Z Oil Change: Miles or Time?

370Z Purist

I change the oil twice a year; I've done the first oil change at a local lube station using their "full synthetic" service for 50 dollars; valvetrain noise was insane. Despite my specific instructions to leave the car alone, my father took it upon himself to change the oil. He's also driven it enough, badly enough so that my clutch noticeably softened, but that's a story for another time.
The next time was at a Nissan dealer at 5000 miles (cost me 89 dollars with a coupon! insane! this is for their special "ester oil" too) was the next one. After that, I did Redline at 7000 about 8 months later, then I did Royal Purple this winter at 10000 miles. I've had about 6-8 months between changes, average.

I have noticed that after the oil change at the lube joint that the valvetrain noise was very very loud and clicky; enough to actually hear from inside the car. Nissan's Ester Oil and Redline both significantly reduced this noise, and Royal Purple is a bit louder. I've decided to go with Redline for the rest of the foreseeable future.

Also, funny story; my friend is very mechanically inclined but his parents are not; their 09 outback sport went 40,000 miles without the VERY first oil change. Since then he has taken it upon himself to change it every season, and it still runs very well. It would appear to me that as lone as there is some oil in the car, it doesn't really seem to matter as long as it isn't driven like a track car. More or less, though, with our cars, it's probably a better option to do at least a yearly oil change, ideally every six months.

Of course, that's just my two cents, and my personal experience. The oil debate will go as long as there is anything that ever needs oil. Might as well go with what you know or what you believe.

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-Phil

"Since one of my brake light bulbs just went out, the forum told me that my piston rings are about to blow."

MacLean

WOW...... WTF. That is insane & I have never ever heard someone going that effen long w/o changing their oil & especially their first oil change. I'm surprised there wasn't any damage from that.

JARblue

No crap... I thought my mom was bad when she let her mid-90s 626 go 12K w/o oil change. 40K tho? My friend had a brand new Mercedes not two years ago whose manual recommended 12,500 oil change increments.

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IDZRVIT

There is a message here - 3750 mile oil changes under normal driving conditions (no tracking, etc) are not necessary. Obviously, Mercedes has a lot of confidence in their engines from not breaking down given their 12K mile oil change intervals. I have the same confidence in the Nissan engine, my 355 SBC, '03 Sport Trac and John Deere LT150. All use Mobil 1 and the oil is changed once a year irregardless of the mileage. But that's just me and my 35+ years doing my own maintenance and repairs. Hey, why pay $100/hr labour rates when you can DIY?

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"America.... still builds rockets!"
Vette: 355 cid, 400 rwhp
'13 CTS-V Coupe: 6.2L LSA, 556HP

JARblue

We put enough miles on the Z that I am changing it every 6-7 months on average. The dealer did the first two cause I had some credit with their service department, but going forward, I will be doing them myself. I will say that if you do the recommended 7500 miles or 12 month increments, I think that the cost per year for oil changes just isn't significant, even if you do pay someone else to do it. We ARE driving $30K vehicles after all, so if you don't want to do it yourself, then pay the money to have it done right. I, for one, am looking forward to doing my own maintenance on the Z. It is my first true sports car and really the first car I haven't thought of as simply a mode of transportation.

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Coon-azz

No way.... what kind of mileage out of curiousity...sorry..

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I don't care how slow you want to drive; I encourage it. JUST GET THE HELL OUT OF THE PASSING LANE YOU TUCK FARD!!!

IDZRVIT

The Z is only a weekend driver so not a lot of kilometers put on it. Oil/filter is changed in the fall before going into winter storage. I won't leave 'contaminated' oil in it over the winter only fresh oil. The Sport Trac clocks around 10K miles/yr. Change oil/filter in the fall. I've owned the JD LT150 for 5 years and it came used with the house when I bought it. It gets used every week or so in the summer to mow 15K sq. ft. of lawn. In the winter it is used as a snow blower and used maybe 5-10 times. I changed the oil and filter about 3 years ago. I'll probably change it again this year. The 'vette gets very little use so the oil is changed every second year. All vehicles are in excellent working condition and no weird noises from their engines.

IMHO, Nissan and other car makers recommend oil change intervals way too often. It's a win-win for them because most owners (assumption) of these cars take them to the dealer for scheduled maintenance. Nissan supplies the parts and the dealer installs whether the car actually requires the maintenance or not. Mercedes doesn't seem to think so and their engines aren't anything special as in made entirely out of exotic metals. In closing, I don't buy into all the hype about changing oil every few thousand miles or every few months. But for those that feel by doing these frequent changes for peace of mind then continue to do so. Your engine won't last any longer or any less but I don't have any hard facts to back this up - just my own experiences.

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"America.... still builds rockets!"
Vette: 355 cid, 400 rwhp
'13 CTS-V Coupe: 6.2L LSA, 556HP