RoadWarriorFromLP

For a car using conventional (not synthetic) oil, a typical interval is 7,500 miles/ 6 months for a car driven in "normal" conditions, 3,000 miles/ 6 months for a car driven in "severe" conditions.

But practically every driver in the US is driving in "severe" conditions. It is highly unlikely that the use of your car isn't "severe," and you should probably go with the shorter interval. Review your manual for the definition of "severe" and change your oil accordingly.

They're often using synthetic, which allow for a longer interval, and they are less likely to be subject to the "severe" conditions that call for more frequent oil changes.

md95065

Really?

I suppose that is true of people who do nothing but short trips around town.

I drive to work every day - 40 miles each way - almost all on highways and freeways - it is certainly "high mileage" but not "severe" and I have never felt the need to do anything more than the "normal" maintenance schedule.

penguinsix

Do you have a link? I just looked at The site and it said 40 miles, 50 max on about four or five different pages. Maybe you saw a km number mislabeled.

http://www.vauxhall-ampera.co.uk/ind...eng/ampera/faq

Mechanically this is the same as the volt except for the charging port. The front of the Opal/Vauxhall is different than the Volt but that shouldn't result in any major mph difference. I also read that 220 charging of the batteries should not drastically change the range vs 110 which is the US standard.

penguinsix

It's not just distance and how the drive is but also climate and environment that comes into play. In moderate weather is low dust environments driving ten miles a day without stops and starts you are considered normal.

The majority of folks are considered severe.

http://www.infobarrel.com/How_often_...ange_my_oil%3F

http://ezinearticles.com/?Oil-Change...ons&id=5373040

md95065

OK, but reading those definitions I still think that I fit into the "normal" category and I am still surprised that, apparently, so many people do not ...

scrubbedexpat099

Like it does on Mobiles?.

penguinsix

Sorry. Typo. Meant to say should not drastically affect the range. Fixed it now.

Awesome Welles

Chev Volt and Vaux Ampera share the same technology, both being GM products. They are similar weight and aerodynamic profile - and therefore perform pretty much the same - 40-80km per full charge.

Re oil-change - it's simple, if you want to keep your warranty valid, stick to the schedule. The warranty company does not benefit from increased oil sales. They benefit from less wear-related failures.
On a car like a Civic, an oil/filter change is a 15min/$15 affair and will increase the service life of your car significantly. Modern engines require minimal adjustment and maintanence, but they do need clean oil to stay efficient (cooling, as well as lubricating).

My car requirers full synth, ultra low viscosity motor oil that, with a filter, costs around $70 to change (I do it myself) which I do religiously every 5000 miles. The car does 500 miles on the highway per week, so that's frequent oil changes - the benefit, on analysing the used oil - zero metal particulate - meaning inperceptable wear.

S Folinsky

According to Car And Driver magazine, one can install a 220v charger at home. Charging time is cut from 10 hours to 4 hours. It is also uses fewer KwH to charge if done at the higher voltage.

Anian

Don't forget that British mpgs will look 25% better than US mpg because the British gallon is 25% bigger (16oz pints in the US). That catches a lot of people out.

rallybug

I think that it's the Magnuson-Moss Act that is quoted - as long as you can prove that approved components (oil, filters, etc) were used at the required intervals, you can do it all yourself without voiding the warranty. Keep those receipts

RoadWarriorFromLP

The difference is actually 20% (5 Imperial gallons = 6 US gallons.) An Imperial fluid ounce is not the same size as is a US fluid ounce, so you can't compare directly based upon the number of fluid ounces in each gallon (160 fl. oz. in an Imperial gallon vs. 128 fl. oz. in a US gallon.) Confusing, I know...

Sally Redux

I didn't know about the different fluid ounces.

mmhendrie

but aren't we talking electric anyway....its the amount of miles the car can do on a single charge BEFORE switching to gas....so the comparative size of the gallon should be irrelevant...

Now if a British mile were shorter then an American one....

Anian

Ah, forgot about that. I remembered calculating it as something like 19.6% a few years ago, but as I typed I mentally worked it out from the pints and wrote that in, forgetting about the difference in fl ounce size. I'm so used to using the US system now, and I was brought up in metric!

The mpg things was more of a pre-emptive strike, since almost every time that mileage is mentioned someone will reminisce about how they used to get 35mpg in their old British car but their new US car only gets 32mpg.