How Often Should I Change My Oil?

You know changing the oil in your car is the key to making it last. Now comes a basic question. How often should I change my oil? I’m glad you asked!

There is one step you must take if you want your car to last. You already know it if you are reading this article. You must change your oil. Oil lubricates the internal components of your engine, removes particles that can damage the engine and sucks heat away as well. When oil starts to break down, so does its ability to do these things. That is when expensive repairs start.

So, how often should you change the oil in your car? Many people immediately blurt out “3,000” miles. Somewhere, a marketing executive smiles every time this happens. The 3,000 mile number is a marketing slogan, not a factual statement based on scientific studies. Does that mean you are harming your car if you change the oil every 3,000 miles? Of course not, but you could be spending more money on oil changes than you need to. That is a big deal these days.

The best way to determine how often you need to change your oil is to find your owner’s manual. Men will find this difficult as we have a natural inhibition when it comes to reading instructions. Fight the power! This is one time you want to read and read closely. Your manufacturer will spell out the specifics of the type of oil and when changes should be made for your specific car model. In most cases, you’ll find the oil change suggestion set at every 5,000 miles or more.

There are exceptions to the manufacturer’s recommendations when it comes to oil changes. They fall into two categories. The first is driving based. The second is climate based. Let’s take a closer look.

Let’s say you live in a large city. Most have massive traffic problems these days. If you drive in stop and go traffic to and from work every day, you engine is being stressed and so is the oil. The oil is going to be compromised much quicker than if don’t drive in rush hour traffic. In such a case, you might want to change the oil every 2,000 miles or so. Stop and start driving is really bad for your car, so be conservative on your change intervals.

The second issue is the climate. If you live in an area where it gets really hot or really cold, you need to change your oil more often than recommended by the manufacturer. I was in Las Vegas last summer in August. Oh, my. It was about 108 degrees and I could barely breathe. Well, you imagine the impact this would have on a car engine. The heat index goes through the roof and the oil is put under tremendous stress. Changing it every 2,000 miles during the summer months in Vegas is just a prudent move. The same would go for climates that are excessively cold as the chemical structure of oil can also be impacted.

How often should I change my oil? Forget the marketing slogans. Pop open that owner’s manual and look up “oil” in the index. You’ll find the answer there. Just make sure to adjust accordingly for your driving or climatic situation.

<< Back to Car Oil Information