Ford extends oil change period

UPDATE A reader writes, The traditional oil change periods of 3,000 – 5,000 miles are a crock. I have a 1993 Lexus Coupe that I bought new and it now has more than 195,000 miles on the original engine. Its oil has been and still is changed every 7,500 miles, just as the owner's manual recommends. Mark M., Texas

03/22/07 Most major automakers agree: The adage that you should change your car's oil every 3,000 miles is outdated, and even 5,000 miles may be too often. Ford Motor Co. became the latest manufacturer to extend its oil life guidelines, making public that it is raising the recommended oil change interval from 5,000 miles to 7,500 on its newly redesigned 2007 models and all subsequent redesigned or new models.

The company, like many other manufacturers, said Tuesday that higher oil quality standards and new engine designs were responsible for the change, which affects vehicles driven under normal conditions.

"The oils have advanced a lot since the days when 3,000 miles were the typical oil drains," said Dennis Bachelder, senior engineer for the American Petroleum Institute, an industry organization that sets quality standards. "They're certainly more robust than the oils of 10, 15 years ago."