scheduled maintenance

It seems to me the recommended schedule of some items is questionable.
Every three months or 3000 miles for oil seems wasteful.
Every 5 years for coolant? That seems like taking a chance.
100,000 miles for sparkplugs? They really last that long?
Transmission fluid and filter change every 15,000 miles in Florida
city driving otherwise only once every 100,000 miles.
Personally, I think oil is good for 5000 miles easily.
I don't trust coolant after two summers in Florida.
Sparkplugs - no opinion.
Transmission fluid - yes as recommended in Florida city driving.
Anyone else making their own schedules?

"Charles Kormos" > wrote in message
...
> It seems to me the recommended schedule of some items is
> questionable.
> Every three months or 3000 miles for oil seems wasteful.

Agreed, unless you are driving a '65 Pinto on dusty roads.

> Every 5 years for coolant? That seems like taking a chance.

No problem with todays closed systems.

> 100,000 miles for sparkplugs? They really last that long?

Todays plugs will do that without breatrhing hard. Pulled mine on a
'92 Eldorado at 118K and put them back in and got a different set for
the Corvette.

> Transmission fluid and filter change every 15,000 miles in Florida
> city driving otherwise only once every 100,000 miles.

That may be beyond where I'd go, maybe 60/70k on an automatic.

> Personally, I think oil is good for 5000 miles easily.

I take mine to 10,000 using synthetic ('05 LS2).

> I don't trust coolant after two summers in Florida.

Why?

> Sparkplugs - no opinion.
> Transmission fluid - yes as recommended in Florida city driving.
> Anyone else making their own schedules?

More specific answers could be given if you were to let us know what
you're driving.

"Dad" > wrote in message


> Agreed, unless you are driving a '65 Pinto on dusty roads.

Not to quibble, but in fact to quibble:
Can you document fo rme the existance of one such 1965 Pinto ?

-W (walks away whistling)

"Clams Canino" > wrote in message
m...
>
> "Dad" > wrote in message
>
>
>> Agreed, unless you are driving a '65 Pinto on dusty roads.
>
> Not to quibble, but in fact to quibble:
> Can you document fo rme the existance of one such 1965 Pinto ?
>
> -W (walks away whistling)
Went by the name Falcon, always traveled incognito. I have one, only
it goes under the name Mustang. He worked under cover for the
government until he came out of the closet in '71, nearly dies in '74.

Although he leaked, rattled, and squeaked he was never lost as he
could follow the oil trail back home. Made quite a mark on the BBQ
scene for a short life of 10 years.

Are you safe walking "and" whistling?? ;-))

Charles Kormos wrote:
> It seems to me the recommended schedule of some items is questionable.
> Every three months or 3000 miles for oil seems wasteful.
> Every 5 years for coolant? That seems like taking a chance.
> 100,000 miles for sparkplugs? They really last that long?
> Transmission fluid and filter change every 15,000 miles in Florida
> city driving otherwise only once every 100,000 miles.
> Personally, I think oil is good for 5000 miles easily.
> I don't trust coolant after two summers in Florida.
> Sparkplugs - no opinion.
> Transmission fluid - yes as recommended in Florida city driving.
> Anyone else making their own schedules?

Oil Life

Check out < http://neptune.spacebears.com/cars/s.../interval.html >.

My old C4 is on that sked. Amounts to topping up the crankcase every 2K
miles, change the filter every 3000. Drain and refill at 10K.

I go by the DIC "oil life" indication for the C5, the truck and my
wife's car (3.6L VVT/DI engine). To play it safe, I top-up regularly,
change the filter at 5K and drain/refill when 25% shows up on the DIC.
For all three, that looks like the oil is good for 10K. I cut that to 7500.

> > It seems to me the recommended schedule of some items is questionable.
> > Every three months or 3000 miles for oil seems wasteful.

Syn oil every 7-8000 miles with filter -add 1 qt halfway since new

> > Every 5 years for coolant? That seems like taking a chance.

coolant 3-4 years I think

> > 100,000 miles for sparkplugs? They really last that long?

plugs 80-90000 no prob

> > Transmission fluid and filter change every 15,000 miles in Florida

60-70000 in Florida (30%City /70%hwy combo guess) Auto trans

> > city driving otherwise only once every 100,000 miles.
> > Personally, I think oil is good for 5000 miles easily.
> > I don't trust coolant after two summers in Florida.
> > Sparkplugs - no opinion.
> > Transmission fluid - yes as recommended in Florida city driving.
> > Anyone else making their own schedules?

rear end lube 70k+/- miles, 3 changes so far

new Al Knock seat covers and conv top @ 7 years

3rd battery

1/2 doz or so sets of tires

2001 Owned since new 195,000 miles, no problems to date

"Charles Kormos" > wrote in message
...
> It seems to me the recommended schedule of some items is questionable.
> Every three months or 3000 miles for oil seems wasteful.
> Every 5 years for coolant? That seems like taking a chance.
> 100,000 miles for sparkplugs? They really last that long?
> Transmission fluid and filter change every 15,000 miles in Florida
> city driving otherwise only once every 100,000 miles.
> Personally, I think oil is good for 5000 miles easily.
> I don't trust coolant after two summers in Florida.
> Sparkplugs - no opinion.
> Transmission fluid - yes as recommended in Florida city driving.
> Anyone else making their own schedules?

