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The OLM in the Trans Am may have worked at one time. Not so sure now.
GM Mech. says "OLM not accurate"
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Originally Posted By: TiredTrucker
One thing the OLM cannot account for... atmospheric particulate matter... you know... dirt. When operating in very dusty conditions like the gravel roads that I have to go up an down for several miles, each way, to and from the house, daily. Especially in the fall like now, when a lot of semi trucks using the same gravel roads to haul harvest to the grain storage. I use the OLM on my 2013 as an additional tool to decide when to change oil, but no the only marker to go by. I guess I am in the middle. I don't fall into either side... that the OLM is as trustworthy as the sun coming up each day or that the OLM is unreliable. It is just another piece of information. But there are conditions where the OLM is not as accurate as some might contend.
Unfortunately, the OEM's have a lot of weaknesses in many of their design features when it comes to their pickups actually being used for more than grocery getters and taking kids to soccer games.
I will cheerfully refute this at least relative to V8 powered GM vehicles.
We have raised and killed dozens of them here. Our duty cycle is so tough that no other mfgr except GM will keep our factory warranty with our stationary operations. And our fleet vans go out EVERY MORNING at nearly full GVWR. Well over 9000 pounds. All inner city driving.
Yet we routinely get far longer mileage out of our drivetrains than anyone I know or talk to in both my biz and personal contacts. Just sold one with half a million miles on it. Always changed by the OLM since new, did not smoke, drip, or use any oil, and was the quietest engine you never heard. Works every day in Michigan now.
The only reason a dirt road means anything is if you do not know how to properly install and seal an airbox...
One thing the OLM cannot account for... atmospheric particulate matter... you know... dirt. When operating in very dusty conditions like the gravel roads that I have to go up an down for several miles, each way, to and from the house, daily. Especially in the fall like now, when a lot of semi trucks using the same gravel roads to haul harvest to the grain storage. I use the OLM on my 2013 as an additional tool to decide when to change oil, but no the only marker to go by. I guess I am in the middle. I don't fall into either side... that the OLM is as trustworthy as the sun coming up each day or that the OLM is unreliable. It is just another piece of information. But there are conditions where the OLM is not as accurate as some might contend.
Unfortunately, the OEM's have a lot of weaknesses in many of their design features when it comes to their pickups actually being used for more than grocery getters and taking kids to soccer games.
I will cheerfully refute this at least relative to V8 powered GM vehicles.
We have raised and killed dozens of them here. Our duty cycle is so tough that no other mfgr except GM will keep our factory warranty with our stationary operations. And our fleet vans go out EVERY MORNING at nearly full GVWR. Well over 9000 pounds. All inner city driving.
Yet we routinely get far longer mileage out of our drivetrains than anyone I know or talk to in both my biz and personal contacts. Just sold one with half a million miles on it. Always changed by the OLM since new, did not smoke, drip, or use any oil, and was the quietest engine you never heard. Works every day in Michigan now.
The only reason a dirt road means anything is if you do not know how to properly install and seal an airbox...
On my first UOA on the 2.4L Regal, Blackstone said I'd probably be safe to run my dexos1 oil out to 6300 miles. Oddly enough, 6000 miles is right at where the OLM would tick to zero. It drops 1% every 60 miles or so, and seems to hold no matter how or in what kind of temps I drive.
That said, I'm planning on shorter OCIs: 4500-5000. Oil is cheap, engines aren't.
That said, I'm planning on shorter OCIs: 4500-5000. Oil is cheap, engines aren't.
Originally Posted By: Silverado12
I don't trust the OLM (not to say I'm right or wrong, just my hard-headed opinion). The wife's Equinox had to be recalibrated because it was letting oil go too long. I change it anytime after 3,000 miles (2.4 D.I. engine). My pickup truck goes 3,500 + miles. Oil + new filter is cheap insurance. I'm an old timer so I couldn't even think about going 10K miles on an oil change. Too many variables like fuel dilution, dirt, etc. I use Shell conventional oil I get at the Costco.
Cheap insurance. Hilarious.
Let's dump serviceable oil and replace it with serviceable oil and convince ourselves that in some way this is something that will make the engine live forever.
Utterly absurd.
I don't trust the OLM (not to say I'm right or wrong, just my hard-headed opinion). The wife's Equinox had to be recalibrated because it was letting oil go too long. I change it anytime after 3,000 miles (2.4 D.I. engine). My pickup truck goes 3,500 + miles. Oil + new filter is cheap insurance. I'm an old timer so I couldn't even think about going 10K miles on an oil change. Too many variables like fuel dilution, dirt, etc. I use Shell conventional oil I get at the Costco.
Cheap insurance. Hilarious.
Let's dump serviceable oil and replace it with serviceable oil and convince ourselves that in some way this is something that will make the engine live forever.
Utterly absurd.
