How often should you get your oil changed?

By Larry Laux
President and Founder

Seriously, tell me how often you should get the oil in your car changed?

Have you thought of your answer?

Did you answer 5,000 miles? 3,000 miles?

There is a better answer, and it is directly related to the service industry.

The best answer is: you should change your oil when it needs to be changed.

I have been giving this example in speeches for many years. However, until quite recently, only the very top-end cars had the sensors to measure viscosity, particulates and other attributes of the oil to determine if, in fact, it was time for an oil change. One person’s driving habits and location might require an oil change in 2,000 miles, while other situations might not need an oil change for 10,000 miles or more.

But in the absence of those sensors, the car manufacturers go to the least common denominator and recommend an oil change every 3 or 5,000 miles. What a waste!

I think you will see the advancement of such usage monitors in the equipment you service. Already many of our clients servicing imaging equipment have multiple meters on their gear, which provide a crude first step towards usage based service. But really, it’s not the usage, it’s the deviation from tolerances that indicate a need for preventive maintenance.

I’d love to hear comments from any of you that have made progress on equipment that can measure and report its own need for adjustment or preventive maintenance based on self-measurements other than basic usage.