Not daily cars, annual oil changes only?

[1MEAN18]

My GT is not a daily car, its only driven on nice warm days so its mileage stays low because of this. I change oil once a year, before I put the car away for winter. I only use Shell Rotella T6 5W40 full synthetic. I also use a bottle of Ceratec in each oil change along with a Motorcraft filter. I also only run E85 as fuel which has a bit more acidity to it than gasoline. If you are curious about once a year oil changes, and if that is enough, or if that is even overkill for an engine that might see 2-3k miles a year take a look at this video. This guy is very scientific but also down to earth and actually tests this theory. Check it out!

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[Zooks527]

Rotella is a diesel oil. I believe as such that it contains enough sulfur that it's going to start poisoning your catalytic converter if you start burning any.

 

[1MEAN18]

Rotella is a diesel oil. I believe as such that it contains enough sulfur that it's going to start poisoning your catalytic converter if you start burning any.

No cats here. But I wouldn't worry even if I still had em. Nowhere near enough sulfur in that oil to do any damage at all. And yeah, its definitely a diesel oil, that's the very reason I started using it years ago in cars I run ethanol in like my tuned ecoboosts and now my coyote.

 

[kent0464]

Rotella is a diesel oil. I believe as such that it contains enough sulfur that it's going to start poisoning your catalytic converter if you start burning any.

Rotella has been the preferred oil for many years in performance cars using slider cams as it has the old school additives to prevent wear that are missing in most modern oils.
As to changing the motor oil once a year......that’s not happening in my vehicles, I was kinda shocked when the dealer told me once a year was was good for my 17 F150, 17 GTPP, and then again for my 19 EcoBoost mustang. I drive my vehicles pretty hard and use Mobil one full synthetic, but continue to change my oil every 3k miles or 3 months. I would highly recommend an oil change more frequently especially with any boosted application as blow by IS going to contaminate the oil faster than an N/A application.

 

[Strokerswild]

I change oil in 5,000 mile intervals, no matter what the time period during that mileage. Never an issue.

I used to build engines in my spare time, and I've seen engines that had sat on a stand for literally decades with a full sump of whatever oil was in the engine at the time of it going into hiatus. The oil in these situations is just.....oil. Nothing evil eating away at parts, no drama. I'm currently working on an old motorcycle that has the oil tank integral to the gas tank, which hasn't run since 1981. Same situation, the oil tank is pristine inside, and I'm sure the oil could be used without issue. Wish I could say the same for the gas side of the tank.....

Oil is one of those topics that way too many people overthink, IMO.

 

[NoVaGT]

.....continue to change my oil every 3k miles or 3 months......

The 1950s called. They want their oil change intervals back.

 

[CORNYOTE]

The 1950s called. They want their oil change intervals back.

For those with Gen3's and running E85, oil change intervals should most definitely be shortened quite a bit as the direct injection combined with E85 will generate a lot more cylinder wash and contamination.

3,000 is probably a bit much, but a Blackstone oil analysis will tell you exactly when you should change it. Not sure why more people don't use them.

 

[Gregs24]

What the video is saying is a lot of oil is being changed needlessly !

 

[17Magnetic5.0]

Personally I just do every 6 months since I never get to 5000 miles. These engines can easily go 10000 miles between oil changes though. I just don’t like the fact that the engine oil is sitting for so long so I change it out.

 

[Zinc03svt]

Non daily, and full time E85. I change it every 3k. And I really don’t care what anybody else thinks...!!!

 

[fiveoboy01]

The 1950s called. They want their oil change intervals back.

The 21st century called. They want you to have a clue before posting.

 

[gstboy69]

Shell Rotella T6 5w40. No tick!! I have 2,000 miles on odometer this my history. I change the oem oil at 300 miles (when I change the oil he have only 8 quarts and the oil not look like new, then I change to castrol 5w-30 (10 quarts) synthetic. When I change my OpGs I put other 10 quarts of castrol 5w-30 and run the car to 2000 miles. When I remove the castrol oil looks great but 2 weeks ago I change to Shell Rotella 5w40 and waiting 2,000 plus for change the oil now the beast have a Hellion Street Sleeper kit). Sorry Amazon have good prices for the oil and filters.

 

[NoVaGT]

The 21st century called. They want you to have a clue before posting.

I have clues.....a plethora of them even. Maybe you should look for some yourself.

 

[EFI]

The 1950s called. They want their oil change intervals back.

What about people that track their car every other couple weekends in the summer along with driving it on the street, is 3/3k still too early?

 

[kent0464]

Lol! This thread went all to hell pretty quick!
My suggestions are simply that, suggestions. I build motors and transmissions for a living, so use my suggestions as you see fit.
As far as sending oil samples to a lab like Blackstone.....how many of you that use this service actually know what your looking at......do you really need to pay someone to know that there’s antifreeze or water in your oil? Or fuel? Or when the viscosity is degraded?
Let’s look at some facts; thermal break down is among the most damaging effects in motor oil, internal heat causes a chemical reaction in the motor oil which causes the viscosity to change, repeated heatings and temps beyond a certain point cause the motor oil to degrade, more so in a turbo car than an N/A car. Secondly, motor oil degrades over time, heat moisture and air cause degradation, oxygenation of the oil, leading to sludge, deposits and corrosion.
Armed with this knowledge, would you rather be reactive, to a report that the viscosity, etc has broken down.....note that while you’re waiting for the answer from a report that more damage is occurring! Or would you rather be proactive, heading off any damage by maintaining good viscosity and lubrication for the motor?

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