Anybody going by the GM Oil Life System?

[crop000s]

Are you going by the GM Oil Life System or changing it by the mileage????

[crop000s]

Are you going by the GM Oil Life System or changing it by the mileage????

[walc]

I'm going by the GM Oil Life System.
I had the same thing on a BMW. Average oil change was around 15,000 miles.
I figure that the manufacturers, who have to fix problems for free, under warranty, know best.

[H3CAN]

My friend has an envoy with all these computer motor monitoring systems.....and he ended up having a lot of problems with it because the computer let him drive more than 20 k miles. Some was under warranty, other repairs were not.

My advice is spend the $ 30-40 dollars and save your engine plus all the hassles of the dealer refusing the warranty....my opinion.

[dchou1107]

i am going by the GM oil life. Hopefully it is reliable. i heard that it is set at about 10k

[WPBGUY]

Has any one discovered the remote diagnostics yet. I found it. Then I accidentally reset the oil life monitor. I instantly got an e-mail notifiying me that my oil was changed and was at 100%????

[bjc]

How do you access the remote diagnostics?

[mpvalen]

New 2008 H3 with 1260 miles on it and the OnStar report just said oil was at 82% with a predicted oil dump at 7400 miles.

Working for a Major Transit System, we do oil samples at 4500 miles to see what the oil condition is. Many gasoline engines start seeing more metal in the oil after 5000 miles. The new semi-synthetics have better lubricity through the 7500 mile mark as long as the conditions are not too severe (AKA extreme cold / short trips, extreme heat / long trips, dirtry dusty environment, Marine salty environment)

My higher compression engines really carbon up the oil early so they get changed @3,000-4,000 miles.

[homeboy]

i change mine every 5000 miles.maybe too anal but i want this vehicle to last!

[wpage]

I get the onstar reports and look at the status. However I use synthetics and still change regularly about 5K miles...

[richl]

i do mine every 3k with full synthetic.......... but i do them myself also .pull the drain plug and walk away for half a hour.......... i am a master tech for a living i have seen first hand what neglect on oil can do ..........

[Big Dad]

When I bought the vehicle I bought a contract that changes my oil (at the dealer) every 3000 miles or 3 months whichever comes first for the life of the vehicle. Good in Alaska and Washington so far. That was offered to all of you, right?

[ctluba]

I was curious as to when that system would call for an oil change. I didnt wait to see. I change my oil around every 3000 or 3500. Since this is the first new vehicle I ever bought I take care of it better than my poor kids!!

[Huck BB62]

I use the oil life monitor. It's been proven through oil analysis to be a conservative calculator of when to change your oil. New closed loop fuel injected engines do not contaminate the oil like the engines of the past. Oil forumulations are much improved. Group III base stocks (hydrocracked, highly refined) nearly mimic synthetic base stocks. Additive packages have been greatly improved. Lastly, synthetic oils are absolutely up to the task of completing their life cycle that the GM oil life monitor calculates. You can see a basic writeup of how the system calculates here: http://www.gmgoodwrench.com/_res/pdf/OLS1.pdf

A search of the internet will show you where the monitor's algorithm is conservative. If nothing else, for your peace of mind, run a good synthetic.

I'm not going to get preachy here, but anything I can do to keep from pouring money to people that hate us, I do. I don't buy chicom crap unless there's no alternative and I have to have it. My spending has gone way down since I started this. Another thing is that I drive a little slower most of the time. I've been amazed at the increased mileage of all my vehicles since I've started this. And I run Royal Purple in everything that rotates (there's other quality synthetics, pick your favorite) and Mobil 1 oil filters.

Seriously, with today's closer tolerances, better filtration, and seriously decreased contamination, it's overkill to do a 3k oil change unless you're racing or towing, but even then, they GM oil life monitor takes this into effect. Oil analysis has shown the system to be an accurate indicator, even conservatively, of your oil life. It will save you money. It protects your engine. Most importantly, it cuts back on how much oil we need. It's really hard to get off of the recreational oil change bandwagon, but it's the prudent thing to do.

