how often to change oil if I'm replacing a bunch already? (1 Viewer)

[Southbound]

Kind of a random question, but here goes. I drive my cruiser very little lately, maybe 1000-2000 miles a year max, just camping adventures and the like. I have a pretty bad oil leak - I have to put in a quart every 1000 miles or so. So question is, given these parameters, how often should I do a full oil change? I know people will change their oil every few months or year regardless of mileage because the stuff gets old and the additives lose their effect...but I'm replenishing a lot of oil because of the leak. So can I wait 3000 miles, which could be 2-3 years, to do full oil/filter change?

Cheers,
Mark

 

[FJ60Seth]

The only way to know is to send a sample of your oil to a lab, like Blackstone, for testing.

 

[GLTHFJ60]

I'd recommend changing your oil, regardless of your leak, once a year at a minimum, given how little you drive it.

 

[CaptClose]

You're probably fine to change it just once a year. It doesn't seem like your driving it enough to cycle through all the oil anyway.

It's more important that you st least start it up and run it more often than you do. A few times a month at least. You're leaking because seals have dried out and no longer function. This happens after long periods of inactivity.

Do you know where you are leaking from? Oil pan, rear main seal, front seal, etc...

Also, there are other fluids and seals all over the truck that will degrade as well. Hubs, transfercase, transmission, differentials... to name a few.

It might be time to re-baseline your cruiser and then start driving it a bit more. A decision no one has ever regretted haha. Good luck brother!

 

[Mace]

I do every 5K or once a year..