OIL LIFE...

[ORRadtech]

I did...

Page 1

"I've been changing at the 80% to 85% oil life remaining according to the indicator (around 8500 miles) and the oil properties have been "in spec" with a couple thousand miles remaining according to Blackstone."

Ahh, so you did. Is this you claiming credit/blame for derailing the thread?

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[Hack]

I understand that refined oil and it's additives will break down with time but the notion that oil spending a winter in you oilpan after spending a few million years in the ground will suddenly ruin your engine is preposterous. The church of oil always brings out the weirdos.

So go ahead and ignore what the Ford engineers say to do with respect to changing the oil. Of course you know much better than they do.

I knew when I read the thread title that it would devolve to this.
Neither the OP nor anyone else ahead of this post said anything about how often they changed their oil.
The OP simply wondered why he got a notification that the car believed it had used 42% of it's oil life with just 100 miles of driving and 3/4 months of storage.
Whether you or anyone else changes their oil at 50 miles or 5000 or per the OLM and how much they choose to afford is irrelevant to what was asked.
Why does every thread that mentions oil have to revert to this old, tired argument?

I don't think it's devolving when I try to encourage members to follow Ford's recommendations for oil change intervals.

Forums are actually meant for conversations. Please feel free to join in on the conversation - or continue off topic if you prefer.

Because people who don't know what they're doing have to justify throwing money at the problem to cover the fact that they don't know what they're doing.

I'm not the most knowledgeable when it comes to oil and mechanical things, but I think I'm on pretty safe ground backing up Ford's recommendations on this.

It's not like I'm coming on here proclaiming myself an expert and saying to ignore what Ford says to do. If I were doing that then I could understand someone wanting to know my background of knowledge.

 

[GrabberBargeCaptain]

Overthinking this-the time "limit" on oil changes is more for grannie driving her car to church and back on sundays for 5 minutes-causing a ton of moisture buildup in the oil that will cause sludge and corrosion. It'll take her years to hit the mileage limit so she changes it once a year (every 6 months?) like a good grannie.

It's not for your car sitting for a few months in storage... that's not "hard" on the oil at all.

 

[sms2022]

Disconnect from ford connect so they can’t monitor that you are technically over mileage and run it.

 

[Sycostang67]

I like to change my oil every 5k miles for my own peace of mind. Haven’t even put that many miles on the 15 yet though. My wife’s 2012 wrangler has the oil life measuring deal and it’s gone off once in 11 years and 86k miles. Is it actually checking the condition of the oil which I change every 5k or is the computer stupid? Either way, I’m glad I didn’t wait for it to tell me when to change it.

 

[Garfy]

Oil life monitor is based on time and mileage. It’s just counting the time. Like the previous poster said, just reset it and good to go

If your car is still under warranty (which seems like it is) I'd let it drop to around 20% and then reset it like you did your own oil & filter change. If you want to be sure it's still good, take a sample of it and send it to the lab to have an oil analysis done. I'm sure it'll be good but that'll give you a peace of mind so after the summer driving when it gets down to 20% or less again, you can then do a real oil change and do another analysis and compare it to your first one. I've driven my Hondas over 10,000 miles before the oil life indicator for 15% remaining came on and the oil analysis showed it was fine even at that point and could've gone thousands more miles.

 

[Bulldog9]

There’s no such thing as Full Synthetic, all motor oils are a blend.
Full Syn = marketing jargon.
Faux Synthetic is more appropriate. LOL

A full Ester Synthetic is almost fully synthetic because it doesn't start from mineral oil like most synthetics do.

After observing that the oil life monitor was more based on time than actual engine use or particulate matter, I ignore it, and reset it whenever it comes on. The car is not going to magically record when you remove the oil drain plug. If you're worried about your warranty simply reset it before it gets to zero or when it alerts you.

I do 5K/ 1 Year intervals. 5W30 with The motorcraft racing oil filter. I also have one of those magnetic drain plugs and it comes out perfect every time with not even a slight metallic paste after the first oil change.

 

[m3incorp]

Don't ask why I am smiling at the post directly above this one.

 

[Bulldog9]

So go ahead and ignore what the Ford engineers say to do with respect to changing the oil. Of course you know much better than they do.



