GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I know that as a rule you can go more miles between changes with synthetic oil, but when the car is still under warranty do I need to worry about specific intervals to be sure I never run into any problems with "voiding" the warranty?

I'd probably not let your interval go past 6 months. or 7500miles.

Using Mobil1 I tend to go around 7000km / 4350mi between changes, using a quality filter (NOT Fram or the other brands made by Champion Labs). You can probably go more, judging by the quality of the oil when I'm changing. Depends on your driving conditions and style though.

I figure I'll go the 6000 to 7500 range. I just wasnt sure if changing at those longer intervals would have any downside if I ever needed any repairs under warranty. I don't want them to refuse warranty repair because I didn't change my oil every 3000 miles...

One my cars has an oil life monitor that is dead accurate. A GM Master Corvette Technician also told me the life monitor does not lie. I run Mobil1 syn oil in it. However, the harder I run the car, the quicker the oil life goes down. I change the oil once a season, this season started at 100% in April and now Sept, the life is at 67%. I have fun with my car and drive it hard sometime; how can I not! LOL!!!! It will be changed before I store the car for winter regardless of % life left. Not good to store the car with dirty oil in the engine. My point is, yes you probably can go longer but without an oil life monitor, I would not push the length of time you go. And make sure you use a new oil filter everytime you do change it out. Dlrs can easly tell if a filter has been on an engine for a long time if it has started to rust and now is in for warranty work.

I go 7000 on Mobile 1. I use the Fram XG3614 filter (I don't know why people keep knocking Fram, I've had no issues).

My sister just bought a Mini Cooper, it has Castrol synthetic from the factory. The 1st oil change is scheduled at 10,000 miles then every 15,000 miles afterward. I couldn't believe it I told her I personally would not wait that long. I have been using Castrol synthetic and cjange at 7500 miles. (I have 89,900 miles now)...

Quote, originally posted by Rico Rose »My sister just bought a Mini Cooper, it has Castrol synthetic from the factory. The 1st oil change is scheduled at 10,000 miles then every 15,000 miles afterward. I couldn't believe it I told her I personally would not wait that long. I have been using Castrol synthetic and cjange at 7500 miles. (I have 89,900 miles now)...That's what kills me about service intervals and warranty issues with American cars. In Germany NOBODY changes their oil and filter at 5,000k (3,000m) and if I venture to guess, I'd say that 98% of Germans change their oil at or after 10,000k (6,200m). Considering that four cylinder engines are the standard and they are driven at much higher rpm's than here in the States, it says a lot about the ability of synthetic oils to maintain long-term service intervals. My brother-in-law is part of this cult of VW-Polo owners who spend WAY TOO MUCH on their cars, yet for all his aftermarket hoopla (including a roll cage, gutted interior & aluminum body panel replacements, etc.), he changes his oil and filter on a 15,000k schedule. And he drives that car to the point of abuse, like most Germans do ;-)Anyway, back to the warranty question: If Ford and Opal (GM) warranty their engines on long-term oil & filter change intervals in Europe, why not here? Granted, there are subtle differences between engines (mostly due to emisions standards), but could they be so great as to require such vastly different service intervals?IT'S A CONSPIRACY I TELL YA'!BTW: I'm putting my Vibe on a 5,000m service interval (Mobil 1 & Denso filter), mostly so I can also rotate the tires at the same time and get it all done at once. And honestly, that's probably a waste of oil and money...but I don't want to get too far out of whack with the warranty requirements.