Re: Changing oil and filter...do you go by the vehicle oil monitor or months & miles?
for those of you who can't quite realize it: this is just about as useful of a discussion topic as brand comparisons. it's pretty much all opinion because everyone has different variables. sure, there's a reasonable range, but if you change at 10k there will be people who tell you you are being wasteful because you could go 15k, and there will also be those that tell you that you need to do it at 5k. as long as you are lucid enough to realize that it needs to be changed somewhere around 2k and 20k, then you're likely to be ok. if you can't figure that out, or you believe you absolutely have to go to one extreme or the other, then you have issues that will require professional help that can't be found on a forum.
i have heard plenty of talk about oil analysis tests, but aside from maybe a racer and heavy equipment operator, i've personally never known anyone to do it with daily drivers. what is the turn around time and price for these? for many vehicles i can't see it being too cost effective to test to determine, as an oil change for most vehicles is in the $20-$40 range. if you have an extreme cost difference then maybe it will be worth it to do it. where i live you can beat and abuse the living daylights out of an engine and it will still likely outlast the vehicle due to rust.
sure, being environmentally responsible is a good thing, but there are a lot of variables there too. i drive a low economy truck, but i stack my trips as much as possible and don't idle more than necessary. i see lots of people who run the roads constantly instead of planning multiple stops for one trip. i have also seen people who will idle in their air conditioned prius for 30+ minutes instead of using the air conditioned waiting room. still some will condemn others for being wasteful for doing one extra oil change a year. everyone has a different point of view, and apparently theirs is the only correct one.
