Hi all :

My max is at about 21K miles and took it for an oil change to one of those quickie-lube places...

The technician that drained my old oil commented that the old oil is very dark - and I need to flush my enginie etc fully of the old oil
Of course, for 50 bucks !

Smelling something funny , I just got the usual oil&filter change.

For all those DIY folks -- how dark does the old oil get normally - mine was nearly black -- is this normal or should I shell out the 50 bucks ?
I use either 10/30 or 5/30 regular oil only - I change every 5000 miles --

Any tips ?

Thanks !

 

Every 5000 miles on regular oil? I thought 3750 was the recommended interval. No wonder your oil is dark.

You might consider the engine flush, but you can buy a bottle of flush for ~$10 (I think, can't remember how much I paid Highlander for the bottle of Amsoil flush). Of course, since you pay to have your oil changed, you might as well pay for the flush since it's the same as an oil change and you have to change the oil after you flush anyways .

 

Some oils are darker than others to begin with. You need to know what the color of the oil is to start with. I bought the AMSOIL Engine Flush, I paid around $ 5.50 plus shipping, I bought a lot of stuff when I ordered so shipping was very reasonable. AMSOIL gets some very low shipping rates. It would be a good time to switch to synthetic since your spending almost as much as it would cost having your oil changes done by others.

 

Go here to learn more about oils, filters, what is and isn't normal. Check out their message board/forum for lots of friendly & insightful help and opinions: http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/

FWIW - With only 21k on your engine, unless you are having other problems, or intend to switch to a synthetic, I question the need to flush. "Black" drain oil in and of itself is not uncommon. All oil gets darker from the routine collection of motor contaminants, and some brands and other acceptable factors may have a black color drained oil, even after only 2,500 miles. That said, changing oil every 5k might be a bit of a stretch when using dino oil (and it is perfectly okay to keep using that oil. It is more conservative and safer to change dino oil & the filter in the 3-4k range. Synthetics may enable extended oil change intervals, but the safe interval is unique to the engine, your driving habits, climate, oil brand, etc. (That's why most synthetics won't make claims for a specific extended drain interval.) A couple of oil analysis' will let you identify your optimal change time - especially important when considering the additional cost of synthetics. More info. can be found at the above link & its forum. (I suggest a couple of easy searches before posting a question.)

Hope this helps without overwhelming...

Cheers,
-Doug-

 

bill99gxe has a good collection of sample about oil analysis on our VQ engine, and vary different oil brand, oil type, drain interval and many other factor
good luck


EU

 

I thought 7500 is the interval for highway use and 3750 for frequent/short trips .... maybe I'll try changing it at 3000 from now on.....

Am not a DIY -- maybe its time to learn -- any suggestions on how to get started ?

 

Maybe true about the highway use vs start\stop use, but honestly you'll be doing both some time or other.

Changing your oil is pretty simple.

1) Warm the engine by driving around for 10 minutes, park it on level ground
2) Jack the front passenger side of the car up
3) Put an oil catch pan under the car (might want to put newspaper or cardboard under that to keep from staining the garage floor)
4) Use a 9/16 socket and remove the oil drain plug, let the oil drain into the catch pan (at this point I lower the jack to let the car level out and more oil to move and drain, then I jack it back up)
5) Slowly loosen the oil filter, let it drain into the catch pan
6) Wipe down the oil filter area and the oil pan drain area
7) Use a small amount of clean oil and wet the rubber gasket on the new filter, install it (hand-tighten until it's tight, then turn 3/4 more)
8) Install the drain bolt
9) Pour in new oil (3.5 to 4.25 quarts), turn on car, use a towel to wipe around the oil drain area to check for leaks. Turn off car, check oil level dipstick. Add oil if you need more.

 

At 21K, a $50 flush is a waste of money. Like Karguy mentioned, Amsoil's engine flush is $4.50 plus S/H, but honestly I think it's unnecessary at this point. Just because the oil is dark doesn't mean the oil is bad. A diesel engine can turn motor oil jet black in a few hundred miles yet safely lubricate for thousands more after that. Oil color is really an old wive's tale.

BTW, the average technician at a quickie lube place wouldn't even have the slightest clue about makes a good oil or the differences between the brands.

 

I change my oil religiously every 3750 mi and mostly do hwy driving, and it is also dark. I think it is partially due to technicians are trying to service many cars per given time. You need to let your old oil fully out, and that may take take 5-10 minutes. There is no way they can do it, especially when advertising "45 minutes or its free".