.

You mentioned your office colleagues have done 200k at 3000 miles oil change. It means, their cars are on average 10-15 years old. So it makes sense they change oil at 3000 miles because the older ones did require shorter intervals. I had a 98 camry which did require oil change at 3000 miles. My 2005 g35 requires at 3750 miles as both used mineral oil. But with newer improvements in oils, newer cars can go easily 5000-7500 miles between oil changes.

Also, much depends on your commute. If it is stop and go traffic all the time, it makes sense to do it earlier but in your case it is 80-20 h-c thus not requiring frequent oil changes.

Sorry for the long rant.

[vineethvazhayil]

Originally Posted by chevelle

http://www.checkyournumber.org/



I don't see why your mazda6 can't go upto 7500 miles on factory oil. If you do 3000 miles, it just waste of oil, time and money.

Good link, that one. Thanks!

I usually go in for oil changes once every 5-6k miles at the earliest. I don't see any reason or benefit in going any more frequently as I have synthetic oil in both our cars. If we had more highway travel, I would have stretched that to 7-8k miles, but our commutes are a 50-50 mix of highway and stop go. So I figured a 5500 to 6000 mile interval is optimal for me.

[ToroRosso]

Originally Posted by chevelle

You mentioned your office colleagues have done 200k at 3000 miles oil change. It means, their cars are on average 10-15 years old. .

Thanks Chev, I agree.
Most of them have > 3 cars and all of them have alteast one late 80s or Early 90s F150. So the mindset could be because of that.

The last 3 changes i have carried out at 3k, i will switch to Syntehtic and do the change now at every 7.5k miles.

Since its nearing 40k, i was planning to do a preventive tranny flush as well.

EDIT: I showed them this post, so the reasoning is the oil quality start deteroriating post 3K miiles and a lot of mechanics recommend the 3K miles plus the Quality of oils used at some of the dealers are suspect.

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by Technocrat

You are both right as both of you are referring to different Page numbers of the same manual.

LOL.
Ambiguity for the win!!

Anyway, back to the original question regarding QuantumBlue. Though some people swear by it, most are skeptical about it. Their main argument is that its high cost compared to off the shelf oil does not seem to be justified. They have not personally used it of course.

In any of the debates I have seen over QB or any other boutique oil, the question of warranty being void has always been a non-issue. Biggest point of discussion has been whether the price difference is justified or not.