You are here: Home / Articles / Maintenance / Fuels, Gasoline, Additives and Fluids / The Reality of the 3,000-Mile Oil Change

The Reality of the 3,000-Mile Oil Change

The 3,000-mile oil change is part of the American automotive culture. Not everyone follows it, but everyone has learned the 3,000 mile number. However, there are parts of the industry that now openly challenge that convention. In previous years, manufacturers have published oil change intervals other than the 3,000 mile schedule, however, it has been done in a passive manner that required the owner to find the appropriate interval.

Today, oil drain intervals are being stretched further than ever and the impetus is not just from the car manufacturers. In January 2005, Exxon-Mobil launched three new lines of Mobil oil: Mobil Clean 5000, Mobil Clean 7500 and Mobil 1 Extended Performance. These oils are warranted for oil drain intervals of 5,000 miles, 7,500 miles and 15,000 miles, respectively, even on engines that have a shorter factory service interval.

The move toward extended service intervals appear to be three-fold.

  • New oil technologies have allowed the manufacturers and refiners to create more stable oils that will endure longer service.
  • European car manufacturers through the ACEA (European Automobile Manufacturers Association) have long sought the ability to reduce oil use, consistent with the European emphasis on fuel economy.
  • Decreased frequency of traditional tune-up services such as spark plugs and transmission oil have led to less frequent visits for service and a demand by consumers that oil changes follow suit.

What is an extended drain? While the 3,000 mile interval has been most heavily publicized, manufacturers have long been putting 5,000 and 7,500 mile oil change intervals in their service schedules. These are considered regular service drain intervals, not the severe service interval called for in certain conditions. For this article, an extended drain is defined as one that is performed at 10,000 miles or longer.

There are implications to extended drain intervals that go beyond the oil that must be noted. Maintaining a three month or 3,000 mile oil change schedule helps to ensure that automobiles are given attention regularly. Along with the oil change, many fast lube establishments perform other services such as fluid level checks, wiper blade changes, tire pressure checks and tire rotation. Extending the oil drain interval extends the time that these services are performed.

Considering the recent re-emphasis on the importance of tire pressure as a critical portion of vehicle safety (evidenced by on-board tire pressure monitoring systems becoming mandatory in new cars), the extended interval could have implications beyond vehicle maintenance. Furthermore, quick lube businesses generally perform any other routine maintenance such as air and fuel filter replacement, and transmission and gear oil service. While the service interval for these items is as long, or longer, than even the most aggressive extended oil drain interval, the danger that regular checks will go neglected is legitimate.

For the DIY oil changer, the extended drain interval in-and-of itself is a blessing. Fewer changes means less time spent changing oil. However, there are some disadvantages that may out-weigh the time savings. Synthetic oils are, at current market prices, approximately three to four times the cost of conventional oils. While savings can be gained from less frequent filter changes, it would mean that the present oil change schedule would have to be very close to 3,000 miles in order for an extended drain to yield any financial savings. With the plethora of extended drain specifications, the DIYer may have a more difficult time finding the correct oil needed for his vehicle. No longer will oil viscosity be the only important factor in selecting an oil. Instead, attention will have to be given to the many certifications printed on the label. Further complicating the oil change would be the inclusion of an oil life monitor. Some of these systems require dedicated tools in order to reset. Without resetting, the oil life monitor would not know that the oil had been changed and calculation of the next interval would be wrong.

The implications of the extended drain interval on the automotive aftermarket are mixed. There are two clear losers - the quick lube industry and the oil filter industry. According to a past National Oil and Lube News, Marc Graham, then president of Jiffy Lube International, said that for every 100-mile reduction in fast lube customers’ oil change intervals, the industry could realize $105 million in sales. Clearly, the converse is true, so a widespread extension of drain intervals would have an immediate and negative impact on the industry. This could be partly offset by the need for synthetic oils which traditionally command a premium that might help compensate for the lost volume.

The filter industry is completely dependent on the frequency of oil changes for product volume. It is improbable that even the most intensive public awareness campaign could ever convince motorists to change their oil filter more frequently than their oil. However, there is an opportunity to compensate for lost volume with increased gross-dollar-per-sale items. Much like the change from copper to platinum plugs brought forth the challenge of lower sales volumes but also the opportunity to sell a higher-priced product, so too does the extended drain interval allow this possibility. This would come in the form of a premium filter that is designed for an extended drain. Extended drain interval oil requires some of the advantages of synthetic compounds, and the oil filter is expected to follow suit. Synthetic filtration fibers are at the heart of extended drain interval filters and are beginning to become more widespread in their application.

The key for the entire industry is to ensure that an extended oil drain interval does not extend the maintenance interval of other critical parts. Inspection procedures will have to be revised in order to synchronize with the longer time between professionals looking at the car. Should extended drain intervals become widely recommended and, more importantly, followed by consumers, an industry wide effort to educate consumers on the need to monitor other parts on their vehicles would be necessary. With the amount of maintenance that already goes unperformed, it would behoove the industry to develop firm guidelines for the service and all of all components that can be set to a timed interval. Clearly, if the extended drain interval lengthens the time between service visits, it becomes imperative that vehicle owners are made aware of the other needs of their vehicle that must be addressed.