Oil: agreed, I push it to 7,500
Trans fluid- don't mess with it. Every time I have, soo after I have trans
problems. Coincidence???
Plugs...changed my LT-1 plugs at 106K when the OptiSpark failed. Wores too,
but till I dripped coolant on Opti all worked fine. My Explorer has 146K on
the original plugs/wores. Still 17 MPG, just like brand new...

Coolant, there too, until originaal installation is damged (leak) it lasts a
good long time. But changing with fresh can't hurt every couple of years,
check specific gravity.

GeorgeC
92 Red/Red LT-1

George Csahanin wrote:
> "Charles Kormos" > wrote in message
> ...
>> It seems to me the recommended schedule of some items is questionable.
>> Every three months or 3000 miles for oil seems wasteful.
>> Every 5 years for coolant? That seems like taking a chance.
>> 100,000 miles for sparkplugs? They really last that long?
>> Transmission fluid and filter change every 15,000 miles in Florida
>> city driving otherwise only once every 100,000 miles.
>> Personally, I think oil is good for 5000 miles easily.
>> I don't trust coolant after two summers in Florida.
>> Sparkplugs - no opinion.
>> Transmission fluid - yes as recommended in Florida city driving.
>> Anyone else making their own schedules?
>
> Oil: agreed, I push it to 7,500
> Trans fluid- don't mess with it. Every time I have, soo after I have trans
> problems. Coincidence???
> Plugs...changed my LT-1 plugs at 106K when the OptiSpark failed. Wores too,
> but till I dripped coolant on Opti all worked fine. My Explorer has 146K on
> the original plugs/wores. Still 17 MPG, just like brand new...
>
> Coolant, there too, until originaal installation is damged (leak) it lasts a
> good long time. But changing with fresh can't hurt every couple of years,
> check specific gravity.
>
> GeorgeC
> 92 Red/Red LT-1
>
>

Since the advent of plugs built to stand up under the HV of HEI, today's
more precise fuel mixture control and the intro of unleaded fuel I've
had plugs to to 160K (mileage on my truck when I sold it with the orig
plugs.)

Only exception was my C4 which had multiple injector failures and an
assortment of lean and rich mixtures from cylinder to cylinder. Plugs
were a mess when I changed the injectors at 60K miles.

pj

On my wife's BMW, the dealer says you can go 15,000 on the synthetic oil. I
change it myself at 7500 miles. About $35. She also only puts about 3500
miles on the car a year so this oil change is once every year.

Vito


"pj" > wrote in message ...
> Charles Kormos wrote:
>> It seems to me the recommended schedule of some items is questionable.
>> Every three months or 3000 miles for oil seems wasteful.
>> Every 5 years for coolant? That seems like taking a chance.
>> 100,000 miles for sparkplugs? They really last that long?
>> Transmission fluid and filter change every 15,000 miles in Florida
>> city driving otherwise only once every 100,000 miles.
>> Personally, I think oil is good for 5000 miles easily.
>> I don't trust coolant after two summers in Florida.
>> Sparkplugs - no opinion.
>> Transmission fluid - yes as recommended in Florida city driving.
>> Anyone else making their own schedules?
>
> Oil Life
>
> Check out < http://neptune.spacebears.com/cars/s.../interval.html >.
>
> My old C4 is on that sked. Amounts to topping up the crankcase every 2K
> miles, change the filter every 3000. Drain and refill at 10K.
>
> I go by the DIC "oil life" indication for the C5, the truck and my wife's
> car (3.6L VVT/DI engine). To play it safe, I top-up regularly, change the
> filter at 5K and drain/refill when 25% shows up on the DIC. For all three,
> that looks like the oil is good for 10K. I cut that to 7500.
>

Uncle_vito wrote:
> On my wife's BMW, the dealer says you can go 15,000 on the synthetic oil. I
> change it myself at 7500 miles. About $35. She also only puts about 3500
> miles on the car a year so this oil change is once every year.
>
> Vito
>
>
I'm in much the same situation with my wife's car (3.6L VVT-di). We live
on the coast. Engine seldom sustains a good operating temperature.

I had run her last car on conventional oil. New concern is with the
hygroscopic character of synthetics; so, I change it at six month
intervals and am considering four months (which gets a bit ridiculous.)

Alternative is to take her 'land boat' out on the road every week and
give it a proper workout. Savings on oil would more than pay for the
petrol.