Greastart Posted September 23, 2019 Share Posted September 23, 2019 I just passed 4,000 miles on the 2018 TC Cargo Van. Aside from the unbelievably uncomfortable seats, the non adjustable, fixed, wide angle side mirrors, and the non-gravity defying, big as a barn door, sun visor that ain't gonna last past 24 months, I LOVE this little van! Will go into detail at the 10K milepost but for now, we love it! Power, enough Room for cargo, Good Fuel Economy, a light foot helps but I'm up to 24.4 on the readout. I'll start tracking with pencil and paper after 5K miles for better accuracy. Great around town, parks ANYWHERE! Barn Doors, got used to the blind spot in a hurry. Love swinging those doors open to load or unload. Grease Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrtn Posted September 23, 2019 Share Posted September 23, 2019 My visors are still good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herb Posted September 28, 2019 Share Posted September 28, 2019 On 9/23/2019 at 1:03 AM, Greastart said: I just passed 4,000 miles on the 2018 TC Cargo Van. Aside from the unbelievably uncomfortable seats, the non adjustable, fixed, wide angle side mirrors, and the non-gravity defying, big as a barn door, sun visor that ain't gonna last past 24 months, I LOVE this little van! Will go into detail at the 10K milepost but for now, we love it! Power, enough Room for cargo, Good Fuel Economy, a light foot helps but I'm up to 24.4 on the readout. I'll start tracking with pencil and paper after 5K miles for better accuracy. Great around town, parks ANYWHERE! Barn Doors, got used to the blind spot in a hurry. Love swinging those doors open to load or unload. Grease I just did as well and for the first time i see my " Oil Change Required" light come on . It stays on permanently which is a pain , then when you call the dealer to come in for an oil change they make you wait awhile so i'm not happy about needing to wait . Vans been sitting still because i think "Don't drive it " , lots of damage will occur , need oil change first then it will be OK to drive. I obsess over this kind of stuff , wish i had a " I don't give a damn attitude" and if it was someone else's vehicle i wouldn't give a damn but it's mine . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
windguy Posted September 28, 2019 Share Posted September 28, 2019 (edited) @herb - easy solution to turning off that message, which is in the User's Manual (shown below). Another forumite posted this procedure a few months back but not sure what thread. Worked for me. The one year clock gets set in my van before I get to the 5,000 mile interval for an oil change. Just hitting 20,000 now so I'm ready for another service too. Edited September 28, 2019 by windguy herb 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Double Nickels Posted September 28, 2019 Share Posted September 28, 2019 Of course, the real question is, do you trust the computer algorithm? Some people say that once you add oil from the bottle, even if you're not driving it, the oil oxidizes. In a calendar year, the oil and/or additive pack has degraded. This is why oil labels say 1 year. This is why the computer will signal you in 1 year. Some people believe that the oil they are using will not have that problem. A lot of people feel that certain higher prices motor oils are better and will not degrade. You can send in an oil sample for analysis. I usually buy motor oil based on what I can buy cheap. And I have gone over 1 year between oil changes. The car did not blow up while driving on old oil. But that doesn't mean I did the right thing. I can't measure if the old oil was oxidized, or if any damage was done. herb 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herb Posted September 28, 2019 Share Posted September 28, 2019 I would think the appearance of the oil would give you an indication if it needs changing but i can't say for sure . This is synthetic oil and it always looks clean to me , non synthetic is easy to tell because it looks oxidized and darkens when it gets old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G B L Posted September 28, 2019 Share Posted September 28, 2019 Today's oils are very good if you are regular with the oil changes missing an oil change buy a 1000 miles will be of no issue over the life of the TC. 92000 on the clock and the Elephant ear visors are just as crappy as they ever were and are showing no signs of giving up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OLDSCHOOLFOOL Posted September 28, 2019 Share Posted September 28, 2019 I always shoot for 4K between changes. Maybe its a little under or a little over that but I don't stress about going a little over. I also don't depend on the indicator to tell me when it needs changing. Could have used the reset post a little earlier yesterday since I changed the oil and had to look up in the manual how to reset it. The warning just happened to coincide with the scheduled change. Have an old pickup that I only change once a year (need it or not) since I rarely put 2K on it per year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Double Nickels