[vartakavi]

I have a Toyota Innova (3.5 years old, 22000 kms on the Odo) which I use primarily for Highway runs and an Alto (7 years old, 26000 kms on the Odo) which I use in the city. As you can see, my usage is very low on both cars.

I followed the manufacturer's prescribed service intervals during the warranty period. Post-warranty, I usually get them serviced at 12-18 month intervals.

As per the manuals, one has to change the Engine Oil every 10,000 kms. My cars would have only run between 3000 to 5000 kms when I give them for service. Before going for the service, when I check the Engine Oil with the dip stick, the level is OK and the oil 'looks and feels good'.

Both the Toyota and the Maruti Service Advisors have been insisting on an Oil change because 'it is more than a year' since the last service, and I have been getting this done so far, even though I felt that this is probably not required and is being done to boost up the bill.

I visited the US recently and found that my daughter gets her Honda CRV serviced and engine oil changed only when the relevant warning pops up on the car's dashboard. They do not go by a time or mileage schedule. Obviously, there is a sensor that checks the engine oil quantity and quality and displays this warning. My daughter uses her car sparingly too and got the oil changed only twice in four years.

This led me to think - in India, are we being wasteful by changing perfectly good engine oil every year, even on cars that have run half or less of the prescribed mileage for oil change? Isn't this environmentally unfriendly practice as well?

[Deepak K Gupta]

My cars are also used sparingly and service them once a year. But I find that the engine oil, although not used much, have lost their lubricant properties after a year. The oil does not become black but slightly sticky. I guess this is because our cars run at extreme temperatures in summer months. If you are finding stickiness in the oil you should change it. Remember to change the oil filter too as the sticky oil will remain in the filter.

[k2max6]

My civic ran only 1500 kms last one year.Does it need a service /engine oil change?

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by k2max6

My civic ran only 1500 kms last one year.Does it need a service /engine oil change?

If your owner's manual says oil change to be done every 12 months or xx Kms whichever is earlier, then yes.

[norhog]

https://youtu.be/v4JS7PybV2k

I want to jump start an old thread.
Please watch this video for context.
This came to light when my friend bought a used TOYOTA ESTIMA in Tokyo.
It has the Toyota 2AZ-FE engine.
It is also used in the Toyota Camry, earlier models.

The main reason for increased engine oil consumption it seems is because the piston and oil scraper ring's tension was reduced in interest of fuel economy and emission regulations. This coupled with long oil change intervals, these rings are prone to get stuck in the ring grooves due to build up of sludge and gum.

The solution to this issue is change engine oils at old fashioned change intervals, 5000 km and drive longer distances with engine being sustained at high operating temperatures.

Now, in the Indian context, all makers are dying to prove that their engine is more fuel efficient than the other, Maruti Suzuki being the king of them all.

But how was it that we never heard this issue with our petrol engines in India.

The knowledgeable people on this forum can kindly enlighten.
Thank you.

[supremeBaleno]

There are various related queries about oil-change intervals in this thread.

1) At what duration to change oil ?
If you trust a manufacturer enough to plonk down money on a car made by them, obviously you would trust the oil-change interval mentioned by them in the manual. So for our cars/bikes that do a lot of running, I just go by the km schedule - 3K kms for my HH CD100 bike, 5K kms for our old Carb M800 and 10K kms for my MPFI Baleno.

2) What about cars that don't run enough to meet the km requirement, but hit the duration limit ?
If in warranty, I will get it changed irrespective of how low the running is, only so as to not void warranty. Post warranty, I would change oil based on periodic inspection (visual) - not by duration. That's what we do for my Dad's Swift or FIL's A-Star, both of which see only like 3K kms a year - they don't get annual oil-changes.

Obviously point-2 will draw a lot of flak about how this will damage the engine, how visual inspection isn't enough, how oil deteriorates over time etc. But forget engine damage, not a single car of ours since the first M800 bought in 1985 has had any FE issues or engine roughness or any such thing - and we keep our cars for long, atleast 15 years minimum. Infact the Swift is way silent idling than my Baleno, so much that many a time I have thought it is switched off.

And this isn't about money. An oil&filter change is only like Rs1300 at my FNG. And this is a trivial amount annually - even TP insurance costs much more.
This is more about not wasting any resource (especially non-replenishable petro-products) & about how the used oil is (mis)handled in our country.

[zeng]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

There are various related queries about oil-change intervals in this thread.

2) What about cars that don't run enough to meet the km requirement, but hit the duration limit ?

Agree with you on the myth of oil replacement basing on duration limit.

There is no evidence to suggest oil replacement exceeding duration limit ( but within km limit) has shorten life on Asian engines.

If there is such an evidence (never mind an isolated case), I would love to be provided a link suggesting so.

Imho, it is a perpetual parroting from that of the 60's era with far far inferior API oil specifications back then.

[Kosfactor]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

2) What about cars that don't run enough to meet the km requirement, but hit the duration limit ?
If in warranty, I will get it changed irrespective of how low the running is, only so as to not void warranty. Post warranty, I would change oil based on periodic inspection (visual) - not by duration. That's what we do for my Dad's Swift or FIL's A-Star, both of which see only like 3K kms a year - they don't get annual oil-changes.

Depends on their use.

It's all fine until such cars get driven hard one day for whatever reason and then it leaves you on the side of the road! Something I have seen again and again.

Servicing vehicles involves a lot more than oil change, there is a whole host of Inspection, Adjustments, Repair & Replace needed periodically to keep them in good order.

So why change oil? You can skip if you'd like but it's part of the labour charge on your yearly service interval, oil is cheap and used oil is sold to recycling guys by ASCs, no harm done.

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by Kosfactor

It's all fine until such cars get driven hard one day for whatever reason and then it leaves you on the side of the road! Something I have seen again and again.

Driven hard means ? Driven for long distances or revved hard ? Our cars see both when I use them, without being stranded ever due to oil change interval.

The Swift has left us stranded twice, but both were due to faults in the cooling system - a kaput thermostat and the coolant pipe coming off leading to all coolant leaking away.

BTW how did you deduce that all the stranded cars you saw on the roadside were due to oil change issues ?

Originally Posted by Kosfactor

Servicing vehicles involves a lot more than oil change, there is a whole host of Inspection, Adjustments, Repair & Replace needed periodically to keep them in good order.

Most ASS today are overwhelmed with cars and for a routine service all they do is change oil/filter and a car wash.

Even with my FNG where I get my car serviced, oil&filter changes are just that. Any specific issues in the car are taken up as and when observed, without waiting for the annual service.