CT5-V Reluctant to change oil despite 0% life remaining

[thefleshrocket]

Tell me I am dumb, and to just change my oil anyway. My ‘23 5BW is at 0% oil life at 4300 miles. It had oil changes at 500 and 1500 miles, so there are fewer than 3000 miles on this fill—it’s just been a year since the last change. The oil is still at the full line on the dipstick and looks golden brown, so I just feel bad dumping oil that’s clearly got plenty of life left. I had planned on changing it at around 5500 miles (4k on the oil), and then again at 10k (4500 miles on oil), and then do every 5k thereafter.

I realize that if I frag the motor, I will likely get static from GM, but if that happened, I would send an oil sample in to Blackstone to show how much TBN (oil life) is left, and feel like I would have a leg to stand on if there was still a reasonable amount of TBN remaining.

But anyway, like the first sentence says, tell me to stop overthinking it and just change the oil. I even have 10 quarts of 0w40 Supercar and a PF64 ready to go.

 

[FLYARMY]

I have my dealer appointment on July 13th for my 2022/5BW next oil change and state inspection. The car should have about 5000 miles on her when I bring it in. This will be my 3rd oil change in 2 years and 1 month of ownership. My first (break in) free change was at 1427 miles. The second done at 3415 miles ( at almost 0% life). I put my car away for winter storage in November and take her out in April. Its been 11 months since the last change and I will only have about 1500 miles since that last change. The dealer charges me about $190 for the Dexos2 oil change. They can't rotate the tires due to the staggered size.
For me, I will do the maintenance by mileage and or the % readout. Whichever comes first. I keep a detailed logbook and folder with all receipts for EVERYTHING done to the car. For me, its worth the peace of mind that I did everything to keep the car in top notch shape. If something should go wrong, mechanically, they won't be able to argue the issue. The first thing that dealers go for is the "failed to maintain as specified" , to avoid repairs at their cost.

 

[BKC1]

If your logic held I could blow a motor, pour fresh oil into the shrapnel, point to the high TBN, and get a new motor at the dealership.

Engine damage is cumulative. Wear metals from the cylinder walls and bearings, once gone, are gone forever. Even if you had high TBN, GM would look at your oil change history and rightly state that your neglect is likely at fault. They could also look at your driving habits and place you at fault.

TBN indicates how much of the additive package remains to counteract acids; it says nothing about viscosity, wear metals, and oxidation. Nobody uses TAN and TBN to determine when to change the oil. TAN and TBN are a partial indicators of health. There are many other factors that play into that algorithm, and 20 years running V1s, V2s, and V3s indicates that most people should be changing their oil before the gauge reaches 0%.

Bottom line: don't expect a free engine. Oil is cheap, engines are expensive. Treat your engine like it's the only one you've got. Start getting those Blackstone or Speed Diagnostix reports and change your oil based on what your engine is telling you it needs.

 

[BW56M]

My preferred dealer only charges $89 for an oil change, as a loss leader. No need for me to over think it.

 

[shbox]

GM's oil change algorithm factors in time and they recommend a change at least once a year, no matter what.

 

[G.Newt]

*Has $100k super sedan*
*Doesn't want to change the oil after 1 year and 2,800 miles*
*Willing to risk the warranty cuz feels bad throwing out "good" oil*

Thanks for the laugh today.

 

[rubberduck]

I change my Jeep oil once a year and the Redline oil is more expensive per quart than Mobil1 Supercar. But, I don’t have the luxury of getting stranded when off-roading. Oil is cheap protection in the big scheme of things. The one year recommendation is due to water absorption in the oil.

 

[Acpromotions]

For the most part I agree, unless you use oil sampling to determine your oil has low wear metals and a healthy additive package, almost every oil manufacturer recommends a change at 12 months. With DI and fuel dilution, TBN has more relevance whereas TAN is pretty useless. If your TBN is on or around 2, that oil is ready to sheer or has a depleted additive package.

