Extending Oil Drain Intervals: What is your experience?

[Mike]

Sounds easy dont it, fact is its not. You will 8 times out of 10 be in the shop, a tech will tear all apart and not find the root cause. You'll spend thousands believing he did, but he just threw parts at it.

In today's world, the sensitivity of these engines along with diagnostic troubleshooting tools, youll know you have a major issue LOOOOONG before you see anything substantial in a "oil sample "

Why don't guys do oil samples on transmissions and rearends? I mean if they are so accurate? Not being a smartarse, just making a simple point.

On the first part, if the numbers on diagnosis were that bad, I would find a new shop as my trust in that one would be gone after the first or second misdiagnosis.

As for sampling transmissions and axles, I'm content with visual samples and monitoring temperatures. Rebuild costs is far less on those.

If I had a DD15, with a oil change interval of 70k, I don't think I would be concerned with messing with extended oil drains. That said, I would still sample the oil to catch potential problems before they shut me down on the interstate and forced me into a shop I had no trust in. We're talking, in my case, about 3 oil changes every two years, and 8-9 oil changes before I ended up trading the truck away because I have no desire to take a modern emissions equipped truck to high mileage.

 

[Mike]

I'd see it as dishonest to sell a piece of equipment without telling the buyer you ignored the maintenance schedule.

How? you as the buyer need to request maintenance history if you are concerned about that, assume much has been overlooked if you don't have good records, and buy accordingly.

done with that though, as it's taking the thread down a rabbit hole.

 

[Humble pie]

On the first part, if the numbers on diagnosis were that bad, I would find a new shop as my trust in that one would be gone after the first or second misdiagnosis.

As for sampling transmissions and axles, I'm content with visual samples and monitoring temperatures. Rebuild costs is far less on those.

If I had a DD15, with a oil change interval of 70k, I don't think I would be concerned with messing with extended oil drains. That said, I would still sample the oil to catch potential problems before they shut me down on the interstate and forced me into a shop I had no trust in. We're talking, in my case, about 3 oil changes every two years, and 8-9 oil changes before I ended up trading the truck away because I have no desire to take a modern emissions equipped truck to high mileage.

Where are you getting this 70k number? The literature I read said 50k for normal service and 30k for severe service. I’m not sure I trust those numbers, but that isn’t the point.

 

[Mike]

Where are you getting this 70k number? The literature I read said 50k for normal service and 30k for severe service. I’m not sure I trust those numbers, but that isn’t the point.

70k is the number I was looking at recently. Just looked it up, and it's actually 75K.

DD15 Engine Support | Demand Detroit

Every Detroit® DD15® Engine is covered by a great warranty.

demanddetroit.com

Basing on efficient long haul, which is why I mentioned minimal idle previously.

 

[Mike]

70k is the number I was looking at recently. Just looked it up, and it's actually 75K.

DD15 Engine Support | Demand Detroit

Every Detroit® DD15® Engine is covered by a great warranty.

demanddetroit.com

Basing on efficient long haul, which is why I mentioned minimal idle previously.

Efficient Long-Haul is over 60,000 annual miles (96,000 kilometers) and a vehicle that averages greater than 7 mpg.
† Miles/Kilometers or Hours, whichever occurs first.

 

[Humble pie]

Efficient Long-Haul is over 60,000 annual miles (96,000 kilometers) and a vehicle that averages greater than 7 mpg.
† Miles/Kilometers or Hours, whichever occurs first.

 

[Mike]

Why would you go with the DD15? The DD13 will actually put out more torque.

I'm on the fence with the two engines, but even the DD13 is 65K

DD13 Engine Support | Demand Detroit

DD13® Engine Support- When you buy a Detroit® product, you’re buying billions of miles of engineering excellence.

demanddetroit.com

 

[Humble pie]

70k is the number I was looking at recently. Just looked it up, and it's actually 75K.

DD15 Engine Support | Demand Detroit

Every Detroit® DD15® Engine is covered by a great warranty.

demanddetroit.com

Basing on efficient long haul, which is why I mentioned minimal idle previously.

Not according to the website. It’s 60,000 for the DD15 in a long haul application and 55,000 for the 13 and 16

 

[Mike]

Efficient long haul. Averaging over 7mpg. DD 15 is 75k.

 

[Mike]

 

[Humble pie]

Efficient long haul. Averaging over 7mpg. DD 15 is 75k.

I see you have to scroll left a little farther.

