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If the manual says you can go 10,000 miles, guaranteed you can actually go 12,500 if not 15,000. You're changing you're oil 3 times as often as needed, so 2 out of 3 of the oil changes you're doing are unnecessary and a waste of money.
The manual says 5k/6 months, but there’s plenty of margin. Up to a year if driven lightly should be totally fine. In fact according to my dealer you actually have 1 year to claim the first free oil change, and 2 years to claim the second.
But I don’t think it’s a huge waste of money to do a few extra oil changes over the course of long term ownership. It’s only a few hundred. There’s worse ways to spend money.
Yeah not a bad idea Mac. I only clock a little over 5k annually. I'm at 5500k since January and that is with some unexpected driving this year.
This is straight out of the manual for the IS500:
So I think I'll just keep going every 6 months to keep things good on the books, incase something does come up....
The problem with the whole situation is the overall balance - In my opinion, if I do 5000 km/year, I don't feel I would need to go to the dealer more than once a year especially if they use synthetic. On the flip side, some prefer to do it more often because it gives them the peace of mind. Let's all acknowledge that dealers and manufacturers also like to make extra money, we see with the various add-ons they do, market adjustments and such, and now car makers are throwing in user fees (BMW wanting you to pay a monthly fee for heated seats etc). So it is in their best interest to do as many services as possible to generate extra revenue while honoring as little warranty claims as possible, hence they have people with the 'fear factor' of the "...well, you didn't do your frequent services therefore you are on your own" .
In the end, unless you abuse the hell out of a car, they should be able to last a long time without these frequent intervals but everyone needs to do what works best for them. It's like extended warranties, some like to buy them for the peace of mind while others feel it is a waste. There are no right or wrong answers, but more of what is "right for you". In the whole scheme of thing, spending a couple of extra dollars on a 70k car is not that big of a deal if you feel it it is worth it - For me, the biggest problem is the inconvenience of driving over an hour each way to get the service done. My car is hibernating in a somewhat heated garage all winter after I just had the oil change done, once I start driving it again in April, the oil is pretty much intact and wouldn't make sense (in my mind) to change it again until November when its been driving for 7-8 months @ 5000 km but that is just me
Yeah not a bad idea Mac. I only clock a little over 5k annually. I'm at 5500k since January and that is with some unexpected driving this year.
This is straight out of the manual for the IS500:
So I think I'll just keep going every 6 months to keep things good on the books, incase something does come up....
Do what makes you feel comfortable. If others are comfortable not following the scheduled maintenance routine then good for them. I am at 4800ish miles after 1 year and I've already had 2 oil changes. I will continue to get them done in that matter. I think Lexus has scheduled 6 month services for a reason and I intend on following what they've outlined just in case something does happen. If it drops a valve at 7300 rpm I don't want anyone trying to say it's because I didn't do an oil change. I'm not trying to pinch pennies with my car, I'll do that elsewhere if needed. Hell, in CA an oil change is the same price as 2 tanks of gas!
I'm driving roughly 8k kilometers a year and doing 2 oil changes a year, every 6 months with full synthetic oil.
My main reason in doing so is I drive mostly short distances and with our temperatures during winter, I prefer to change it a bit more often to prevent oil contamination since the engine barely gets to operating temp during my short drives.
^^ You know, you could come and visit us and we'd show you guys great Maritime hospitality and by doing so, you would have more normal operating temperature on your IS's oil (lol)
I'm driving roughly 8k kilometers a year and doing 2 oil changes a year, every 6 months with full synthetic oil.
My main reason in doing so is I drive mostly short distances and with our temperatures during winter, I prefer to change it a bit more often to prevent oil contamination since the engine barely gets to operating temp during my short drives.
My commute is similar- roughly 7 miles each way few times a week. On non-commute trips, I try to open him up - I also like to "growl" at people who irk me on the roads. With my bad driving habits- it probably is better for me to change sooner than later, hah!
12-28-22, 09:10 PM
