10,000 mile oil changes ?

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Sorry if this topic has been covered.
My 2016 Ford Mustang 3.7 calls for 10,000 mile OCIs. Really ?
Are semi synthetic oils really ready to go this long ?
Should I go full synthetic ? (group 3) for 10,000 OCIs?
My 2012 Mustang with the same engine same oil spec (semi synthetic) called for 7,500 mile OCIs.

I still think 5,000 mile OCIs are the way to go. Is this too "Old Fashoined" way of thinking ?
Has any one here gone 10,000 OCIs as the "normal driving conditions'?
Would anyone here on BTOG go 10,000 mile OCIs ? Or at least 7,500 OCIs ?
How about it, What would your OCI be ?

12-15,000 miles a year, commute is 25-45 minuets of freeway driving, some stop & go, not much, during wet weather (fall to early spring). San Francisco bay area.
I ride my motorcycle when sunny. (Valvoline 10w40 black bottle).
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Would really appreciate feedback.
Thanks David
 
There is no question that current oils are much better than previous versions and that modern fuel injected vehicles are easier on oil (unless turbo'd).

If I were going to run 10K OCI's I'd spend a few bucks more for full synthetic and do an OCI at 7500 to get a baseline.

I do believe that 10K is doable in modern vehicles depending on how much city driving you are doing...more city driving requires more frequent OCI's...
 
Even a basic syn like Magnatec 5w-20 will go the 10K with a great filter like Ultra or M1.
But the Ford OLM is smarter these days then before.
Like my newer F350 which is a 10K changer too lasted only 1800 miles before the OLM went off because time killed the OCI and not miles....
 
Originally Posted By: pbm
There is no question that current oils are much better than previous versions and that modern fuel injected vehicles are easier on oil (unless turbo'd).

If I were going to run 10K OCI's I'd spend a few bucks more for full synthetic and do an OCI at 7500 to get a baseline.

I do believe that 10K is doable in modern vehicles depending on how much city driving you are doing...more city driving requires more frequent OCI's...


+1 The warranty covers 10k oil changes. While I am little leary of using a dino for that, I can't see why a good semi syn couldn't do it. Full syn preferable.
 
10k is very doable. I did it with Pennzoil Ultra in our van where the Chrysler recommendation is to not exceed 8000 miles (iirc). The oil had a little life left in it, not much, but I've since backed down to solely following the OLM regardless of mileage.

Modern oils are simply incredible and engines are getting better because they have to.

There are also plenty of people who have been doing 10k changes for years with standard "off the shelf" synthetic oils.

I can't see me being able to do it with a turbo car though.
 
UOAs consistently showed that the GDI turbo in my mildly tuned Mazdaspeed 3 could run an OCI of 10,000 miles using M1 5W-30.

The N55 in my M235i uses a 10,000 mile OCI with synthetic and I plan to adhere to that schedule.

A semi-synthetic should be fine for a 10,000 mile OCI in your application.
 
10k is fine with your driving conditions. Of course you can always step up to synthetic, and they often have full syn on sale for the price of a syn blend. For example, Napa Synthetic is $3.49 or so a few times a year, and it's rebranded Synpower.

Magnatec is full syn in 0w20 and 5w20.

Doesn't your new Mustang use the IOLM? If it does, you can go by its suggestions with confidence.
 
I guess I am the King of 10K OCIs since I have been doing that for 38 years using only M1 oils. At present I use M1 0-20 with great success at 10K. Some of my engines have gone 250-350K and the engines still performed very well.
 
Your Mustang should have the intelligent oil life monitor. Ford recommends you follow the oil life monitor which could give you an oil change every 3,000 or every 10,000 depending on your driving conditions.

Actually, most conventional oils meet Ford specs but I personally wouldn't go any lower than a quality syn blend for following the oil life monitor. If it was me, throw some Pennz. Platinum in there & wait for the oil life monitor to tell you to change it. Keep it simple.
 
Modern oils are much better than in the good ol' days.

Oil filters are catching up too. But many aren't there yet.

So I'd use only the best filter and a top tier EP synthetic oil for 10,000 mile OCI's.

But I personally believe 5,000 miles is long enough.
 
In terms of money, assuming $25 in DIY oil and filter cost per change, the amount you save by doing 5k changes vs. 10k is $75 over two years using the 15k/yr mileage, or about $3/month. When the oil is changed, whatever undesirables are in the oil go out. People weigh things differently according to their comfort zone I guess. I do the 5k, no UOAs, but have no OLM on my car, only a 5k reminder light.
 
10,000 miles is easily do-able, but I'd use a full synthetic.

If it makes you feel better, change it every 7,500 miles or 2x a year.
 
Say that you change your Oil before 10.000 Miles in a German Car forum and they will yell "What a waste! You are insane!" at you.

Tell them that some people in the US change the oil every 5.000 Miles and they think you are joking and dont believe.
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Do it. OCIs here are much longer then in the US and the engines last and work fine.
Just use a good quality Oil.
 
Piece of cake. Consider this:

In Europe, ocis are now 30k km and 2 years on semi synthetic oils.

In CA, we have Euro quality gas and very favorable weather.

Add to that your mileage is mainly freeway, at probably very moderate speeds in an engine that will spend most of its time turning at 2k rpm.

Your driving conditions overall are about as good as it gets. In CA, I would worry more about which route and lanes beat up my suspension and how to get covered parking to minimize UV damage.
 
Its hard to break the habit, for sure. My rule of thumb is this:

5000 miles conventional
7500 miles semi-syn
10,000 miles synthetic

Since I have 100 quarts of oil in my garage, I never go 10,000 miles and stay to 5000 for conventional and 7500 for synthetic.

Since fully synthetic is only a few dollars more per oil change, I would just use full synthetic.
 
Originally Posted By: spidermann59
Sorry if this topic has been covered.
My 2016 Ford Mustang 3.7 calls for 10,000 mile OCIs. Really ?

Are you sure it's a flat 10K mile OCI recommendation? Doesn't ford utilize OLM these days, where 10K is max, but it could also be much less than that, depending on driving conditions?

10K is assumed for ideal driving conditions: mostly easy hwy driving, no extensive idling, no towing, etc. I would expect a good modern semi-syn should be able to handle this, although personally I'd probably still feel more comfortable running full synthetic in this case.

What is your oil sump capacity?

FYI, I did run 10K OCIs in my BMW at one point when I was accumulating miles quickly. UOA results seemed like the oil could handle it no problem.
 
For me personally, I would use the same oil you are using, change twice a year and call it a day. Based on your post, that is a oil change every 6000 to 7500 miles @ 12 to 15000 miles a year.
Should you do more? My thoughts are that 5000 mile oci is not old fashion thinking. I would also check your manual and see if there is an OCI for "severe use" which may be shorter oci.
To me personally it doesn't matter of the oil is conv, semi or full syn. I change when I change and don't extend if full syn.
 
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