You're going to get a bunch of different opinions but what I've done for YEARS is run synthetic oil (after 10K miles) and change it every 6000 miles then rotate the tires at the same time. My 4.0 calls for 10-30 which I run in summer then 5-30 in the winter. I average about 12K per year so I have my oil changes spaced out perfectly right now. If I were to go on a long trip, I'd still change after 6K and run the appropriate oil for the season. Oil is cheap in my book.

I use either Mobil 1 full syn or Amsoil. IMO...8K miles between changes is not extreme at all. If you were doing constant HARD city, start stop driving, OK, then change it every 5000. IMO - the 3K oil change was pushed by the oil companies so they could make more money.

And BTW - with so many people switching to synthetic lubricants, why isn't the price of oil going down? ROFL!!!!!! :nut:

 

Our dealership here recommends doing 5000k km intervals.. so i just follow that and bring my own synthetic oil.. on my recent oil change few weeks ago.. i brought amsoil XL 5w30.. Should be a good oil for 5000k km.. the XL series of amsoil calls for 6mos/10k miles interval but that seems to long for me.. Changing the oil at 5k with synthetic is just a cheap insurance to keep my 3.6L in good condition!

If i remember correctly, the manual states that we can't go over 13k km .. I'm assuming that's on conventional oil.. But i don't think that's a good idea! 13k km on conventional oil is too long! Id rather keep my engine cleaner

 

Don't worry, the oil change reminder will come on well before 8k miles! So far mine has been coming on around 4000 miles - and that's on road trips with 90% highway driving.

Use an oil that has the Chrysler MS6395 spec and you will be fine up to 8k if that's when the oil change reminder comes on...

 

Our most recent oil change message came on almost exactly at 6 months and 13,000km after it was last changed. This will be our 3rd oil change

 

From a 2012 Owner Manual:

NOTE: Under no circumstances should oil change intervals exceed 8,000 miles (13 000 km) or six months, whichever occurs first.

You are talking about the "max" interval. More frequent oil changes are at your discretion or when the oil change indicator system reminds you.

The engine oil change indicator system is duty cycle-based, which means the engine oil change interval may fluctuate dependent upon your personal driving style.

As to synthetic, full synthetic or whatever non technical term is used, keep in mind that "full synthetic" does not mean the oil is 100% synthetic, it will still be made from petroleum base stocks. Look to Castrol 0W-30, Mobil 1 0W-40 and Amsoil Signature Series for oil made from synthetic (Group lV) base stocks. These oils may not say they meet Chrysler specs though, so best to check that as well while under warranty.

These special requirements are included in MOPAR engine oils, and in equivalent oils meeting Chrysler Specification MS-6395. The manufacturer requires engine oils that are API Certified and meet the requirements of Material Standard MS-6395. MS-6395 contains additional requirements, developed during extensive fleet testing, to provide additional protection to Chrysler Group LLC engines. Use MOPAR or an equivalent oil meeting the specification MS-6395.

Conventional oil will perform just fine for the oil change intervals indicated above (by miles, time or duty), so no need to go to synthetics. Conventional oils are partly "synthetic" these days, so they are "good to go" for the long haul and are what the vehicle Manufacturer is basing the OICs on.

 

If you really care about oil change interval and getting the most life from your oil you need to do oil analysis and not just change it at 3000, 6000, or 8000 miles regardless of what oil you put in
Oil has additives which get consumed based on the engine and its environment.
Many diesel engines run the same oil for over 12000, some even 15000 because the oil is still doing its job. Short change intervals are not for the oil industry to make money but for the average car owner who has no clue and couldn't care less to learn about oil to be protected.

From what I understand the new Chrysler spec is for e85 comparability. No e85 sold anywhere near me so I'm not really worries about comparability.
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I think another factor is how long you intend to drive the van.

On my previous vehicles (that I kept for many years and well over 200K miles), I used full synthetic oil (Mobile I) and changed it around 7,500 miles or 6 months. I have never had an engine failure or any oil burning. (These were GM products.)

