Is The 3,000 Mile Oil Change a Scam?
Posted by Knowledge Guy in Autos and Trucks, tags: Automakers, car maintainence, Car Manufacturers, Cold Climate, Current, Dusty Conditions, Lot, Mile Oil Change, Mileage, Money Change, Oil Change, Oil Changes, Savings Account, Shopping, Short Trips, Simple Matter, Wal Mart, Waste Of Money, WindshieldWhen you get your oil changed, they put that little sticker on your windshield to remind you when it’s time to get your next. The sticker always gives you a mileage of 3,000 miles or 3 months into the future, whichever comes first.3,000 miles was the old standard, but car manufacturers have improved their products in recent years. Do you really have to have an every 3,000 miles?
Most automakers now recommend getting an oil change every 7,500 miles or 6 months, whichever comes first. However, they recommend oil changes every 3,000 miles or 3 months if you drive in “severe” conditions.What constitutes “severe” driving? If you do a lot of city driving, make a lot of short trips, live in a hot or cold climate or near the ocean or in dusty conditions, or tow a trailer, then your car experiences “severe” driving. That’s a lot of us!
We all know that over-maintaining your car is a waste of money, but oil change are cheap. An oil change only costs about . It’s certainly worth an extra per year if you drive under any of these “severe” conditions. The alternative is that your car could require expensive repairs down the road, or worse, that it won’t last as long. If you take good care of your car, it can easily last 200,000 miles or more. The longer you can make your current car last, the more money you’ll keep. Imagine paying off your car and then continuing to make that “payment” into a savings account. You could get your next car free and clear!
No one enjoys taking their car in for any maintenance or repairs. But an oil change should take less than an hour if you go when the shop isn’t busy. Since an oil change is such a simple matter, every repair shop does them. Oil changes are readily available at many convenient locations, including the corner service station and even Wal Mart. If you can combine this chore with shopping for instance, you’ll save time. There are even specialty shops that will guarantee to have you out in less than an hour! And shops are increasingly offering convenient and pleasant environments for waiting. Many make the wait time seem shorter with amenties like coffee and snacks and free wi-fi.
It’s a good idea for most of us to get our oil changed every 3,000 miles or 3 months. It’s cheap, it’s easy, and it’s a good idea. So find a mechanic or shop and get into the habit of regular oil changes. When you’re still driving a reliable car at 200,000 miles, you’ll be happy that you did.
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