I don't think it's devolving when I try to encourage members to follow Ford's recommendations for oil change intervals.

Forums are actually meant for conversations. Please feel free to join in on the conversation - or continue off topic if you prefer.



I'm not the most knowledgeable when it comes to oil and mechanical things, but I think I'm on pretty safe ground backing up Ford's recommendations on this.

It's not like I'm coming on here proclaiming myself an expert and saying to ignore what Ford says to do. If I were doing that then I could understand someone wanting to know my background of knowledge.

This made me laugh out loud.....

I think it's in pretty well established that the OCI indicator on the S550 mustangs is a joke.

The oil life monitor or oil change indicator is just a moneymaker (Just like the CEL) for dealerships for the lemmings who have their cars serviced by the dealer.

They didn't even try to have a somewhat intelligent oil life monitor. I travel for work a lot and am often gone for months at a time. Like others in this thread after having the car sit for 2 to 3 months the oil life monitor will drop 60 to 80% even with under 500 mi on the oil.

Some manufacturers are a bit more sophisticated in tracking time mileage and particulate matter through a sensor in the oil pan.

I've been doing a 5K/Annual interval for years. Occasionally if I've done a lot of highway driving I may stretch it to 7500, and once during a cross country trip had to stretch it to 10K in my Tundra. No noticeable change in color or engine performance.

I haven't tracked the Bullitt, but if I did I would change immediately after a session. That's what I do on my Porsche cars. Why don't I track My Mustang? Very simply it's far more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow.

I'm retiring this year and I do hope to take the bullet out to Austin Texas for COTA.

****Is that enough thread drift?

 

[m3incorp]

Wow, you are the second post in a row that argues the Ford OLM is stupid and a moneymaker and then go on to say you change your oil at 5K or annually (5k is sooner than the OLM typically would recommend) annually....that is exactly when the OLM would recommend "IF" not changed earlier. Please note the "IF".

 

[Johnny Rockit]

I don't think it takes magic for something to happen to an engine and the oil inside it when it is stored and not run. Most people understand when an engine sits for many years it can end up rusted internally. Solids that are suspended in the oil settle out and plug small openings. Lots of things happen when an engine sits. All the things that happen when an engine sits for many years happen when an engine sits for several months. Just a smaller magnitude.

I believe Ford and all car companies are competing for customers. One expense and annoyance of owning a car is maintenance. All car companies have extended the oil change intervals. I think the reason is that they know the engine will last through the warranty even with extended oil change intervals.

It is not in Ford's interest for their engines to last for a long time. They want the car to wear out and for you to buy a new car. I really doubt that Ford is trying to trick their customers by recommending shorter than necessary oil change intervals.

The week after you buy a new one the bomb you with offers to buy a new car. Haha

 

[Johnny Rockit]

I will just reset the monitor. Unfortunately, my mileage this year will be on the low side due to major surgery on my better half real soon. The car is the least of my worries and I posted the thread more for shits and giggles than starting any battles over maintenance. Without your health everything else matters not.

 

[GrowlerSr]

A data point to add to the discussion:
I put track oil (Driven FR50) in my MACH 1 last week and reset the oil life monitor to 100%. On Sunday I drove 157 track miles mostly in 3rd gear with some 4th gear on the straights. RPM hits 7000 four times each lap on the Las Vegas Motor Speedway outer road course. At the end of track day the oil life monitor showed 85% remaining.
I put commuting oil back in the car, reset the oil life monitor to 100% and in three days (229 miles) of commuting the oil life monitor read 97%.
For what it is worth…

Greg

 

[dsiggi]

Thanks guys. Figured as much. If it were based on driving style alone it would be at 97%.

My R does that every year, it wont go to 0 before the 1 year mark and you will still get the same mileage. It threw me for a loop the first winter I had my car as well.

 

[Cobra Jet]

My oil change was about 100 miles ago. Right before its winter slumber.
What the hell is this garbage?

I’ve posted this before, here it is again for those who maybe have never seen it regarding OLM operation and how it functions, per the shop manual:

The timer also counts down as the car sits. So for those wondering why their Oil Life Monitor is saying you need an oil change when you have only driven 500 miles since last oil change BUT the car has been in the garage for 6 months consecutively... The above is your answer.

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