I intend to trade my present driver (2011 T&C) just short of 100K miles because I don't want to risk all of the other non-engine failures without a warranty. Therefore, I am using conventional oil, and will change it per the warranties, because paying extra for synthetic is no cost effective since I won't be driving it that long.

 

I am not aware of any apples to apples comparisons of conventional versus synthetic oils as to engine longevity. Generally the engine outlasts the rest of the vehicle regardless of which oil is used.

One might be wiser to pay more attention to oil filter efficiency and get the best filtration possible, ie 99% to 100% efficiency versus 85% to 95%, for particle sizes say greater than 20 microns in size.

 

You think 8K miles is extreme...Ford is recommending 10K mile intervals on it's 1.6L in the Fiesta. That's using their Motorcraft oil though, which by default is semi-syn, or you can also get full-syn.

I started doing 5K mile OCI using dino oil years ago...never had a problem. I was debating pushing to 10K using a syn, but not sure if I'm comfortable doing that yet. Regardless, my local Ford dealer does $20 oil/filter changes using Motorcraft semi-syn oil, so at that price, I still may just stick with 5K and be all the better off. Like said above, oil changes are cheap insurance.

 

Checkout www.bobistheoilguy.com for more info than you would ever want to know about engine oil... I have learned a lot and don't have a problem running extended OCI's in one of my cars. I'll keep the Pentastar happy with changes every 6 mos (it drives less than 8k per year with very short trips).

 

I delved into that site a few years ago and found lots of useful information. The real problem is that each motor acts different, so the only way to know what you can really run is to do the oil analysis at least over two oil changes in order to accurately represent the changes going on inside your motor when running extended oil changes. Most of the samples I've seen reported to the site made it appear 10K miles was about the safest to run on synthetic (some could get 15k-18K, but nearly all would start to show signs of breakdown before that.)

Like I said before, at the chance of saving maybe $20/year, what is the point? Just change it regularly, and consider it cheap insurance in protecting your motor.

 

My ram cummins had 150k, 108k from me and plowed snow every winter. It works for its life. I have run the old mobil1 formulation in it since I got it. Had the oil pan changed last year and the mechanic said it was like brand new clean inside the bottom. Cleanest he'd ever seen. I run 6000-9000 OIC on it. I know good Dino will last but I'm confident in Mobil from a friends experiences with it in a Mercedes diesel unimog versus Dino.

That said BITOG is a great site. Learned a lot there myself.

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Interesting reading:
Study done by State of California re filters and OICs: http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/Publications/Documents/UsedOil/2008020.pdf

A couple of guys on a Mustang Forum, one from Royal Purple and one from Amsoil talking about oils: http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/greasy-spoon-418/849554-first-oil-change-2012-gt.html

For those pondering 5W-20, it appears that Ford, the big mover for 5W-20, went back to 5W-30 for some of it vehicles. The 2013 Pentastats are calling for 5W-20 I believe, that switch being in the works before the ticking/head issue.

 

Like I said....lots of opinions! At 15K miles, go to Wally World and pick up a jug of Mobil 1 on the recommended weight for your engine. Stop at NAPA and pick up a NAPA gold oil filter, or wherever you can buy a Mobil 1 filter. ~$35 and you're good to.

 

Yep. Asking about what oil to use and how often to change it will get you more answers and absolute truths than you will hear from a politician running for re-election.

 

LOL!!! YEP!!!!

All the advice here is sound IMO...just depends how far you want to take things. :nut:

 

Mine was changed today. It got Pennzoil synthetic at the dealer. I have been averaging 6000 mi on a change.
For those getting the "Change Oil" light early, make sure when the oil is changed that you follow the reset procedure whether you have it done or do it yourself.

 

So in order to reset the oil change light you turn to the "on" position and fully press the gas pedal 3 times...am I going crazy or isn't this also a good way to flood your engine? Help!

 

"ON" not start!

 

When you press the pedal down, it only moves the throttle plate. The injectors don't open, so there is no chance of flooding.
Concerning the oil change interval: It is 6 months or 8000 mi. In my case, 6 months normally comes before 8000 mi.