DIY oil and filter change?

[AndyH]

I've attached my oil analysis report (they got the vehicle type wrong, it's the PHEV model, but that doesn't affect the analysis) which was taken at 3714 miles. As you can see, fuel dilution was already at the maximum level allowed. Fuel in the oil is a really bad thing, it prevents oil from properly lubricating the ICE. Fuel in the oil is a common problem in PHEVs because the ICE tends to not run long enough to burn off the blow-by, so instead of burning off, the fuel in the oil builds up. This oil needs to be removed from my PHEV soon, and I will remove it at 5k miles.

Thanks for posting this, excellent information.

I should add that the oil that came out of my PHEV had a strong gasoline-like smell when I was putting it into the sample container. I have never smelled anything like this coming out of any of my pure ICE cars. But you can't just sniff test your oil, you really need to send it in to be analyzed to figure out the actual contamination levels.

Here is the place that will do oil analysis, at least if you are in the US: https://www.blackstone-labs.com/
They sell a vacuum pump, which you can use to extract oil without actually changing it https://www.blackstone-labs.com/vacuum-pump.php That's how I got my oil out to sample without removing all of the oil from the vehicle.

The TBN levels https://www.blackstone-labs.com/do-i-need-a-tbn.php still look good, as this ICE really has only about I'd say 1000-2000 miles of "runtime" on it, but it doesn't really matter as the fuel dilution has reached levels where the ICE can be damaged anyway.

Thanks for posting the report! What oil is in the engine? I assume it's the initial/factory fill?

I'll be pulling a sample on mine next month to confirm my annual oil change plan (I use AMSOIL).

The fuel dilution number might shift if one runs the engine enough to get the oil up to temperature for about 30 minutes. That should help with both dilution and keeping water at bay. But viscosity is still within the normal range, so no worries about the small amount of fuel dilution at this point.

Don't worry about the TBN for gasoline engines - that's a diesel engine oil life marker. Keep track of TAN for gas engines. (Though yeah, if it's what you've got, use it - and it looks fine.)

 

[STS134]

Thanks for posting the report! What oil is in the engine? I assume it's the initial/factory fill?

I'll be pulling a sample on mine next month to confirm my annual oil change plan (I use AMSOIL).

The fuel dilution number might shift if one runs the engine enough to get the oil up to temperature for about 30 minutes. That should help with both dilution and keeping water at bay. But viscosity is still within the normal range, so no worries about the small amount of fuel dilution at this point.

Don't worry about the TBN for gasoline engines - that's a diesel engine oil life marker. Keep track of TAN for gas engines. (Though yeah, if it's what you've got, use it - and it looks fine.)

It's the initial batch of oil from the factory.

 

[AndyH]

Thanks for posting the report! What oil is in the engine? I assume it's the initial/factory fill?

I'll be pulling a sample on mine next month to confirm my annual oil change plan (I use AMSOIL).

The fuel dilution number might shift if one runs the engine enough to get the oil up to temperature for about 30 minutes. That should help with both dilution and keeping water at bay. But viscosity is still within the normal range, so no worries about the small amount of fuel dilution at this point.

Don't worry about the TBN for gasoline engines - that's a diesel engine oil life marker. Keep track of TAN for gas engines. (Though yeah, if it's what you've got, use it - and it looks fine.)

It's the initial batch of oil from the factory.

Cool - thanks!

A couple of other things came to mind while I was out washing my car. It's been about 7 or so years since I did oil stuff, so verify this with Blackstone. In the past, Blackstone's analysts tracked the range for a specific piece of equipment. Since this is your first analysis on the car, and since they likely don't have a lot of data yet for NA Outlander PHEVs, I expect the 2% number for your car not to be a maximum overall, but rather a max for your car so far. Viscosity will be the limiting factor and your oil's still in grade. If anything gets out of range, they'll make it clear that the oil's condemned and should be changed.

I look forward to contributing to the forum's new oil analysis thread.

 

[STS134]

Second Oil Analysis Report (this time, I kept the oil in for a full 5000 miles before changing it, and I removed a sample to test just before changing it).

View attachment 18 OUTLANDER-190301.jpg

Note: I took two long road trips on this oil, one for around 700-900 miles, and another around 400-500 miles, so I think that helped to keep the fuel dilution down. This time, they found only a "trace" amount, as opposed to 2% last time after only 3.7k miles. It's definitely doing better than my friend's Cayenne, which went up to around 5% fuel dilution at around 5k miles. I will generally try to start the ICE when I get on the freeway, and run it until I get off the freeway. If I get on the freeway and I'm going to be on the freeway for less than 3-4 minutes, then I try not to start the ICE at all.

Anyone else get a report from Blackstone or another oil analysis lab? I'm curious to see what your fuel dilution numbers look like, as well as what your ICE usage pattern looks like.

 

[haripetrov]

Hello guys,

As far as I can see there is a difference between Engine oil (which in total is around 4.5 liters and should be changed regularly ~14200 km) and front motor fluid (with catalog code: CVTF-J4 according to Owners Manual).
Do you have any idea how and how often this front motor fluid (around 2.2 litres) should be changed?

 

[yardbird88]

My local dealer charges $50 for synthetic oil/filter change and that's the only service that you need every 7500 miles. I change the engine & cabin filters myself every 15,000 miles or less for all the cars that I owned. it's just a 10 min job for both filters and dealer will charge you over $100. Coolant & spark plugs at 100,000 miles. The brake pads of my other hybrids are still in good conditions at 80,000 miles.