As I mentioned I have put on about 2200 miles since I bought this car. When i got it it was given it's 1st service which was the oil change . I asked the dealer about change frequency and they told me 1 year and nothing about how many miles. Now I am a 5000 mile oil changer so I was wondering about those who have the 5.0L if you do a 5K or 1 yr. service. Don't want to beat a dead horse but I am considering doing the 5K myself . I use the vacuum extraction method so it should not be a problem. Also without the dip stick it is difficult to see the visual condition of the oil so I don't know how contaminated it gets. I know my oil in the Lexus looks as good after 5K miles as it did when I changed it. I now have 29K miles on it.

 

I can't see how it would hurt to change the oil. The price/expense is low when you consider your DIY. Plus you have the lift, so that will help if needed.

 

The Service Manager at the dealership where I bought my Jag said that with the superior quality of today's oils, oil filters, and due to the tolerances within modern engines, there was no need to change the oil and filter any more often than every 10,000 miles. Even so, due to the low cost involved ($28 at a nearby shop if I supply the oil and filter), I still have mine changed every 6000 miles ... just to play safe. Cheap insurance!

 

Changing the oil every year regardless of mileage is the best way to go.

 

Hey there I recently had my oil changed and my service manager indicated that I was good for a minimum of 15k to my surprise. I figured I'll go with that then having the possibility of any "arguments" about oil intervals should I have a major warranty claim seeing as though my car is under warranty. And even if it weren't it worth the time and energy. So 300$ later I figured thats a least (3 6k intervals) so it all works out. Daily driver All the best gents and hope we can be of value to each other.

 

Done properly, you're looking at ~$115 in parts by the time you get 8qts oil and the ~$55 filter. Somehow, the cartridge doesn't crosslist to the Ford 5.0 motor even though the cover says FoMoCo on it. It didn't dawn on me till I had already purchased everything and took the engine cover off and saw that on the cartridge cover.

The mileage interval isn't an issue anymore. Annual oil changes for a local driver is one thing. A car that is garaged and periodically does several hundred mile trips has oil that is highly filtered, not exposed to an overly humid climate etc, any impurites burned off during the long drive. Dealerships are clinging to the annual oil change because its a way to get the cars back annually to find more problems. (IMHO) My last XJ had changes every 2 years/10K which ever came first and NEVER saw the dealer in 10yrs, never burned a drop of oil , and had tested oil that was still in VERY good condition. That is what I base my decisions on presently.
I don't even change oil in my track cars as much as I used to because its even looks good as well as smells, tests good. Even 20yrs ago, turbo'd oils were fried by change time etc.

I did my XK at 10000 kiles because it had not yet been serviced. Dealer told me when I purchased it at 7800 miles it had not been done yet and I was totally fine with it. I was a 2012 and was due after 2 yrs....Pulled oil wasn't bad looking at all.

 

ditto

 

I'm trying a more scientific approach: Oil Analysis by a certified laboratory...
I used to do this religiously on my diesel-engined boat, so I've just pulled my first sample from the XK and sent it in. I'll share the results when I get them.

There's 2 parts to the analysis:
Engine condition - they point-out any unusual metals, water etc in the oil, together with a guess at which component(s) are wearing.

Oil condition - they measure the viscosity, acidity, contaminants and additive contents to estimate the oil's remaining life.

I'll base my oil change decision on the results. I do all my own work, but it's a pain to do without a lift, and there's a lot of synthetic oil in there....

Jeremy

 

Great I will be interested in the results. Can you tell us what is the mileage on the oil sample you sent in? Thanks

 

A single sample, or samples taken with large intervals in between have almost no value. No two engines are the same so a baseline must be established to determine what normal is. This requires that multiple samples be taken in a relatively short period and the results plotted.

Subsequent samples would indicate deviations from the baseline and possibly remedial action. Estimating the life left in oil through typical sampling is a combination of black magic and some hocus-pocus.

Save your money and change the oil in accordance with Jag's recommendation.

 

For all the stuff we waste money on in life, changing oil sooner than the dealer says is hardly going to make or break us. I've spent a lot more on a lot less.

 

Well - Yes and No.
As I stated in my posting, I've done extensive oil sampling on a Marine Diesel, so I'm quite familiar with the advantages and limitations.

