The 3,000 Mile Myth

There is something out there that costs most people in money and time, but it is unnecessary. I see it all over the place, in TV commercials, at auto parts stores and on signs in front of the "quickie change" places. It is the 3,000 mile oil change. The myth says "if you change your oil every 3,000 miles your engine will run and wear better", but it has been proven many times that this is just not true.

If you follow the money, you can see where this comes from. It is very good marketing, not some conspiracy, that uses the common sense of most motorists. When you hear the this, it seems to make sense that changing your oil often will do just what the marketers say. Instead of listening to marketers, I would like to give you some info that will help you understand why spending up to an hour in time and extra $$$ for extra oil changes can be avoided.

I believe most people are misled by where their information comes from. As I said before, the marketers want you to change your oil every 3,000 miles, but to find out if that is really necessary you need check your owner's manual that comes with the automobile. There are some cars that require a 3,000 mile oil change, but today that is few and far between. When you think about it the people who built your car are going to know much more about what it really needs than anyone else. If your manual calls for a 7,500 mile oil change, then that is what they have determined is optimal.

As an example of how much of a difference this can make, I will use our cars. In our household, we have three cars. Car 1 is a six cylinder car, holds 4.5 quarts of oil and costs $40 per oil change. Car 2 is a six cylinder, holds 9.5 quarts of oil and costs $80 per oil change. Car 3 is a V-8, holds 7.5 quarts of oil and costs $65 per oil change. My oil changes are a little more expensive because I only use Mobil 1 synthetic oil in our cars. If the average on all three cars is 15K miles per year, then I would spend $925 on 15 oil changes. Keep in mind I do my own oil changes so they would cost a good bit more if I took my cars somewhere and had it done for me.

If you look at the owner's manual for the cars, Car 1 calls for an oil & filter change every 6,000 miles. Car 2 calls for one every 15,000 miles and Car 3 every 7,500 miles. With those intervals, I should have only changed the oil in Car 1 2 1/2 times, Car 2 only once in a year and Car 3 twice in a year. My total expense for what is called for in the owner's manuals would be $322.50 for 5 1/2 oil changes over the year. I saved $602.50!!

So what is the proof that this causes no more engine wear or degraded oil? First was a test done by Consumer Reports a few years ago. They took two identical cars and ran them 100K miles. In one car they changed the oil every 3,000 miles and in the other they changed it when the owner's manual said to do it. At the end they tore down the engines and measured the wear on both. The engine wear was the same on both cars so their conclusion was the 3,000 mile oil change was not necessary.

My own proof for my cars comes from the oil reports. Since I do all of the work on my own cars, every time I complete an oil change I send a sample in to Blackstone Labs. They test it to see if the oil has degraded and also list any metals or contaminants they find in the oil. My reports always come back saying the oil is still performing to standards and the contaminants and metals are normal. In fact, in Car 1, because I use Mobil 1 oil those tests actually came back saying the oil was still like new and I can extend the use. That car is up to a 9,000 mile oil change now and the reports always say the engine is in great shape and so is the oil.

So don't listen to marketers when it comes to your automobiles. Save yourself time and money by listening to the manufacturer and changing the oil when they recommend. On the other end, never extend your oil changes past the manufacturer's suggested cycle without proper oil testing that shows it does not harm your engine to do so.