Do you go by time or by mileage for oil changes?

[Steamfitter]

I've been getting oil changes every 8000km (just under 5000 miles) like my owner's manual tells me to. However, I have not been driving my T4R much this year since I'm working at a fly-in camp job and only drive the t4r on my week off. The dealership says change the oil every 8000km(5000miles) or every 6 months. It's been 6 months and I've only put on 4000 km, does it make a difference if I wait till I hit 8000km? What does everyone else do?

 

[470SNC]

I do it by mileage, every 5k miles

 

[V8Man]

Since I am a slightly anal engineer I go by hours too, yes I installed an hour meter. Because time and distance are related, it depends on how you drive too. I commute 100 mile round trip, the wife drives mostly in town.
Simple math, 3,000 miles at 60 mph is 50 hours. The wife 3,000 miles at 30 mph is 100 hrs. I know the engine has more revolutions in highway trip but idling in traffic and carpool lanes is hard on engines too. So as they say “time is relative”.

 

[nevada]

Since I am a slightly anal engineer I go by hours too, yes I installed an hour meter. Because time and distance are related, it depends on how you drive too. I commute 100 mile round trip, the wife drives mostly in town.
Simple math, 3,000 miles at 60 mph is 50 hours. The wife 3,000 miles at 30 mph is 100 hrs. I know the engine has more revolutions in highway trip but idling in traffic and carpool lanes is hard on engines too. So as they say “time is relative”.

3000 miles, whether based on miles, or hours is early for an oil change nowadays...

 

[02SE]

It depends. My bikes get the oil changed based on miles, or if the shifting starts to become notchy.

The cars I generally change based on the condition of the oil, and time if I'm bored.

 

[V8Man]

3000 miles, whether based on miles, or hours is early for an oil change nowadays...

3,000 miles was used as example. Use 5,000, 7,500, or 10,000 miles. You double the hours when the average mph is half.

 

[m85476585]

Every 6 months sounds excessive. Every year would be better. If you use synthetic, it can probably sit for almost an unlimited amount of time (a few years or more) before it needs an oil change because of time.

If you mostly take short trips, it would be a good idea to change it sooner than 5,000 miles. Maybe you could come up with a formula like engine hours on a cold engine times a multiplier (I would guess between 2-10) plus engine hours on a warm engine. My last car (a Honda) had a maintenance minder that kept track like that.

 

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Q6 month

 

[truc.karl]

Whichever comes first for peace of mind.