Here’s a way to look at it. This is a stock LF4 but I have a 2650 based dry sump LT4. So I head to COTA in a BW4 late June on 6-month old GM 5W30(M1 5W30) with 600 miles on it. After nearing the end of the 3rd session (ambient at 96, heat index about 104) I glanced down at the oil temperature before downshifting and braking after the long straight it was at 258 degrees. I immediately went into cooldown lap protocol and went into the pits(total mileage of about 3700). At idle I saw 14 psi and called it a day. After cooling off I drove 250 very casual highway miles home without incident. The next morning the oil dipstick was still full but the oil was very thin. Comparing it to new 5W30 was eye opening. It was about half the viscosity. The oil % was reading 46.

Even stock engines with DI need to be very careful. Age and heat destroy an oils additive packages. There is fuel dilution running stock LT4/LF4 DI. Do yourself a favor and change your oil based on an oil analysis, age and common sense.

Yes, I pulled an oil sample and parked it until the report comes back. While under warranty I’ll run a “boutique” 5W30 so if the engine fails, a tear down and oil analysis will show 5W30. Oil cooling can’t be emphasized enough on these platforms and a wet sump LT4 with 0W40 could dilute down to 0W30 very quickly. Oil is significantly cheaper than the alternative. By the time you get your car back it’s depreciated another 6-months and a replacement engine is just cause for a diminuation of value claim.

The aftermarket needs to step up with more efficient oil cooling additions and owners need to understand the basics of oil management.

 

[jbawden]

Did you reset the OLM during any of the changes? If not, the % is sort of irrelevant. Agree with @shbox on the 12 month interval over all else.

There is so much data out there that prove the OLM system is pretty good for a daily. Mine is a not a daily, so it's simple annual changes for me. I follow the owners manual in all my vehicles and its often time over miles that dictate changes.

 

[dribs15]

For the most part I agree, unless you use oil sampling to determine your oil has low wear metals and a healthy additive package, almost every oil manufacturer recommends a change at 12 months. With DI and fuel dilution, TBN has more relevance whereas TAN is pretty useless. If your TBN is on or around 2, that oil is ready to sheer or has a depleted additive package.

Here’s a way to look at it. This is a stock LF4 but I have a 2650 based dry sump LT4. So I head to COTA in a BW4 late June on 6-month old GM 5W30(M1 5W30) with 600 miles on it. After nearing the end of the 3rd session (ambient at 96, heat index about 104) I glanced down at the oil temperature before downshifting and braking after the long straight it was at 258 degrees. I immediately went into cooldown lap protocol and went into the pits(total mileage of about 3700). At idle I saw 14 psi and called it a day. After cooling off I drove 250 very casual highway miles home without incident. The next morning the oil dipstick was still full but the oil was very thin. Comparing it to new 5W30 was eye opening. It was about half the viscosity. The oil % was reading 46.

Even stock engines with DI need to be very careful. Age and heat destroy an oils additive packages. There is fuel dilution running stock LT4/LF4 DI. Do yourself a favor and change your oil based on an oil analysis, age and common sense.

Yes, I pulled an oil sample and parked it until the report comes back. While under warranty I’ll run a “boutique” 5W30 so if the engine fails, a tear down and oil analysis will show 5W30. Oil cooling can’t be emphasized enough on these platforms and a wet sump LT4 with 0W40 could dilute down to 0W30 very quickly. Oil is significantly cheaper than the alternative. By the time you get your car back it’s depreciated another 6-months and a replacement engine is just cause for a diminuation of value claim.

The aftermarket needs to step up with more efficient oil cooling additions and owners need to understand the basics of oil management.

TLDR: although I'm sure you're factually accurate, I just changed my oil in less time than it would have taken me to read this.

 

[dribs15]

Did you reset the OLM during any of the changes? If not, the % is sort of irrelevant. Agree with @shbox on the 12 month interval over all else.

There is so much data out there that prove the OLM system is pretty good for a daily. Mine is a not a daily, so it's simple annual changes for me. I follow the owners manual in all my vehicles and its often time over miles that dictate changes.

Was wondering how long it would take before someone asked about the OLM.