You are quite right - you really need a continuous history to establish a baseline, and spot the Delta from that, but:
- you gotta start somewhere, and this is where I start
- the Lab I use (Herguth in Chicago) ask the make/blend of oil, and compare my sample to a pure new sample of that oil. That indicates how 'worn' or contaminated the oil has become.

My XK has only covered 8610 miles so I'm really hoping that there are no unusual wear results. In fact, it might still show 'break-in' characteristics at this stage.
(to answer another question) I changed the oil myself 18 months and 1869 miles ago (we've been out-of-town a lot). I really want to find-out how it's holding-up. I'm concerned about the oil age, and exposure to the Florida Humidity, more than the mileage of course...... There's 8 qts of synthetic in there, and I don't want to change it unnecessarily.

There has been a lot of guessing and 'hey, oil is cheap insurance' on this thread, but no-one really knows the answers !.

Data is the great equalizer ! I think it'll be just cheaper than changing the oil regardless, but I'll get a Baseline.

Think of it as a Blood Test for your car.

 

"There has been a lot of guessing and 'hey, oil is cheap insurance' on this thread, but no-one really knows the answers !"

Over the past ~10yrs. synthetic oil hasn't really changed. However, now many the manufacturers are allowing (in many cases) unlimited mileage but annual changes, ask yourself why. So mileage as an excuse to get your car in for service has been let go of , if you will. The answer is the oil can easily take it! They know it and as much as the dealer service departments lose a cash cow, people prefer a vehicle with longer service intervals.
As far as the annual change is concerned, they aren't letting go of this yet but.... show us the data that says a garaged, temperate climate vehicle's oil breaks down because its a year old. Stop reciting the manual to me and think of the politics and economics in that manual. You may want to save this thread for 5 years from now when they "allow" a 2 year interval. I predict it will happen, its only logic as Spock would say. BTW I wouldn't recommend this in steamy Florida. Even rust rusts in Florida.
I've been hands on with EVERY vehicle I own for 40yrs (yea, I serviced Dad's car before I had my license). If you're at the mercy of a dealer to service your vehicle, that honestly indicates to me you probably wouldn't know 0W-20 v SAE 50 if you spilled it, new or old.

 

OK, I got the results on the sample I sent to the Laboratory, and I'm following-up, as promised...
The Car:
2008 XK, 8610 miles at the time of the sample.
The Oil:
Mobol One 5W-30, changed 1869 miles and 17 months ago.

The Results:
The main data is in 4 columns, with pretty self-evident Minimum and Maximum values.
The "ref Oil" is a new sample of the same weight oil (but not necessarily the same brand).
The last column, dated 08/07/14 is the results for my sample. (This is the first sample - when I submit subsequent samples, they will be listed as well, and the graph will show cumulative values to catch any Trends).

The analysis shows the viscosity and water and anti-freeze contamination of the sample, followed by the various metals found.
Its important to look at the reference column here, because you want low values of some metals (Aluminum, Copper etc) that are created by engine wear
and high values of others (Boron, Zinc etc) that are present as anti-wear additives.

I'm certainly no Tribologist (the people who study lubrication) but I'm pretty sure that this oil is in good shape, and I'm not planning to change it.
It looks like the engine is doing fine too, but I'll need to do additional sampling to plot the trend, and determine what 'normal wear' is.

As an additional benefit, when I eventually sell my car (and we all do, eventually) I have a data-driven answer to the question "Why didn't you change the oil for xx miles/months"...

 

For what it is worth: History...

1972 Porsche 911 T, 1978 Fiat X/19, Fiat 850 Spider, Fiat 2000 Roadster, good old days, 3,000 on dinosaur juice
1991 Alfa Spider, changed oil every 6,000 miles, zero top up or burning at 90,000 miles
2004 Buick LeSabre, Changed oil every 6,000 miles, at 160k miles zero burning oil and zero top ups needed between changes.
2005 Chrysler Crossfire, 6,000 mile oil changes, zero oil required between changes, ran like a top until traded at 98k.
2011 Buick LaCrosse, 6,000 mile oil changes, zero oil between changes, runs perfect.
2009 XK Coupe, 6,000 mile oil changes, K&N filters, 43k presently and runs great, zero oil between changes.

Biggest worry is not going far enough (short hops) to get water and condensation out of crankcase.