# Oil Life Monitor



## Mr. Jon (Feb 24, 2010)

Anyone else follow the oil life monitor? My truck has 117k miles and I have always changed the oil when it gets below 10% oil life. It has typically been 9-10k miles. I changed my oil on Jan, 10, 2011. Since then I have plowed more than a typical entire season for me. Less than a month and only 2k miles I'm at 7% oil life, so I changed the oil today. I guess the oil life monitor really knows what kind of driving I'm doing and adjusted based on the beating my truck is taking with all the plowing.


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## Blacksmith Cycl (Jan 22, 2011)

Funny you ask. My 2002 2500HD (6.0L gas) just has the light on the dash that says "Change Oil". I did an oil change today and had to look in the owners manual to remember how to reset the light. While I was in there I did the unthinkable....I actually read the owners manual for some useful info!!

Mine may be different than yours, but the owners manual says that oil life is calculated by counting actual engine revolutions and also factoring in engine temp. Run the engine hot and oil life is decreased. I was suprised that they put that much thought into it. 

It made sense to me since the light came on with less than 2K miles since I changed the oil in the fall. With all the plowing this year I am sure mileage would have been a poor way to judge when it was due for a change since plowing doesn't rack up many miles.


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## tuney443 (Jun 25, 2006)

Mr. Jon;1229033 said:


> Anyone else follow the oil life monitor? My truck has 117k miles and I have always changed the oil when it gets below 10% oil life. It has typically been 9-10k miles. I changed my oil on Jan, 10, 2011. Since then I have plowed more than a typical entire season for me. Less than a month and only 2k miles I'm at 7% oil life, so I changed the oil today. I guess the oil life monitor really knows what kind of driving I'm doing and adjusted based on the beating my truck is taking with all the plowing.


A man should never trust his DIC [driver information center].Seriously,I don't,it depends on algorithms,just can't believe in it.9-10K miles might be stretching your changeouts if you're running dino oil.I use Schaeffer oil with their SOS [scheduled oil sampling] program to tell me what's going on inside my Dmax and when to changeout.I go app. 7,500 miles,after that,the contamination factor risk isn't worth keeping the oil anymore.An oil life monitor can not do that,you can theoretically have just changed your oil,reset the monitor and you could have a bad injector now dumping fuel in your engine diluting your oil and that monitor would never pick up on that.


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## nevrnf (Oct 12, 2005)

OK think about this. GM spent millions designing this with warranty in mind. If it did not work for them and save them $$$ on warranty claims do you think it would still be on ALL of their vehicles. 3k oil changes are a product of Jiffy Lube in the 1970's. Technology has improved 10 fold with fuel injection on the vehicles and quality of oil and filters used in them. Obviously the computer knows what is going on by your driving habits as mileage between needed services changes regularly for the monitor. It knows when you are working the engine hard and when you are not and it shows.


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## Mr. Jon (Feb 24, 2010)

nevrnf;1229509 said:


> OK think about this. GM spent millions designing this with warranty in mind. If it did not work for them and save them $$$ on warranty claims do you think it would still be on ALL of their vehicles. 3k oil changes are a product of Jiffy Lube in the 1970's. Technology has improved 10 fold with fuel injection on the vehicles and quality of oil and filters used in them. Obviously the computer knows what is going on by your driving habits as mileage between needed services changes regularly for the monitor. It knows when you are working the engine hard and when you are not and it shows.


:salute:

ten characters


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## marylandbigb (Sep 23, 2009)

technology is not always good dont believe the oil life monitor system i work for a gm dealer and have seen many vehicles engines damaged or abused do too this system.... i have always told my customers 5k miles and no less than 30 percent on oil life monitor system... an oil change is the cheapest thing you can do too your vehicle....


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## 06Sierra (Nov 30, 2008)

I go at 6000 miles no matter what the DIC says. Sometimes with the truck in the winter it comes on at 3000. I keep driving to 6000, put some new Mobil 1 in and a filter, grease it up and rotate the tires. The Yukon on the other hand I think would go closer to 10000 miles before the DIC would come on the change the oil. I still do it at 6000.


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## Mike N (Dec 21, 2008)

AFAIK the oil life monitor works off time, temperature and engine load.