If the oil monitoring system were a bad one, you'd be reading all over the internet of engine failures and GM would kill that program yesterday.

Help us save millions of gallons of oil folks, trust the technology. I'm saying this as a certified tribologist and have read plenty on it.

[wpage]

I use the oil life monitor. It's been proven through oil analysis to be a conservative calculator of when to change your oil. New closed loop fuel injected engines do not contaminate the oil like the engines of the past. Oil forumulations are much improved. Group III base stocks (hydrocracked, highly refined) nearly mimic synthetic base stocks. Additive packages have been greatly improved. Lastly, synthetic oils are absolutely up to the task of completing their life cycle that the GM oil life monitor calculates. You can see a basic writeup of how the system calculates here: http://www.gmgoodwrench.com/_res/pdf/OLS1.pdf

A search of the internet will show you where the monitor's algorithm is conservative. If nothing else, for your peace of mind, run a good synthetic.

I'm not going to get preachy here, but anything I can do to keep from pouring money to people that hate us, I do. I don't buy chicom crap unless there's no alternative and I have to have it. My spending has gone way down since I started this. Another thing is that I drive a little slower most of the time. I've been amazed at the increased mileage of all my vehicles since I've started this. And I run Royal Purple in everything that rotates (there's other quality synthetics, pick your favorite) and Mobil 1 oil filters.

Seriously, with today's closer tolerances, better filtration, and seriously decreased contamination, it's overkill to do a 3k oil change unless you're racing or towing, but even then, they GM oil life monitor takes this into effect. Oil analysis has shown the system to be an accurate indicator, even conservatively, of your oil life. It will save you money. It protects your engine. Most importantly, it cuts back on how much oil we need. It's really hard to get off of the recreational oil change bandwagon, but it's the prudent thing to do.

If the oil monitoring system were a bad one, you'd be reading all over the internet of engine failures and GM would kill that program yesterday.

Help us save millions of gallons of oil folks, trust the technology. I'm saying this as a certified tribologist and have read plenty on it.

Huck,
I respect what you are saying here. What does this average out to using RP Syn and the GM monitor in miles B4 changes are needed 6K, 10K?
Some seem to think the GM monitoring system is nothing more than a mileage alarm...

[ctluba]

Gee Huck, I never looked at it from that perspective. You seem to know your sh-t. I will read up on it to educate myself and then go from there. Thanx.

[pdsq99f4]

If you've ever seen under the valve cover of an H3 that goes by the oil life monitor and one that is changed every 3K miles, you would change it every 3,000 miles.

[HummerHippy]

I have mine changed every 5000. Nice round # :)

[lennyrebel]

I use Castrol Synthetic and change every 3000 miles. Old school I was brought up that this is the thing to do so I do it. I've never had bearing or ring or seal problems in any vehicles I owned so I think it's a cheap investment.I kept one car 16 years and the motor was still great when I got rid of it.

[RubHer Yellow Ducky]

When I bought the vehicle I bought a contract that changes my oil (at the dealer) every 3000 miles or 3 months whichever comes first for the life of the vehicle. Good in Alaska and Washington so far. That was offered to all of you, right?

NO !!!

[Viet Nam Vette]

I'm Old School... I dump that balck Chit at 3000 miles. I use Mob-el One.
The only oil life monitor that would work for me would be a real ...real small midget inside the crankcase with a Chemistry Set to test the Oil and call my cell and give me the report.

Other wise..It's Old School..:cool:

[Big Dad]

When I bought the vehicle I bought a contract that changes my oil (at the dealer) every 3000 miles or 3 months whichever comes first for the life of the vehicle. Good in Alaska and Washington so far. That was offered to all of you, right?

NO !!!

The contract was 300 bucks...as long as I owned the vehicle. I'd have probably been better off investing the money in something with a decent rate of return and used the profit for my oil changes. But more than likely I'd have blown through it in a couple of months by using it for my lunch-time cocktail bill.