Posted September 28, 2019 Share Posted September 28, 2019 14 hours ago, herb said: the appearance of the oil would give you an indication My eyes are not that good. I cannot see what other people need lab equipment to look at. Sniffing it just smells like oil. My nose isn't able to tell me if the oil is still good, or to what degree. I haven't tried the taste test yet. But cops on TV are always able to taste test white powder to see if it's Cocaine. I will have to dab a little oil off the dipstick onto my tongue to see what the level of purity is. 7 hours ago, OLDSCHOOLFOOL said: Have an old pickup that I only change once a year Look under the oil cap for sludge. Some call it milkshake. The sludge is not seen on the dipstick. This is what happens when the car isn't driven. Condensation, evaporation, and oxidation. Although some people say that you still don't need to change the oil. Just drive it around for awhile to burn it off. The oil should still be fine for 10,000 miles. On 9/22/2019 at 10:03 PM, Greastart said: sun visor that ain't gonna last past 24 months Mine still work. I've had the van for 36 months+. Maybe if you dab some pepper spray on them, your Rottweiler will stop using them as a chew toy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Double Nickels Posted September 28, 2019 Share Posted September 28, 2019 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G B L Posted September 29, 2019 Share Posted September 29, 2019 A piston engine is a compressor and one of the by products of compressing air is water. If the Crankcase ventilation system is not perfect and the trips are short then the muck collects at the top of the engine and the oil fill cap. Limit the short trips and make sure to fully warm the engine for a long enough when the weather is cold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OLDSCHOOLFOOL Posted October 3, 2019 Share Posted October 3, 2019 On 9/28/2019 at 6:17 PM, Double Nickels said: My eyes are not that good. I cannot see what other people need lab equipment to look at. Sniffing it just smells like oil. My nose isn't able to tell me if the oil is still good, or to what degree. I haven't tried the taste test yet. But cops on TV are always able to taste test white powder to see if it's Cocaine. I will have to dab a little oil off the dipstick onto my tongue to see what the level of purity is. Look under the oil cap for sludge. Some call it milkshake. The sludge is not seen on the dipstick. This is what happens when the car isn't driven. Condensation, evaporation, and oxidation. Although some people say that you still don't need to change the oil. Just drive it around for awhile to burn it off. The oil should still be fine for 10,000 miles. No sludge or "milkshake". I'll pass on tasting it.? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted October 4, 2019 Share Posted October 4, 2019 (edited) @ 5,000 miles, I'm always in angst. Do I trust the Oil Life Monitor? Should I wait for the dashboard message to change the oil? Or should I just change the oil? In theory, if the IOLM activates every 7,000 to 10,000 miles, I change the oil 2 or 3 times in 20,000 miles. As opposed to 4 times, every 5,000 miles. So what do I save? Less than $20. ABout $15 for 5 quarts of oil, and $2 on a filter. After 100,000 miles, I will save $100! Yippie Kai Yeah! It's like with spark plugs. Use (every expensive) nickel anti seize? Or don't use any, as most spark plugs supposedly do not require it anymore? Adjust the gap? Or use the plug as is, out of the box, as most spark plugs are supposedly pre-gapped and you could damage the electrode when you adjust the gap? You just can't win. Edited October 4, 2019 by Fifty150 spelling Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WillMartin Posted October 18, 2019 Share Posted October 18, 2019 My 2010 doesn't have an oil life sensor, so far as I know. Problem solved. I got 5K between changes and don't worry much. After a year of ownership, it's hard to know if I'm doing it wrong or not. It had 23K on it when I got it. It's got 31K on it now, a year later. I won't manage to double it's mileage in two years at that rate. More like just less than three. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted October 19, 2019 Share Posted October 19, 2019 You could obsess over it with trying to decide on the perfect oil brand & formulation. Install a Fumoto valve, and then send in a sample for used oil analysis every 500 miles. Buy an $80 tool to cut open the $3 filter. Then definitively select the perfect oil, filter, and oil change interval based on hundreds of dollars worth of "science" and "research". I'm gritting my teeth. Conventional wisdom from decades past old technology. 3 months. 3,000 miles. They have brainwashed me. I am clawing my eyes out, as I await the oil change dash message. I've got 3 cases of filters and 100 quarts of oil stockpiled. Every day, I pick up my 15 mm socket, already attached to the ratchet handle, give it a few turns to hear the clicks, and feel the heft in my hand. Maybe I need to find a new girlfriend. mrtn 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.