 

[mndriver]

If you get into the nitty gritty, the new filters are actually running a two part filter. One part is a full flow and the other half is a bypass filter.

couple years back, I actually added a bypass filter setup to my 14L. Series 60 14L DDEC V oil bypass filter install

it really made no difference in my soot level on my oil samples. Didn’t make them better, didn’t make them worse. Didn’t make it last longer or shorter. Again, there’s oil samples to verify that. at that 17-20k range, it’ was using a gallon of oil and time to change it. Both before and after doing my inframe.

my Volvo, hasn’t used oil even going out to 40k. I’ve thought about going out to when it will use that magical gallon of oil but then the issue of my warranty coverage is the deciding factor since it calls out 25;000 miles.

Mel that’s my oil change interval, to satisfy the warranty, is 25,000 miles.

(Any confusion in the post is due to alcohol involved posting)

 

[Oxbow]

Bypass filtering is not a new trend though. It was really popular in the 70’s up through the 80’s. The luberfiner 750 is the OG of bypass filters.

And, you could take the filters in to be cleaned and re-used (Luberfiner). We did that on a 1970 Pete with an 8v71.

 

[Oxbow]

Sounds easy dont it, fact is its not. You will 8 times out of 10 be in the shop, a tech will tear all apart and not find the root cause. You'll spend thousands believing he did, but he just threw parts at it.

In today's world, the sensitivity of these engines along with diagnostic troubleshooting tools, youll know you have a major issue LOOOOONG before you see anything substantial in a "oil sample "

Why don't guys do oil samples on transmissions and rearends? I mean if they are so accurate? Not being a smartarse, just making a simple point.

I do oil samples on all compartments of our heavy equipment, but only on the engine in trucks. One of our old B models is showing high brass content. Cat's SOS system (and maybe others) does provide the probable cause(s). After two such samples I am guessing that it is thrust washer metal. It's going down to Skeeter to pull the pan, fix the retarder leaks, and check out the thrust washers. I also think that at least on my old crap it is good for identifying fuel dilution and coolant contamination, but as you say, by the time you get the results back such problems often show themselves anyway. My biggest thing is, you run until you get a bad sample, but you don't get the results for a week to know it's bad, plus the miles that it was bad prior to sampling and bingo, the damage is done and the $3000 or whatever you "saved" is loooong gone.

 

[mndriver]

I found a leaking sleeve oring to set in motion my inframe.

entirely separate situation, injector cups and injectors, had me doing extra oil samples at that moment in time.

first and second sample came back clean. Last sample came back as I was trying to find where a quart of coolant had gone the week before.

the army is what really taught me about oil samples and their importance. Even more, a mechanic understanding a machine and what happens during an oil change.

floods of 1997, we had 1900+ pieces of equipment used in flood efforts. This is where I learned to hate vehicles and deep water.

we had one particular hmmwv that would come back constantly for water in the transmission. They didn’t see any other contamination, just water. It was like the 8th or 9th fluid change.

I sat down and use three 5 gallon buckets of transmission fluid and drained it as we filled the cooler lines. Used all 15 gallons too.

only place I could figure it was holding up was in the torque converter. The volume we used to flush it should have been enough to grab the water out of the torque converter.

it did. sample the next day was clean and given the green light to return the vehicle to normal service.

Oil sampling is a tool. One of many in the diagnostics bag.

it should not be used to change or alter a maintenance program. Regular drain intervals aren’t just about putting new fluid in. It’s also about what’s coming out. Chunks of gears, thickened oil from clutch packs etc. all stuff that will be missed if you just don’t do it.

 

[Electric Chicken]

Here's a question.

If the factory recommends 75k intervals...isn't that enough? They presumably do all kinds of testing to get to those numbers, including oil samples.

Depending how much you run, that's only twice a year. I dunno if I'd bother pushing that.

 

[ironpony]

Depending how much you run, that's only twice a year. I dunno if I'd bother pushing that

Not with your antique...

 

[Mike]

Here's a question.

If the factory recommends 75k intervals...isn't that enough? They presumably do all kinds of testing to get to those numbers, including oil samples.

Depending how much you run, that's only twice a year. I dunno if I'd bother pushing that.

Yeah, that is plenty for me if I have that truck.

That said, I have a non emissions Detroit.

 

[Electric Chicken]

Yeah, that is plenty for me if I have that truck.

That said, I have a non emissions Detroit.

So you're only trying to extend the jalopy?

 

[Duck]

So you're only trying to extend the jalopy?

Glider. Not a jalopy.