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## nevrnf (Oct 12, 2005)

I was a tech for GM for 8 years in the early 2000's and we never saw a engine failure due to oil. My wife's 02 Monte Carlo get changed since new when the light comes on and it has 125k on it and it runs like the day we bought it. If you feel the need to change at 3k then do it. It cant hurt anything other than you wallet.


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## Milwaukee (Dec 28, 2007)

I disagree with everybody here. Have you see how very sludge oil come out plow truck with only 1k miles on new oil?

For me it will be 1K miles on oil with plow.

How fun on craiglist there hundred of plow trucks with blown engine or say new motor. This show me you change oil at wrong time.


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## KSikkema (Oct 7, 2008)

Regular oil changes are the cheapest insurance you can get in order to ensure that engine oil is always clean and the engine is happy. Nothing bothers me more than when I do an oil change on a vehicle and the oil is already dirty after running only for 30 seconds to check the oil level. Some customers think they are saving themselves money by doing that. In the end, it never works as well in reality as it does in theory. I change my oil at 5,000 km every time and whenever the dipstick is pulled, you really have to look close to see the oil (this on a truck with 310,000 kms)


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## RepoMan207 (Oct 7, 2008)

try running that by a warranty rep....9k mile oil changes....c'mon. I run Mobil 1 full synth. and change it every 5k. I leased a 06 F150 and was told if I did that I would void my warranty, that it had to be done every 3k per their book. Obviously there is a reason behind these guidelines. 

Another note, I just changed my oil on the 1st, that same night that damn light came on even though it was reset....hmmmmmmm. Real rocket science going on in there huh boys.


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## overtime (Nov 5, 2009)

I go about 17k per oil change in the truck. As for my wifes I run 25k. and been doing that sence we have owned the car new and its a 06 with i think we have about 65 on it or so. GM tried to tell me that it would void the warrenty, but i said to them that you cant say that. Its called, 

If you are interested in using AMSOIL motor oil, but concerned that using a synthetic oil or extending your oil drain interval will void his warranty, you have no need for concern. Congress in 1975 enacted the federal Magnuson-Moss Act to regulate written consumer product warranties. An examination of the law reveals warranties remain intact when AMSOIL Synthetic Lubricants are used.

The law was meant to give consumers detailed information about warranty coverage before they buy.

Congress charged the Federal Trade Commission with creation of the specifics of the law.

The FTC set down three rules under the Act: the Disclosure Rule, the Pre-Sale Availability Rule and the Dispute Resolution Rule.

Those rules require warrantors to title their written warranty as either full or limited, provide a single, clear and easy-to-read document that spells out certain information about coverage and ensure that warranties are available where the products are sold so that consumers can read them before buying.

In passing the Act, Congress meant to give consumers access to warranty information, let consumers comparison shop for warranties, encourage warranty competition and promote timely and complete performance of warranty obligations.

While the Magnuson-Moss Act does not require manufacturers to provide a written warranty, it provides specific rules when one is provided. Among those provisions, FTC regulations state: (c) No warrantor of a consumer product may condition his written or implied warranty of such product on the consumers using, in connection with such product, any article or service (other than article or service provided without charge under the terms of the warranty) which is identified by brand, trade, or corporate name; except that the prohibition of this subsection may be waived by the Commission if (1) the warrantor satisfies the Commission that the warranted product will function properly only if the article or service so identified is used in connection with the warranted product, and (2) the Commission finds that such a waiver is in the public interest. (15 U.S.C.2302(C))

That means your warranty stands when you use AMSOIL Synthetic Lubricants.

Vehicle manufacturers recommend lubricants according to their viscosity grade and service classification. Any oil, whether it's conventional petroleum motor oil or synthetic, meeting the correct viscosity grade, 5W-30 for example, and the current API and ILSAC North American service classifications may be used without affecting warranty coverage. AMSOIL motor oils are recommended for use in applications requiring these specifications.

Furthermore, the practice of extending oil drain intervals does not void warranties. Original equipment manufacturers pay or deny warranty claims based on the findings of failure analysis. To affect the vehicle warranty, the lubricant must be directly responsible for the failure. If the oil didn't cause the problem the warranty cannot be voided, regardless of brand or length of time in use.

Synthetic motor oil was introduced to the automotive public in 1972 by AMSOIL, INC., with the world's first API rated synthetic motor oil specially formulated for long service and superior performance and protection to that of conventional oils.

