ccap41

Scout, I love your example! Lol funny, but it gets the point across.

We'll I was told by my dealership that due to the close tolerances even on a pure synthetic, the engines get nosier as the oil gets dirtier and one should replace it. Also with the new dexos 1 and 2 spec GM, Ford, or any auto company could decline warranty if the wrong oil is used. Pretty clear to either use dexos specific oil or go pure synthetic. Good explanation on the new oils here: http://www.autoblog.com/2010/10/02/gm-engine-oil/ The Dexos is full synthetic anyway I thought No, there are syn blends that are dexos approved. Actually more GM dealers will us an AC Delco oil that is a syn blend that's dexos approved. It's only like 3.5/qt retail. But that doesn't mean it is a bad oil. If it's what they use for their oil life monitors and you can go ~10k on it then it's still gotta be pretty good. Okay I gotcha I gotcha. I guess I just always set my second trip odometer for my oil changes. That way I can also see what my mpg was over that entire span as well.

33k If you're changing it yourself and you don't have a garage to do it in, do it now. No telling how long the weather will hold out. If you take it some place, then just let it go till you feel really needs it. I meant on the oil, sorry. Yeah I just do it in my own garage/driveway so I would definitely be outside if the weather was junk. I guess I'll pick up some oil and do it this coming weekend. I hate "wasting" oil but I don't like the thought of not knowing when I'll even be able to with it being mid december and 4200-4300(by the weekend) miles on the oil. Going into winter, I would change it. Cold weather is much harder on engines than warmer weather. Having clean oil to go through the season will allow faster warm ups, should also help with changes due to the cold weather shrinking things. I have always found it good even on engines that need pure synthetic like my Escalade and trailblazer to change every 6K miles. That was one thing I was thinking of as well. I know it'll be premature but I'd rather change a little soon than a little too late. If nothing else, it'll make me feel better.

So I'm around 4100 miles on this oil change and I know the oil would be good for probably 6-10k miles but I like to change it around 5k. I'm at a bad time of year.. I'm not sure if I should change it next weekend while it is still awkwardly warm(50's) but very short on the oil's capability or wait and change it in possibly $h!ty conditions at 5-6k miles.. I still have a little bit of an old school approach with miles on oil changes. Oil and car tech has come along so far that 5000 miles can easily be done on cheapo conventional oil let alone full syn Pennzoil Ultra Platinum. It's just a mental block and I short trip a bunch and december will be the worst for short tripping because i'll be on winter break from school so my car won't get all warmed up as often. Also, knowing the EcoBoost motors tend to get a little fuel dilution(one reason they are all 5w-30 as opposed to their n/a engines that are 5w-20). So the question... Should I change it early.. or wait..?

The Buick Encore, right? How many miles were on that when it got down to 5%?

^ Exactly one of my points.. If Tesla wants to do things their own way, beat them by playing your own game. Make your dealerships actually worth going to. I try not to even go to a dealership when they are open because I don't want to either be pressured into buying something or try and talk cars with a guy who isn't even a car guy..just a salesman. The dealers really just need to be all around better. Make them worth visiting. Make an automotive dealership the kind of place a family can waste an hour or so before a movie or something instead of the kind of place people dread going. Get people who want do be there and to do a good job. But it is absurd that it is "law" on how a company can get their product into a consumers hands(and we're not talking about alcohol, tomacco, or firearms - WHICH SEEM TO HAVE A LONGER LEASH THAN CARS!!)

This is exaclty all of our points.. You just say it is law without explaining what about this law is fair to a small company trying to enter the automotive industry. You saying it is "state law" isn't explaining jack $h!. WHY is it the law? WHAT makes that law fair to a new company? With your "logic"(if copying and pasting links from websites is even considered an opinion) then there will never be another american automotive company because the cost to set up an entire dealer network in order to sell a freaking car. If you think that barrier to enter the market place is fair and if that legitimately sounds "american" to you then I don't think you know the ole "american dream". You're being one sided here, I've given an opinion on a possible solution for BOTH parites. One that could help a small company and once/if they grew they would have to join the bull$h! "dealer network".