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
Originally Posted By: TiredTrucker
One thing the OLM cannot account for... atmospheric particulate matter... you know... dirt. When operating in very dusty conditions like the gravel roads that I have to go up an down for several miles, each way, to and from the house, daily. Especially in the fall like now, when a lot of semi trucks using the same gravel roads to haul harvest to the grain storage. I use the OLM on my 2013 as an additional tool to decide when to change oil, but no the only marker to go by. I guess I am in the middle. I don't fall into either side... that the OLM is as trustworthy as the sun coming up each day or that the OLM is unreliable. It is just another piece of information. But there are conditions where the OLM is not as accurate as some might contend.
Unfortunately, the OEM's have a lot of weaknesses in many of their design features when it comes to their pickups actually being used for more than grocery getters and taking kids to soccer games.
I will cheerfully refute this at least relative to V8 powered GM vehicles.
We have raised and killed dozens of them here. Our duty cycle is so tough that no other mfgr except GM will keep our factory warranty with our stationary operations. And our fleet vans go out EVERY MORNING at nearly full GVWR. Well over 9000 pounds. All inner city driving.
Yet we routinely get far longer mileage out of our drivetrains than anyone I know or talk to in both my biz and personal contacts. Just sold one with half a million miles on it. Always changed by the OLM since new, did not smoke, drip, or use any oil, and was the quietest engine you never heard. Works every day in Michigan now.
The only reason a dirt road means anything is if you do not know how to properly install and seal an airbox...
I'm with Steve on this one.
Though his duty cycle is much tougher than mine I run out the interval double so basically 10000 or so miles but I quit tracking it in our chevy's and change the oil the second time the oil change message comes on.
I think it's funny with all the data we have here that people are so hard headed and think they know better than the engineers who spend millions on research and development to figure this stuff out.
Great for a laugh though.
Originally Posted By: TiredTrucker
One thing the OLM cannot account for... atmospheric particulate matter... you know... dirt. When operating in very dusty conditions like the gravel roads that I have to go up an down for several miles, each way, to and from the house, daily. Especially in the fall like now, when a lot of semi trucks using the same gravel roads to haul harvest to the grain storage. I use the OLM on my 2013 as an additional tool to decide when to change oil, but no the only marker to go by. I guess I am in the middle. I don't fall into either side... that the OLM is as trustworthy as the sun coming up each day or that the OLM is unreliable. It is just another piece of information. But there are conditions where the OLM is not as accurate as some might contend.
Unfortunately, the OEM's have a lot of weaknesses in many of their design features when it comes to their pickups actually being used for more than grocery getters and taking kids to soccer games.
I will cheerfully refute this at least relative to V8 powered GM vehicles.
We have raised and killed dozens of them here. Our duty cycle is so tough that no other mfgr except GM will keep our factory warranty with our stationary operations. And our fleet vans go out EVERY MORNING at nearly full GVWR. Well over 9000 pounds. All inner city driving.
Yet we routinely get far longer mileage out of our drivetrains than anyone I know or talk to in both my biz and personal contacts. Just sold one with half a million miles on it. Always changed by the OLM since new, did not smoke, drip, or use any oil, and was the quietest engine you never heard. Works every day in Michigan now.
The only reason a dirt road means anything is if you do not know how to properly install and seal an airbox...
I'm with Steve on this one.
Though his duty cycle is much tougher than mine I run out the interval double so basically 10000 or so miles but I quit tracking it in our chevy's and change the oil the second time the oil change message comes on.
I think it's funny with all the data we have here that people are so hard headed and think they know better than the engineers who spend millions on research and development to figure this stuff out.
Great for a laugh though.
Originally Posted By: Nate1979
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
If I had a car with an OLM I don't think I would use it. I'd probably still go by miles such as "7,500 or 10,000"
Why use an arbitrary value with no data backing up when you would have a data based OLM?
UOA results do change that dynamic a bit, no? Plenty of data there to base OCI's on.
Some of us have worked out exactly what oils work for us, and just how long we can go between changes. My Jaguar 2.5L V6 gets 10,000 mile/yearly oil changes with Mobil 1, 5W-40. Great UOA results, 150,000 miles so far, engine is spotless inside and ZERO spun bearings (a known problem with this engine) I'd say it's semi-scientifically done. No OLM required.
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
If I had a car with an OLM I don't think I would use it. I'd probably still go by miles such as "7,500 or 10,000"
Why use an arbitrary value with no data backing up when you would have a data based OLM?
UOA results do change that dynamic a bit, no? Plenty of data there to base OCI's on.
Some of us have worked out exactly what oils work for us, and just how long we can go between changes. My Jaguar 2.5L V6 gets 10,000 mile/yearly oil changes with Mobil 1, 5W-40. Great UOA results, 150,000 miles so far, engine is spotless inside and ZERO spun bearings (a known problem with this engine) I'd say it's semi-scientifically done. No OLM required.
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