Nearly 40 years ago, AMSOIL synthetics represented a vision of the future and technology ahead of their time. Since then, every major engine oil manufacturer has introduced synthetic oils of their own. To be sure, many original equipment manufacturers would like you to believe you can only use their products. However, it's a violation of the consumer protections set forth in the Magnuson-Moss Act, unless they're willing to provide you those products free of charge.

AMSOIL offers a warranty that covers the cost of repair or replacement of a proven mechanically sound engine damaged as a result of using AMSOIL synthetic motor oil. However, it has never happened. Decades of experience proves AMSOIL can be installed in any vehicle with complete confidence.

AMSOIL further backs its products with action when a Dealer or customer reports being told their warranty is voided if they use synthetics.

I gave them a copy and they shut up.
I havent had no problem with it and the motor sounds great and oils still good when changed. So i must be doing something right.


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## tuney443 (Jun 25, 2006)

nevrnf;1229509 said:


> OK think about this. GM spent millions designing this with warranty in mind. If it did not work for them and save them $$$ on warranty claims do you think it would still be on ALL of their vehicles. 3k oil changes are a product of Jiffy Lube in the 1970's. Technology has improved 10 fold with fuel injection on the vehicles and quality of oil and filters used in them. Obviously the computer knows what is going on by your driving habits as mileage between needed services changes regularly for the monitor. It knows when you are working the engine hard and when you are not and it shows.


REALLY NOW? Here's just 1 GM bulletin that pokes holes in your thinking.Like I previously said,the monitor goes by algorithms only.It does NOT have sensors or probes to analyze the quality of the oil to tell you when to changeout.ONLY a qualified lab like Schaeffer,Blackstone, or Cat can do a proper oil analysis.Personally,I'm not worried about GM spending millions on their system,my concern is only having my Dmax run excellent,which it is and for it's longevity. I have never and will never rely on that DIC other than to maybe turn off my signal after a half mile.I've gone now app. 260K miles with 3 Dmax's on a combo of simply writing my PM down in my Dmax engine supplement and advice from Schaefer's lab. Here you go:

2007 Chevrolet Silverado - 4WD [lGCHK23657F5296401 I Sierra. Silverado (VIN C/K) Service Manual I Bulletins By Category I I Document ID: 2373662
#PIP4540C: Early Oil Change Message Or Erratic Oil Life Monitor - keywords DIC miles mileage - (Dec 7, 2009)
SUbject:	Early Oil Change Message or Erratic Oil Life Monitor
Models:	2007-2009 Chevrolet Express, Kodiak, Silverado 2007-2009 GMC Savana, Sierra, Topkick
Equipped with the 6.6 Duramax Diesel RPO code lMM
This PI was superseded to advise dealers there is no repair for early oil change messages or erratic OlM operation. Please discard PIP4540B.
The following diagnosis might be helpful if the vehicle exhibits the symptom(s) described in this
PI.
Condition I Concern:
A dealer may encounter a customer concern of the oil life monitor (OlM) percentage dropping too qUickly, or an early oil change message. A customer utilizing the oil life monitor may be directed to change the oil at (or near) 1000 mile intervals.
Recommendation Ilnstructions:
Please do not replace the IPC or ECM for an early oil change message. Oil life monitoring is dependent on vehicle use. Oil life monitoring and change intervals will differ depending on how the vehicle is driven.
Please complete the current SI diagnostics for any trouble code or symptom found. Engine drivability concerns may induce early oil change messages or erratic OlM operation.
Dealers should verify there are no intake or exhaust leaks by completing Charge Air Cooler Diagnosis (Full System Air leak Test and the Induction System Smoke Test).
Discuss driving habits with the customer. The main contributor to early or erratic oil change messages may be some of the customers driving habits.
Drive cycles that include short trip, stop and go, and extended idle times are a few of the contributors to early oil change messages. Customers with more exhaust regenerations (due to driving habits) are more susceptible to qUicker oil change messages.
There is no repair for early oil change messages or erratic OlM operation.
If a dealer is to encounter a vehicle with a customer concern of early oil change complete a Field Product Report using the newest version of bulletin 02-00-89-002.
Note: If an oil analysis has been completed fuel dilution should not be over 12%. http://gsi.xw.gm.com/si/showDoc.do?docSyskey=2373662&from=sm 3/29/2010
Document ID: 2373662	Page 2 of2
Note: Some GMC Topkick and Chevrolet Kodiak vehicles are equipped with a manual DPF regeneration switch. Regular use of this switch will cause the oil life monitor to reduce oil life much qUicker than if the truck was driven to complete the regen.
Please follow this diagnostic or repair process thoroughly and complete each step. If the condition exhibited is resolved without completing every step, the remaining steps do not need to be performed.
GM bulletins are intended for use by professional technicians, NOT a "do-it-yourselfer". They are written to inform	G
WESUPPORT VOLUNTARY TECHNICIAN CERTIFICATION
these technicians of conditions that may OCCur on some vehicles, or to provide information that could assist in the proper service of a vehicle. Properly trained technicians have the equipment, tools, safety instructions, and know* how to do a job properly and safely. If a condition is described, DO NOT assume that the bulletin applies to your vehicle, or that your vehicle will have that condition. See your GM dealer for information on whether your vehicle may benefit from the information.


