[Cnasty]

I have been reading the manual due to a slow night at work and just checking out some things and came across the service schedule.

I dont have the "severe" one, but I have still seen the consensus of people getting the 3k oil change instead of the 6k. I live in Orlando and yes it can be cold, but not that bad. I drive almost all highway miles for work and not to many stop and go miles.

So whats everyone feel is the right schedule for the Nitro? Every 3k or 6k?
And to be honest,im not a car expert or even know all that much. I was curious about synthetic oils. Do they do these when you go in for a normal oil change automatically or is it something you have to suggest every time?

Any help would be appreciated. I have the automatic 3.7 SLT if that helps.:thk:

 

[marauder]

I think you are gonna find a lot of differing opinions on this site about this topic. I am still a hardcore every 3k kinda guy. I still think one of the single best things you can do for your engine is to change the oil every 3k. I haven't changed the oil yet in mine Nitro (only have 700 miles), but on my wife's Libby (also an Auto 3.7), we changed over to Synthetic at about 4k miles.

What maintenance schedule did you follow with your last vehicles?

 

[KansasNitro]

If you're not hard driving then every 6k is fine. I'm following the 6k mark for mine since thats when my Mazda has to be changed.
Once you go to Synthetic the maint schedule can change but 6k is fine for the standard oil.
I'd agree that oil changes are probably the best standard maint you can perform on your engine to make it last, but you don't need to empty your wallet changing it before its time.

 

[danpfay99]

I myself go the 3000k route first two changes, Then go syn. oil up it to 12,000. Change filter & top off at 6000k.

 

[Rickster]

Every 3k here. Synthetic at 6k.

 

[Quiet Lunatic]

If you want your engine to last a very long time, do every 3K. If you read the manual, it says if you take a lot of short trips or live in very dusty areas, then you should do it every 3K. I do my cars at 3K. My Nitro will be getting it's 1st one pretty soon.

 

[Cnasty]

Good info from everyone and definitly alot of opinions.

I live in Florida. It gets cold, but not all the time here in Central Florida. I drive mainly highway miles to and from work (25 each way at night) and then the errands here and there in the city but mostly all highway.

Ive always done 3k on all my cars and never thought about 6k until I read the manual. What are the benefits of going synthetic? Ive never even considered it before,has me thinking. :thk:

Great info guys,keep it coming. :beerchug:

 

[McGuireV10]

An oil formulation engineer I once knew changed his oil at 6000 miles and he only used diesel oil. The short version of the story is that large corporate fleet owners wanted a single oil for their gasoline and diesel engines, so the motor oil companies responded. This guy races his Viper pretty regularly and still sticks with the diesel oil, so that's a pretty good endorsement.

He insisted that the "synthetic" term was really a marketing thing. By the time "non-synthetic" oil is done being processed, it contains largely the same additives you'll find in synthetics. There is little difference. All that being said, I still use Mobil 1 and change it every 3000 or 4000 or so, but at least now I don't sweat it when I don't have time and go over by a bit. It's far more important to check the level regularly and keep it topped off, that's where most people screw up.

Our Mercedes E500 would tell you when to change the oil. I didn't shy away from high speed operation (I figure it's an Autobahn car, right?), though I didn't abuse it. It would typically "ask" to have the oil changed at about 11,000 to 15,000 miles. It uses Mobil 1 and holds more than normal (I think it was 11qts) but that's still quite a distance.

A better point to obsess over is filters. There are some fantastically crappy oil filters out there...

 

[NitroBilly]

I changed my oil the first 1000k, I will change it every 1500k after that!