Oil changes on a rarely driven car

[theguru]

This topic has been hashed over a number of times.

I have 2 cars that I seldom drive, or at least maybe a few months between drives. I do however give them a good long drive, and do not do any short trips at all. They don't even get started.

If the cars were getting short driven then I would definately change every 3-6 months. Otherwise 12 months probably is ok.

One car is still under warranty so I change the oil every 6 months regardless. Last time it had only done maybe a few hundred km's. This oil I put into my wife's runabout (it gets chnaged every 5,000km or 6 mos). The other car has only done 2,000km in 2 years (most of that in the 1st year). Only long drives and the oil was changed 6 monthly, now 12 monthly. The oil is Motul 300v 5w-30.

One thing I do is before running either vehicle is I disconnect the ignition (crack sensor)and turn the motor over until the oil pressure light goes out. Then reconnect and start as normal.

And I totally agree with Terry. Get it analysed to determine the best period.

 

[Drstressor]

I have a 1998 90 hp Honda outboard that sits for months at a time. I change out the M1 10W-30 at 18 month intervals and the oil analysis is always excellent. Never more than 8 ppm iron and strong TBN. Total hours are only 50-75 per 18 month interval.

I've learned to stop worrying.

 

[Patman]

quote:

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Originally posted by buster:
The very first post on BITOG under Car and Truck Gas Engine oil.

Just felt like doing that. I don't like going back and reading all the stupid things I've said though.

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My friend in question now has a 1997 Mustang Cobra, and when he got the car about 18 months ago he put in Redline 5w30, and hasn't changed it yet. I think he has about 2000 miles on the oil since then. I'm trying real hard to convince him to do a UOA on it! He's from NJ, so maybe Buster could sneak over to his house and do it for him.

 

[Spector]

When I purchased my toy a few years ago it had 5200 miles on it and the owner had not changed the oil in 18 months and that fill had about 1500 miles on it. It was M1 10W30 with an M1 filter, car was kept outside under a car cover. I changed the oil and the UOA looked pretty good to me. I have since changed oil and filter once a year with anywhere from 2000-3500 miles per year on it and UOA continue to be okay. It gets driven year round and heated up when driven, just not many miles overall.

 

[windcatcher]

I have 77 buick 403 v8 I put about 1500 miles per year on it I change the oil once a year. Last was Quaker State. Oil looked bad though so I changed to Chevron supreme. Mike

 

[CJH]

quote:

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Originally posted by TheLoneRanger:
Patman, I have a similiar situation with a Bronco. I drive it on the weekends only, and it accumulates about 1-2K miles a year. I run Castrol GTX 10w-30 in it, and change the oil once a year. I have heard that you should change oil every 3 months in a seldom driven vehicle.....something about acidic buildup?

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Naw. It's 3 months for severe service only with low miles driven. For normal service with low miles driven, it's once a year.

 

[TomJones76]

You might get a kick out of this UOA -- it's 7-yr-old oil in an Olds diesel.
http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=26;t=000058#000000

 

[GarrettSocling]

So the final answer is that under ideal circumstances time is not the primary factor in needing an oil change?

Seems to be what I am gleaning from bits and pieces around here.

 

[Spector]

quote:

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Originally posted by GarrettSocling:
So the final answer is that under ideal circumstances time is not the primary factor in needing an oil change?

Seems to be what I am gleaning from bits and pieces around here.

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I would agree with that!

 

[jsharp]

quote:

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Originally posted by Patman:

quote:

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Originally posted by buster:
The very first post on BITOG under Car and Truck Gas Engine oil.

Just felt like doing that. I don't like going back and reading all the stupid things I've said though.

---

My friend in question now has a 1997 Mustang Cobra, and when he got the car about 18 months ago he put in Redline 5w30, and hasn't changed it yet. I think he has about 2000 miles on the oil since then. I'm trying real hard to convince him to do a UOA on it! He's from NJ, so maybe Buster could sneak over to his house and do it for him.

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The first UOA I did on my old Mustang was M1 5W-30 that had been in the car 22 months, most of the time spent sitting. It looked pretty normal.

I have GC in it now and LC and I'm going to keep sampling 1 time each year and not change it until Terry thinks I should. At 2-3000 miles a year I'm really curious how long I can go...

 

[Jerry]

I have a similiar issue with my old Galaxie except that I have auto-rx in it to help free up a sticky lfiters (which it did nicely in 200mi). I only put 400-700mi a year on it (enough to cycle through a few tanks of gas). So will take 3 years for clean cycle and 3 more for rinse.. I have antique plates on it so only allowed to drive to and from car shows. I don't want to dump it but will try to get at least a 1000mi on the auto rx before OC.

 

[Mike_dup1]

At the rate he is putting on miles, the car will outlast him. Changing every 3 months is paranoia. I have stored cars for better than 30 yrs. Some times I have not even used it for a year or two. I did not start it or change the oil. Nothing ever happened to them, so if I would have changed oil every 3 months what would it have accomplished besides costing me money?

I say (from experience), change oil once a year just before storing and always use a 100% synthetic oil. Do not start it unless you are going to drive it and not just around the block till it warms up and park it again. Condensation will form inside the engine (oil will then degrade) and exhaust system. A 15 minute run will never generate enough heat to burn that off. So you will be ultimately doing it more harm than good.

