Oil changes... What are your thoughts?

[Zak33]

I think there is a secondary electric oil pump in my car to deal with that. I presume for turbo bearings too (never had a turbo apart).

no, that's not the point- my fault, I worded it badly.

When a mechanical bearing spins, it throws oil to its outter edges and builds up a pressure in it. It's not the oil pump, electric or mechanical that does it. It's centrifugal force. The oil pump you mention is what moves the oil through the entire engine.

So when an engine stops turning.. the oil squished out under the weight of the crank from the bearings that support it. A few thousand of those is no worries...and the good news is that when an engine sits for ages, the oil all falls to the sump and its likely that a cold start every morning only realyl effects the upper engine where there is no oil.

But stop start engines do it tens of thousands of times in their life... and the long term question arrises on crank wear.

It's why oil companies try to make oil stick to things for as long as possible.

[DanceswithUnix]

no, that's not the point- my fault, I worded it badly.

... and as I later said, I was just plain wrong, its a water pump to cool any hotspots after spirited driving that I was remembering

[Fantom]

My rule of thumb is every 6000 miles or every year whichever is first, but this is probably over doing it!

[ik9000]

My rule of thumb is every 6000 miles or every year whichever is first, but this is probably over doing it!

what would people recommend for very low mileage users (prob not going to hit even 2000 miles this year)

[DanceswithUnix]

what would people recommend for very low mileage users (prob not going to hit even 2000 miles this year)

Yearly.

I bung the car in for an MOT & service. Gets the car looked over for things like brake pad checks, and things like filters, cam belts & spark plugs expire after a number of years as well as a mileage limit.

[Fantom]

what would people recommend for very low mileage users (prob not going to hit even 2000 miles this year)

I would say look at your owners manual or search for one online, they will specify servicing guidelines for "arduous conditions" if you are doing lots of short journeys (like a taxi etc)

[ik9000]

I would say look at your owners manual or search for one online, they will specify servicing guidelines for "arduous conditions" if you are doing lots of short journeys (like a taxi etc)

no, very few journeys. It mainly sits on the drive. When we do take it out it tends to be med-long distances. I acutally have trouble keeping the battery charged up. Having to buy a portable jump starter to compensate.

[Butcher]

Yearly. There's an amount of age based deterioration in oil, so a yearly change is a good idea.

[Zak33]

what would people recommend for very low mileage users (prob not going to hit even 2000 miles this year)

Two years if it's semi synth or better.

but your exhaust pipe is loaded with water.. so the oil isn't an issue , so when it DOES drive, get it HOT and drive it HARD!

[ik9000]

Two years if it's semi synth or better.

but your exhaust pipe is loaded with water.. so the oil isn't an issue , so when it DOES drive, get it HOT and drive it HARD!

But officer, Zak told me to do it....

[Butcher]

but your exhaust pipe is loaded with water.. so the oil isn't an issue , so when it DOES drive, get it HOT and drive it HARD!

Also good for the oil - makes sure there's no water in the oiling system if you get the oil over about 90C (100C+ is better).

[Xlucine]

no, very few journeys. It mainly sits on the drive. When we do take it out it tends to be med-long distances. I acutally have trouble keeping the battery charged up. Having to buy a portable jump starter to compensate.

You can get solar panels to help with that - doesn't take much, just to keep the battery trickle charged in the daytime. If you car keeps the cigarette lighter connected to battery all the time it's easy to fit them, as you can backfeed through that socket (and leave the panel on the dash, or suckered to the inside of the windscreen)

[ik9000]

You can get solar panels to help with that - doesn't take much, just to keep the battery trickle charged in the daytime. If you car keeps the cigarette lighter connected to battery all the time it's easy to fit them, as you can backfeed through that socket (and leave the panel on the dash, or suckered to the inside of the windscreen)

sounds interesting - any manufacturer/product recommendations?

[Bagnaj97]

sounds interesting - any manufacturer/product recommendations?

I've not used one but looking on Amazon there are an awful lot available. I'd be very wary of the smaller ones, particularly in the UK - I can't see them being very effective, then again if they're just keeping a charged battery topped off rather than charging a discharged battery maybe they'd be ok. I'd lean towards something like this https://www.amazon.co.uk/Suaoki-Ciga...dp/B0722XB3VQ/ but it looks quite large - parcel shelf in a decent sized car rather than on the dash.

[rborge]

I change the oil every 5k miles or 6 months, whichever comes first.