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## tuney443 (Jun 25, 2006)

Milwaukee;1231827 said:


> I disagree with everybody here. Have you see how very sludge oil come out plow truck with only 1k miles on new oil?
> 
> For me it will be 1K miles on oil with plow.
> 
> How fun on craiglist there hundred of plow trucks with blown engine or say new motor. This show me you change oil at wrong time.


NO,I've never seen sludge type oil coming out of any of my plow trucks,large trucks, or excavating iron.That comes from either poor quality of oil,EXTREME temperature,previous improper change intervals, and/or wrong viscosity of oil.Any oil needs changing for only 2 reasons---additive package is exhausted and the fact that it's contaminated and can't properly lubricate anymore.1K mile changeouts is way premature unless you're running a very poor quality oil,but to each their own.


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## jklawn&Plow (Jan 8, 2011)

Mr. Jon;1229033 said:


> Anyone else follow the oil life monitor? My truck has 117k miles and I have always changed the oil when it gets below 10% oil life. It has typically been 9-10k miles. I changed my oil on Jan, 10, 2011. Since then I have plowed more than a typical entire season for me. Less than a month and only 2k miles I'm at 7% oil life, so I changed the oil today. I guess the oil life monitor really knows what kind of driving I'm doing and adjusted based on the beating my truck is taking with all the plowing.


Yes, it seems to be from all the plowing. DId not notice it last year. But this year with the sleet and driveways I am doing 2-3 as many reverse/fowards and my mileage dropped from 6-7mpg to 4.5mpg. I need to get heavier plow (7.6std). Last two years the monitor let me go ~14 months or more before change. This time probably only 10 months.
-Use mobil 1 or other full synthetic (noticed major improvement in 2000 1500 5.3L)
-Use GM3094 oil as spec'd in the owners manual (2500HD, 3500HD) only saw this spec on one maufact that was not synthetic
-change when told to by monitor or 6000-7000 miles whichever comes first.
-a mobil 1 change costs me $30 to do, (drill a hole in the filter first-as recommnded by othe plowsite member)


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## tuney443 (Jun 25, 2006)

Here's a question for you DIC believers,more to the point,ones who solely believe that you should rely only on changing your oil going by the advice given by the OLM.Would the percentage of oil life remaining be EXACTLY the same if instead of plowing heavy snow,you were instead plowing marshmallows? Ridiculous, yes,but I just want to see people's opinions.Same plowing route,same time intervals,only thing different is what you're plowing.


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## jklawn&Plow (Jan 8, 2011)

Good point- is it possible for the computer to interpret the throttle position, rpms and determine force being pushed, and if it is did it do it. No one is saying the reminder system is perfect just that it works to remind you.


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## RichG53 (Sep 16, 2008)

What's this all about ???

(drill a hole in the filter first-as recommnded by othe plowsite member)


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## jklawn&Plow (Jan 8, 2011)

Loosen oil filter, mega oil leaks out all over. Lesser amounts if you drill a few holes in the bottom before removing.(for those of us that don't have lift.


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## Mr. Jon (Feb 24, 2010)

I poke a hole with hammer & screwdriver, drain the filter before removing it, works great, no mess.


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## dlcs (Sep 2, 2004)

I don't like Dic, never trust a Dic.


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## tuney443 (Jun 25, 2006)

dlcs;1236446 said:


> I don't like Dic, never trust a Dic.


HAH---YOU STOLE ONE OF MY MANY SAYINGS.: Some women say the same thing-----so I've been told.


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