Originally Posted by
rer1967
I thought I'd post this as I know that it was extremely poor advice.
I had stopped in at the local autozone to purchace motor oil (Mobil 1 0w-40), oil filter and cabin filter. Everything was going fine and the worst advice I had ever heard from the cashier that was ringing up my purchase told me that I should only wory about changing the oil filter as the oil was pretty much good for the life of the vehicle.
Myself knowing that regardless the oil is full synthetic, it will still break down over time due to the extreme temps the engine puts it through, that eventually if I were to do as he suggested I'd be sitting on the side of the road one day calling the dealer to locate a replacement engine and possibly exhaust components to boot.
I hope that no one would ever take this type of advice from anyone, regardless of how convincing the person may be.
Just my .02
A co-worker of mine briefly talked about changing oil in his motorcycle. One day he got curious because he heard the same information. I believe he went here:
Oil Analyzers, Inc. - Oil Analysis, Oil Testing Services
He received the kit, took the samples over time and had them analyzed. According to him; the "effectiveness" of the oil did not change significantly. Now, this is second hand information, but I myself have been quite curious about this as well.
I'm not saying oil doesn't need to be changed, nor could I ignore the significance of dirt/grit/particle collection that takes place in oil. It could be worth trying out and see what you come up with.