I'm watching alot of information come in on engine failures and thr tear downs point to alot of lubrication issues being the problem
Looking at what I'm seeing the oil looks to be breaking down and building sludge and blocking oil squirter and passages. That almost always leaves the bearings starving for oil and begins the failure process
So what drives the manufacturers when they state the ODI on their engines? It's not what you think it is..and it's not about you getting the most life out of the engine.
Here are 3 factors that go into the factory recommended ODIs
They set the ODI to get the customers past the warranty period which on GM now on most models is only 60,000 miles.
If they can push the interval out to 7500 or even 10,000 they get CAFE credit points from the government because the vehicle will produce less waste oil and environmental impact.
Also they factor in the the reduction of oil changes into their total cost of ownership for the vehicle.
These things are marketing and environmental government regulatory issues not how can we get the.best life out of this engine.
The oils in the great majority of factory fills and specifications are semi or full synthetic. But are being pushed beyond their limits in my opinion.
The oil change reminders in most cars are just timers..simple..although GMs version does have an algorithm that incorporates driving style into it
I have cut my intervals almost in half.
The wife's new 4RUNNER says 10k
I'm doing 5k and my 2024 Ram with 6.7 Cummins says 10k and I'm doing 7k
Also one sure fire way of knowing how far your oil can go in your engine with your driving style is to send in samples for testing. Kits can be bought on Amazon and other places for about $25 each.
If you catch a sample of your oil at say 5000 miles and the sample comes back ok then maybe next time you can push it out a little further and retest to find the limits
Just some food for thought here.
Looking at what I'm seeing the oil looks to be breaking down and building sludge and blocking oil squirter and passages. That almost always leaves the bearings starving for oil and begins the failure process
So what drives the manufacturers when they state the ODI on their engines? It's not what you think it is..and it's not about you getting the most life out of the engine.
Here are 3 factors that go into the factory recommended ODIs
They set the ODI to get the customers past the warranty period which on GM now on most models is only 60,000 miles.
If they can push the interval out to 7500 or even 10,000 they get CAFE credit points from the government because the vehicle will produce less waste oil and environmental impact.
Also they factor in the the reduction of oil changes into their total cost of ownership for the vehicle.
These things are marketing and environmental government regulatory issues not how can we get the.best life out of this engine.
The oils in the great majority of factory fills and specifications are semi or full synthetic. But are being pushed beyond their limits in my opinion.
The oil change reminders in most cars are just timers..simple..although GMs version does have an algorithm that incorporates driving style into it
I have cut my intervals almost in half.
The wife's new 4RUNNER says 10k
I'm doing 5k and my 2024 Ram with 6.7 Cummins says 10k and I'm doing 7k
Also one sure fire way of knowing how far your oil can go in your engine with your driving style is to send in samples for testing. Kits can be bought on Amazon and other places for about $25 each.
If you catch a sample of your oil at say 5000 miles and the sample comes back ok then maybe next time you can push it out a little further and retest to find the limits
Just some food for thought here.