Protect consumers? explain.. pressuring salesman, inconsistant pricing, salesmen who don't know jack about their products... I will not give you a break until you actually explain how you think that forcing HOW a company sells their product is "fair". Using slavery laws is not a bad example, the point was just because it is a law doesn't mean it is actually fair, and you knew exactly what the point was.

Wellllll, my dad ended up buying that Ion. Right at 75,000 miles and before TTL it was 5700. It was at our local Chevy/GMC/Buick dealer so that helped a lot. My dad isn't like me with cars where he will travel for what he's looking for. Most anything else in the area was a lot of either same price/era of cars but 115K+ miles or similar miles and ~$1500 more. So far it seems like a good little car. Before the dealer sold it they replaced all of the brake pads, front rotors, wiper blades and the usual "inspecion things". It had tires with about 95% tread left(some cheap-o brand thought).

New/clean oil is usualy slightly thicker as well as nothing has broken down/diluted with fuel(direct injection engines).

I fit in the 3rd row of a Traverse and Durango just fine thanks. Yeah I've been in the 3rd row of an Acadia once and a new Explorer once for a 4-5 hr trip and it honestly was not bad at all. There was quite a bit of space back there. Granted, I'm not the largest person(5'8" - 180lbs) but still a full size adult that means you could have something that size for a growing family.

I believe the next Nox and Terrain will be downsized a bit to more closely match the direct competition in size. At the moment, they are tweeners that sit between CRV and (old) Pilot in size, yet still smaller than the other tweener from Ford, the Edge. This would give GM some room between the Nox and Traverse for a Blazer type vehicle. Well color me a little more intrigued now.. Depending how it all pans out(and life) I could see looking into one of these in a few years once they're used and the Escape is on its way out. I actually love the Edge's size. It's larger than the Escape but it's still a 5 seater so it isn't gargantuan. Especially because I do not need more than 5 seats. Actually, I utilized all 5 in my Escape for the first time this weekend. Just a short trip bringing people home from the bar but that's one thing my Mustang never could have done.

Why do you use such thick oil? 20w50 is THICK stuff. Actually, I didn't even know they made a high mileage oil in that thick of a viscocity.That may not be the exact viscosity, that's what came up when I googled it...I remember the brand and that it was a high mileage blend (Jeep 4.0L w 162k miles) I think, don't quote me though, that the thickest high mileage oils are 10-40. Edit: I stand corrected. Castrol does offer a 20-50 High mileage oil. Personally, unless you beat on that vehicle really hard and have leaks.. I wouldn't go with anything that thick. I could see something with some age and miles using a 10-40 when it's probably spec'd to 10-30 but I couldn't justify using something so thick like 20-50.

There are a lot of people who don't even want to deal with dealerships because the sales people are there just to take their money. They can be very pressuring and that intimidates a lot of people. Not everybody is an enthusiast and knows everything about the cars before we leave our house to go to a dealer. I think what the D3 should really do is analyze their dealerships and redo how they sell cars. Make it an enjoyable experience rather than a stressful situation which most find it to be. They should use their dealerships as their advantage to showcasing cars and service and person to person contact. But going to an "internet-like" sales model would make nobody ever feel like they are getting ripped off or intimidated..or pressurized.. I see positives to both models. Personally, if the sate of Michigan is truly set on not allowing direct sales there are ways they should allow a small company to sell cars. Maybe they could put a cap on how many vehicles they are allowed to sell before having to put up dealerships or they could go the dollar route and say at X dollars of net income or revenue(whichever number they choose it really all adds up to roughly the same amount of cars sold. I guess I just don't see how a new company can even enter the market if they are forced to put up dealerships right out of the gate. Allow a small company get their feet wet for however long it takes as long as they are still considered a small company, then allow them to do direct sales. If the company wants to grow then make them build dealerships and "play by the same rules" as everybody else(whether right or wrong).

