hey everyone,

looking for your opinion... my car is scheduled for the 3 month oil change interval in about a week... but i only have about 3400 clicks on my car. is it safe to wait it out another month to month-and-half (to hit 6k) or just get it done. why do they say every 3 months? is it a gimmick or does it really have anything to do with the oil? on my last acura... i would drive it until the specified km's, regardless of date. never had any issues with that car. just curious overall. wish it was like my wife's cooper s of every 15,000 km's.

thanks.

 

IMHO...I would rather get the very first oil change sooner than later. After that it depends on your driving, if you do just short trips, in stop and go then get the oil changed at the specified times, if your trips are few but longer and are mainly highway miles than you could wait a bit longer. I have 7,200 km on my 05, and I have had it exactly 4 months today and I am lovin it .
Wayne

 

thanks for the input. i just called dixie/401 to see what they would say... service guy told me to hold it off until next month and bring it in at around 5000. he said not to worry. i basically do hwy driving to work each day.... short trip from royal york/eglinton to dixie/401.

 

Are you on a package for oil changes from your dealer? If you are, I would still take your coupe in and have the oil changed.
Originally I had changed my oil at 1500km's and at 3000km's just to be on the safe side. I purchased a synthetiic oil pkg from my dealer when I purchased the car but I stick to the intervals( 5000km or 4months).

Good Luck

35BILLS

 

Wayne, you're having way more fun than I am.
I've less than 2 months to the 1st birthday & I'm @15K.

I aree about the interval depending on short vs. longer trip cycles.
But, just wondered...., is the 3month warranty related??
I know it states that in the service manual.
Could they use that against you somehow??

 

no package... just gonna be paying the obscenely high "infiniti experience" service . i took the car in early (as others said to do) the service tech laughed and said i was crazy. he said the oil the car came with is better than any of the recycled stuff they put in. not sure if he's bull-crapping or not... but i never took any of my previous cars in prematurely for oil changes and never saw any problems or ill-effects.

i never had a problem in my last acura taking it in at longer intervals (timewise). not sure infiniti's policy on this... but gathering that the service consultant told me to wait another month... i don't think it's a big issue.

 

Ian...They should never hassle you if you do not go in for an extra month or so. If I don't have the kliks on my cars I usually leave it for 4 months, BUT as you can see with me that doesn't happen, this old fart just has too much fun driving .

Basically it says you can extend your intervals if you do highway driving in temperate climates ( you don't drive yours much in the winter do you?) If you look at the Service and Maintenance guide you can extend your maintenance if you :
-don't do stop and go driving (or very little) and don't drive less than 16 km in below freezing conditions. I believe most of your driving is highway.
-don't tow (Yeh right).
-don't drive on dusty, salty or muddy road conditions.
The main thing is we don't live in a temperate climate. If you do meet all the criteria the book says you can go 6 months or 12,000 km whatever comes first, but obviously none of us fall into that category unless you store your vehicle in the colder winter months and you met everything else.
Also, as I have heard you say before always keep good maintenance records.
Wayne (OF Club Member)

 

thanks for the info... i took delivery at the end of jan... i do drive it through winter (daily driver for me). did see some good salty days (as my paint job at the time could attest.)... probably take it in first week of may to play it safe.

 

well... looks like i got an early oil change... found a small puddle of oil under my car last night (actually my wife found it). towed it in this morning and just got a call back now. looks like a gasket has to be replaced. standard issue instructions from the dealer aka... got a place an order... car will be ready tomorrow. oh well. got a nice gm grand am muscle car rental in the mean time . what a pos. at least it's only a minor problem though... i was really sweating it last night... thinking i might have hit something and got a crack somewhere.

 

The gasket issue have come up on occasion here, and isn't that uncommon.
Good thing to play it safe when you find a leak like that.
You'll be back in business b4 you know it.
C.

 

Best advice here was original from gee35x and 35bills. There's a reason for the distance and time intervals, and most likely on a G35 and cars like it, the time interval will be the first one to come up, often if not always. Most wear occurs on start-up, or when the car is pushed really hard, if the oil is no longer able to do its job. Canada- cold. Engine-gets hot. Condensation. Oil break down. Frothing. Wear. I won't get long winded here in explaining how your engine is lubricated and what makes oil good or keeps it that way- the best things you can do to keep your car running tops, and to save on service down the road, is to put fresh premium grade fuel and fresh oil in it.
BTW, the trips you describe giddy, are exactly what put the most demands on your engine. It would be better if you driving from your place to Oshawa everyday, where the engine can happily run at optimal combustion temp for a while, oil gets up to temp and properly lubricates throughout the engine, clean out the injectors, burn off the backs of the valves, and the condensation can be cleared out of the exhaust.
Recommend you don't listen to anyone that recommends doing less oil changes. Unless its a lease and you don't care what the engine is going to be like when you hand it back.