If you are wondering what cars I was storing. In this part of Michigan, along the Lake Superior shoreline we get over 250 inches of snow. I always drive a 4x4 in the winter and park my car. Right now my 2002 Trans Am is sitting, (before that is was a 1998 Z34) change oil once every fall and part it. Never to start it till I plan to use it next spring (May). I have done a few UOA and the oil always comes back as good after more the 7500 miles of use and a year. Whats more I could care less if what I am doing it going to have some detrimental effect 30 yrs down the road, I won't be here.

I had an uncle who was fanatic about changing the oil on his Olds Delta 88. He would never drive in the winter, left the area. But he paid a neighbor to start his car once a month during the winter. To make sure it would start when he came back North. But it rarely started and he had to call to have it towed to the dealer. They would change the plugs, put in a new battery about every other year but he continued to follow this routine to the grave. When he was gone the car was worthless, engine was no good and the cars was only about 15 yrs old. I tired to talk him out of this routine but he would not listen. I have never had any of those problems in 30 yrs. So, park it and leave it alone. It does not hurt to keep a trickle battery charged on it thought, 1amp works for me. I will likely hook that up every 3 months and let it on for a week or so.

btw-For those who may not know, always have used 100% synthetics since about 1975 in everything.

[ December 25, 2004, 10:52 AM: Message edited by: Mike ]

 

[davefr]

This is an interesting thread.

My '76 Trans Am is stored year round but once a year in late summer I take it out and drive it enough to run a tank or two of gas thru it. (Which is only several hundred miles per year).

I've always used Mobil 1 and change it every other year.

Is this too long? I think changing oil every 3 months on an undriven car is just plain silly. Where's the sweat spot??

Is there an oil that does particularly well in stored vehicles. How about the diesel oils like Delo 400 or Delvac 1?

What oil characteristics are most important for stored vehicles?? Moly??? Are the hygroscopic characteristics of some of the high end synthetics bad for stored vehicles?? Which oils have the highest cylinder wall "cling"?

[ December 25, 2004, 11:16 AM: Message edited by: davefr ]

 

[wileyE]

The unscientific method I use on all my toys that just sit idle is if the oil still has some color to it i don't worry about it. If it's too dark or black I change it out. I believe oils have additive that deal with the nastys of storage, if the oil is black I assume the additive may be depleted.

 

[blupupher]

Have not heard this mentioned yet, but I was always taught if your going to store a car for more than a couple of months to pull each plug and squirt a tablespoon of oil in it then put the plug back in. Also make sure there is some fuel stabilizer in the gas to keep it from gumming up. On FI motors, pull the fuse for the fuel pump when you have it parked where you want it and let the fuel run out of the lines.
Any of this true or are they all old wives tales???

 

[Losiho]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Patman:
My friend in question now has a 1997 Mustang Cobra, and when he got the car about 18 months ago he put in Redline 5w30, and hasn't changed it yet. I think he has about 2000 miles on the oil since then. I'm trying real hard to convince him to do a UOA on it! He's from NJ, so maybe Buster could sneak over to his house and do it for him.

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Hmmm maybe I should do a UOA as well. My 93 Mazda MX-6 V6 has done about 2,000km since I filled it with Castrol Formula R 5w30 (Gp 3) 2 years ago

 

[bearclaw]

I have a '94 Saab 900SE turbo that's a second car that I'm trying to keep nice, so it gets about 3000mi./yr, mostly in the summer. I use Redline 5W/40 and change it once every 8-9 months. I never see any drastic drop in TBN or anything else abnormal in a UOA that gives me any concern. In the winter, I drive it about once a month to work (about a 45 min. cycle on the highway each way), and I start it once for a few minutes every couple weeks in between. I think if I weren't going to have the opportunity to drive it for months at a time, I would leave it alone and not start it at all.

Thinking about this topic, I always consider the millions of cars that get shuffled around the used car market. When you look at a used car that's more than a couple years old, chances are good that it's been to auction, shipped in from another part of the country, sold around between dealers, etc., for months or more. Maybe it hasn't had an owner for over a year. During that time, the only use it's had is moving it around a lot, onto a carrier, or being started once in a while by a lot boy. Very seldom do they get the benefit of an oil change during that time. Yet almost all these cars are unaffected by this and (their engines, at least) go on to live long, happy lives.

 

[Racerjk]

I have a '95 Formula with 52,000 miles on it. The car is driven only on weekends and in nice weather. I use M1 now, but I change the oil every 2000-2500 miles because the car sits so much. I know that's overkill, but that only works out to 3 or 4 oil changes a year.

 

[bearclaw]

I also use Klotz Uplon as an upper-cylinder lubricant, goes in at a 1/2-oz. per gal. Maybe not necessary, but a little extra protection.

 

[Kestas]

quote:

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Originally posted by blupupher:
Have not heard this mentioned yet, but I was always taught if your going to store a car for more than a couple of months to pull each plug and squirt a tablespoon of oil in it then put the plug back in....

Any of this true or are they all old wives tales???

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Though it doesn't hurt, for just a couple of months it's not really necessary.

I've been storing cars for 30 years in the Michigan climate. I've always had a winter car and a summer car. Though I try to start them once a month or every two months, sometimes they go the whole season without any attention. I rebuilt the engine on one of these cars after 18 years ownership. There was no evidence of neglect from not squirting oil into the cylinders.

I would suggest that squirting oil is a good idea if it sat longer - say over a year - or if the climate was more aggressive, as in Florida.