Can more oil=longer drain intervals

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I've been trying to figure out why my LS 460 takes 9.1 quarts of oil...that's a lot of oil. It is a V8, but it's not an overly large engine. So I'm wondering, does this help with oil longevity at all? Is the oil's life easier because it has so much of it in one engine?

I've been running 5w20 Mobil 1 in it for the recommended 5k mile oil change intervals, but I think I can go longer (as others have). Right now I have some cheap 0w20 Carquest full synthetic in it, which I believe is basically Valvoline (and if memory serves me from reading on this site, it has no boron or moly additive in it, so I looking forward to getting it out of there). I think I'm going to try the Toyota 0w20 synthetic - because of all the good things I've read about it here - and see if maybe I can extend to 10k mile oil drain intervals.

I figure it's a good oil, and an engine that takes 9.1 quarts of it may be able to go a bit longer. Am I wrong?
 
5k does seem short with that sump. Is that normal or severe?

For comparison, my retired Trailblazer/Rainier has a 4.2L I6 that holds 7qts. The shortest mileage that the OLM told me to change the oil was 11k. All highway summertime driving was trending over 17k miles.

The only way to be sure is a UOA.
 
You know, I don't know what the manual states as far as driving conditions go. As far as the type of driving I do, it's mostly highway and I'm pretty easy on the pedal.

Did you actually go by the oil change monitor and go the 17k miles before changing it?
 
I had no idea about sump capacity and it's effects on oil. I just thought it was strange that my car took this much oil - I don't ever recall putting that much oil into a car - a truck? Yeah, but not a car. I'd like to take a look at OCI calculator.
 
Thank you! That thing is awesome! I put in my numbers and it suggests 12,300 miles, 15 months.
I don't know if I'll go that far, but I do feel better about going to 10k miles.
 
Ha! There's a few people using the calculator posted above.


According to that, I'm good for 10,100 miles on the Focus.
 
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Yeah, it can be frustrating if several people try to change the inputs all at once. Just download the spreadsheet to your hard drive and open it locally.
 
Thank goodness everyone is happy now.
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It makes perfect sense that the more oil to share the load the longer it could last. Still the mfg calculated the OCI with that in mind.

All of the foreign mmake 4 cylinder engines I have owned had 4 qt sumps, but my GM 2.2 four has a 5 quart sump. The OLM often takes me past 10-12k for OCI. I haven't had a UOA done but the motor sounds ok.
 
Originally Posted By: Danno
And we trust this OCI interval calculator because ... ??

Nobody is forcing you to trust it. They were developed by several BITOGers as some rough guidelines. They should certainly not be used in lieu of your car's manufacturer requirements, especially if you're still under warranty.

I would also recommend a UOA to verify how things are going if you are planning to follow them.
 
Originally Posted By: doublebase

I figure it's a good oil, and an engine that takes 9.1 quarts of it may be able to go a bit longer. Am I wrong?


Yes, you are wrong. Some Toyota engines have big sump capacities and still require the 5000 mile OCI. The 2GR-FE 3.5L V6 holds almost 7 quarts. But it has a VVT system that has multiple VVT oil valves with screens that need to stay clean. Most issues I have seen are from extended OCI's and clogging of some of the VVT parts which effects the whole engine operation. Then there is always the famous Toyota sludge issue. The newer engines call for a 10,000 mile OCI but I would never do it based on my experience. If you keep a Toyota engine clean you will easily get 2-300k out of it with simple maintenance. Stick with the recommended OCI.

BTW, repairing a Toyota VVT system is going to blow any savings on oil changes in about 30 seconds. Especially since you will have to take your Lexus to a dealer to get it done correctly.
 
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Originally Posted By: doublebase
Thank you! That thing is awesome! I put in my numbers and it suggests 12,300 miles, 15 months.
I don't know if I'll go that far, but I do feel better about going to 10k miles.


You will have absolutely no issue going that long with a quality oil and the huge oil capacity of that engine. The use of a quality synthetic will result in a very clean engine, and near zero risk of valve timing related issues, or sludge.

I use M1, 5W-40 TDT (a very robust oil) in my Jaguar. I go 10,000 miles per change. It's a 2.5L engine with a 6 quart sump. UOA results are fantastic, and at 150,000 miles, the engine is as smooth, responsive, clean and efficient as ever. I'm 100% sure I could go 15,000 miles per oil change. Heck, the oil still comes out with an amber color after 10K miles.
 
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Originally Posted By: Doog
Originally Posted By: doublebase

I figure it's a good oil, and an engine that takes 9.1 quarts of it may be able to go a bit longer. Am I wrong?


Yes, you are wrong. Some Toyota engines have big sump capacities and still require the 5000 mile OCI. The 2GR-FE 3.5L V6 holds almost 7 quarts. But it has a VVT system that has multiple VVT oil valves with screens that need to stay clean. Most issues I have seen are from extended OCI's and clogging of some of the VVT parts which effects the whole engine operation. Then there is always the famous Toyota sludge issue. The newer engines call for a 10,000 mile OCI but I would never do it based on my experience. If you keep a Toyota engine clean you will easily get 2-300k out of it with simple maintenance. Stick with the recommended OCI.

BTW, repairing a Toyota VVT system is going to blow any savings on oil changes in about 30 seconds. Especially since you will have to take your Lexus to a dealer to get it done correctly.


I have heard about the VVT issues, but I figured with the toyota 0w20 synthetic I'd be fine. Perhaps I'm wrong. And I haven't seen or heard of any sludge issues with the 4.6 engine, but what you are saying is something I thought about.
 
Originally Posted By: Cujet
Originally Posted By: doublebase
Thank you! That thing is awesome! I put in my numbers and it suggests 12,300 miles, 15 months.
I don't know if I'll go that far, but I do feel better about going to 10k miles.


You will have absolutely no issue going that long with a quality oil and the huge oil capacity of that engine. The use of a quality synthetic will result in a very clean engine, and near zero risk of valve timing related issues, or sludge.

I use M1, 5W-40 TDT (a very robust oil) in my Jaguar. I go 10,000 miles per change. It's a 2.5L engine with a 6 quart sump. UOA results are fantastic, and at 150,000 miles, the engine is as smooth, responsive, clean and efficient as ever. I'm 100% sure I could go 15,000 miles per oil change. Heck, the oil still comes out with an amber color after 10K miles.


Good to hear. I know other owners of the LS 460 are going longer than the 5k mile drain recommendation, but I'm a bit old school...but I'm going to give it a try and perhaps do a UOA.

Jaguar has 15k mile intervals, correct?
I know BMW does - which I found to be amazing, and a gimmick - but I say next to a BMW shop foreman at a dinner a few weeks ago and he say's they have had no problems because of it.
 
My grandmother has an LS430 that I do the oil changes on. I stick to <7500 mile OCI's though since she only drives very short trips once or twice a day. In the past 4 years I think she's put something like 9,000 miles on the car. UOA from blackstone still shows that the oil has some life left but I don't mind changing it out a bit early when I'm in town.
 
I just gave that calculator a shot, it averages out to 6000 miles on the Jeep (assuming it currently makes 350hp, I average 14 mpg overall, using T6 and yes to hard driving). If I tell it I don't drive it hard, the result jumps to 10,400 miles (way too high based on the last UOA I did).

Makes me think I need to do another UOA, as I wouldn't mind being able to stretch the changes out to 7500 miles. I doubt I'll go beyond that even if the UOA says I can, partly because 7500 is the longest I can set the Jeep's computer reminder thingy
grin.gif
 
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