Grand scheme of things- 1x/yr for an oil change is a good umbrella insurance policy for a low mileage vehicle... don't over think this one

 

[Dirt Dog]

Tell me I am dumb, and to just change my oil anyway. My ‘23 5BW is at 0% oil life at 4300 miles. It had oil changes at 500 and 1500 miles, so there are fewer than 3000 miles on this fill—it’s just been a year since the last change. The oil is still at the full line on the dipstick and looks golden brown, so I just feel bad dumping oil that’s clearly got plenty of life left. I had planned on changing it at around 5500 miles (4k on the oil), and then again at 10k (4500 miles on oil), and then do every 5k thereafter.

I realize that if I frag the motor, I will likely get static from GM, but if that happened, I would send an oil sample in to Blackstone to show how much TBN (oil life) is left, and feel like I would have a leg to stand on if there was still a reasonable amount of TBN remaining.

But anyway, like the first sentence says, tell me to stop overthinking it and just change the oil. I even have 10 quarts of 0w40 Supercar and a PF64 ready to go.

Question is, did anyone reset the OLM when you did the oil changes at 500 and 1500 miles? If it wasn't reset then you should be fine to go to 5500 miles. If it was reset, you need to look at your driving (idle) habits, adjust them and get it changed ASAP.

 

[thefleshrocket]

Question is, did anyone reset the OLM when you did the oil changes at 500 and 1500 miles? If it wasn't reset then you should be fine to go to 5500 miles. If it was reset, you need to look at your driving (idle) habits, adjust them and get it changed ASAP.

Yes, I reset the OLM at 500 and 1500 miles. The car has one track day on it, and I am generous with the throttle during most drives, though I always make sure the oil temp is at least 150F before getting on it.

I did finally change the oil at 4900 miles earlier this week. Track day coming up next week and figured best to have fresh oil before that.

 

[Z51L9889]

As others have pointed out, you can determine your change interval by the oil life monitor or a max of one year since the last change for normal street use. If your use profile includes track days, you will need to change it more frequently. I did many track days in the past, and I would put fresh oil in before each event if the events were more than a month or two apart.

 

[thefleshrocket]

I did many track days in the past, and I would put fresh oil in before each event if the events were more than a month or two apart.

That seems excessive to me, but it probably won't hurt anything either. I have a UOA to send in from my 4900-miles-on-the-engine, 3400-miles-on-the-oil oil change, which has ~80 minutes of track time on it. I'll post it when I get it back.

 

[Z51L9889]

It may be excessive now, but please note this was my experience from 25+ years ago. Back then, it was definitely needed. I could see a noticeable increase in oil temps with M1 5W30 between the first and last sessions in a track weekend. This was with a first gen Small Block Chevy. Oils have gotten significantly better since then, so this may no longer be necessary. I have not taken my 4BW to the track yet, so I have no current data. I will plan on doing a UOA after my first track day.

 

[NorthGeorgiaWX]

Tell me I am dumb, and to just change my oil anyway. My ‘23 5BW is at 0% oil life at 4300 miles. It had oil changes at 500 and 1500 miles, so there are fewer than 3000 miles on this fill—it’s just been a year since the last change. The oil is still at the full line on the dipstick and looks golden brown, so I just feel bad dumping oil that’s clearly got plenty of life left. I had planned on changing it at around 5500 miles (4k on the oil), and then again at 10k (4500 miles on oil), and then do every 5k thereafter.

I realize that if I frag the motor, I will likely get static from GM, but if that happened, I would send an oil sample in to Blackstone to show how much TBN (oil life) is left, and feel like I would have a leg to stand on if there was still a reasonable amount of TBN remaining.

But anyway, like the first sentence says, tell me to stop overthinking it and just change the oil. I even have 10 quarts of 0w40 Supercar and a PF64 ready to go.

Change your oil. Turbo motors need clean fresh oil if you want the turbos to last. We have a pair of ATS-V'S, and depending on the use, they may get changed with 40-50% life left. One has 70k miles and the other 35k miles.