Using an arbitrary 3,000 miles to change oil is and ancient and wasteful rule. People drive their cars in different ways and climates. 3,000 miles was put in place by oil companies that wanted you to buy their oil. In reality, modern oil is far superior to your dad's oil and modern engines do not breakdown oils as quickly. If you want to know when the best time to change your oil is, get it analyzed by a lab. They will tell you how your engine is doing and how long the type of oil you use will last.

Stop wasting money and natural resources (ie oil) just because the oil companies tell you. Modern standard oil easily lasts 5,000 to 7,500 miles.

 

i wish there was some sort of home test to check your oil quality instead of sending it away...kinda wasteful cost wise. but, i agree with you that the 3k change is a total waste and only there to get your money.

personally i just stick with the OM. it NEVER says 3k.

 

I always used M1 in my old car. As soon as the warranty was up, I started using the M1 extended life oil, and would change it every 10k or 6 months, of which was a bit sooner than needed. When it was under warranty, I had to change it every 5k, and could only use 5w20, where on that pushrod engine, 5w30 was best, but Ford didn't say you could use any other grade. On this car, once the 100k warranty is up, I will go back to 10k oil changes. I just want the piece of mind knowing that if anything goes wrong, the manufacturer can't legally find a way out of covering repairs. Getting oil analisis done on a annual basis can be good, when the engine is getting higher miles. It can tell you if things such as main bearings, head gaskets, or valvetrain issues are comming, before they fail.