I think that is awfully dependent on your oil choice. If the vheicle/manual only require a conventional oil but you run a full syn then there shouldn't be any issues running it down to 0%.

Why do you use such thick oil? 20w50 is THICK stuff. Actually, I didn't even know they made a high mileage oil in that thick of a viscocity. I do...but I can almost guarantee it is all in my head..lol

Hate to break it to you, but without the $20 rebate, those prices suck. At regular walmart price, I get a 5 qt jug for under $25 (not sure what the exact going rate is right now) plus $8 for another qt. I get my ACDelco rebadged Mobil 1 Extended filter for $11 on Amazon. You'd think Costco could do better on the base prices than that! I was thinking the same thing. Mobil at my local Walmart is ~26 bucks and unless it is an internal/cartrige style filter then 20 bucks is outrageous! Even if it were 20 dollars is high.

lol sure are! Ahhh I'd probably get slack for using a syn for only 5k miles... Nice score on the Mobil 0-30! I wish I could find that exact deal, I'd use it in my Escape.

And I hope Tesla flips the establishment on it's old ear. No one company has the right to tell another company how to sell their product. The tactics being used by the old guard are typical of companies that are scared of change. To them I say, suck it up buttercup. Change is coming. You can adapt or get left behind. Yeah, thanks, but I don't believe any 'company' is telling any other 'company' how or what to sell. Not sure where in Hades you got that from. The 'old guard' companies are simply hedging their bets by selling EVERYTHING and more power to them. Yes they are trying to tell them what to do via lobbying through states like Michigan by saying that they can't sell there unless they do it through a dealer network. That is the very definition of telling someone how and what they can sell. That is what in Hades I got that from. If you believe anything else, well then it is pure blindness on your part but not surprising given that your employer is one of the companies lobbying hard against Tesla. Nope, sorry.....lobbying for fairness in Michigan is hardly....HARDLY....the same thing as 'telling companies' how to run their business. You sir, are the blind one. Clearly. Nice try, when you clearly misspoke. My point again, is that fairness is the name of the game here. Fairness would NOT be defined by allowing Tesla their own business model that is exclusive. So if the industry wants a different business model, lobby for that. No sweat off my brow and I would welcome it in fact. But until then, a level playing field should be allowed and respected. You've yet to answer the simple question, "why is it fair to tell somebody HOW to sell their product?" Yes, there are laws telling them how to sell them. Does that make the laws correct or out of date? Here's an extreme example of laws not necessarily being right, slavery. That was considered "right" at one point. Was it? Was that FAIR?

And I hope Tesla flips the establishment on it's old ear. No one company has the right to tell another company how to sell their product. The tactics being used by the old guard are typical of companies that are scared of change. To them I say, suck it up buttercup. Change is coming. You can adapt or get left behind. +1.5million.

You manage to sully Ford in nearly every post you make. May I suggest the same. How is it fair to force HOW somebody sells their product? Why is making somebody build a dealer and pay people to sell their product fair?You don't force any other industry to go through a "dealer network" so why does a car have to be different? Perhaps you missed it the first time I typed it, so I will bold font it for you..... Maybe you didn't realize the question I asked.. What about that is actually fair? Just because those are the rules doesn't mean they are actually fair. That basically makes it impossible for a new automaker to join the battle. IMO, I think they could retain the bull$h! dealer network thing but I think they could allow direct sales for small companies. Maybe put a cap on either sales or revenue/net income/profit that will only allow they to sell so many vehicles before needing to form a dealer network. This will allow a smaller company to start up with waaaay less necessary costs to get their feet under them.

How is it fair to force HOW somebody sells their product? Why is making somebody build a dealer and pay people to sell their product fair? You don't force any other industry to go through a "dealer network" so why does a car have to be different?

It sounds like you described Tesla as well there though. Pioneer. Nobody combined ideas like his. Prisoner of his own vision.

Meh. It's a win on price.. Terrible job on the comparison. It's a "value" win. I guess a win is a win though.

What size vehicle is this? This is like the Nox/Terrain size, right?