Argument for every 3k on the 09 RA:
1. manual says every 3k is best for severe driving, which I guess I sorta do (30 min commute to work each way)

Argument for 5k on the 09 RA:
1. Info button says maintenence needs to be done every 5k, so the engineers at mitsu must have thought 5k was fine. There is no option to change it to every 3k like on the lesser lancers according to my dealer.

2. RA comes with synthetic oil, and I've heard from a lot of people that when you use synthetic you don't need to change it as often. Regular oil i've heard startes to degrade after 3k.


Not trying to abuse my car, but most modern japanese cars don't seem to require 3000 mile oil changes...... of course my girlfriends car (honda fit) isn't turbo though.

 

The turbo really wreaks havoc on the oil. If you drive moderately rough, I'd say change it at the 3k mark every time. Better safe than sorry.

Whatever you feel is best, honestly. Between 3-5k is fine too, but I like changing mine @ 3k, and even at 3k, my oil was dark and gross...

 

Because an oil change is quite cheap (relative to changing anything else in your car) I prefer to change it earlier...obviously having clean oil can only benefit your engine and turbo. I had my old Acura Integra for 14years (3yrs old when bought) and changed the oil myself at every 4000-5000km (2500-3000mi) and it lasted me till 400000km mark (250000mi), still hums along smoothly, original engine and all.

Boils down to if you can afford it...if so why not...the damn RA isn't cheap

 

3000 is likely unnecessary (unless you are really abusing the car).

Easiest way to determine proper interval is to send out the used oil for analysis. For the cost (roughly) of one full-syn oil change you can can get a good idea of what the interval should be for YOUR car.

For "normal" folks, 5k is perfectly fine for synthetic (I have run analysis up to 7500 and that is where I usually see things going south).

Of course you CANNOT change the oil too often, so if 3000 miles makes you feel better, go for it. I drive 50-60,000 per year, so the difference in cost between 12 and 20 changes a year is significant. If you drive 15k, the difference will be less of a determing factor .

 

very simple....


drive hard everyday ?? 3k

daily driver everyday?? 5k

but use the good stuff either way... like mobil 1, redline and castro for usdm oils... for japanese oil eneso... for euro oil motul... these are just my opinions..

dont forget to use oem oil filter!!!

i do oil change before and after every track day i go to.... and i use motul full synthetic oil and some time i just redline... but so far for my ralliart its been babied it only has 230 miles on it lol and the day i got it made the dealer give me a mobli 1 oil change to break in with lol



evil

 

IMO, unless you're doing track days, stick with what the manual says.

 

how about for fresh engine??? still wait to change at 3k... I thought a good flush out at around 1500....?

 

if you are running track days I recommend changing your oil the next day.

At high velocity your pistons and other engine components leave medal debris that get caught by the oil filter and can cause the filter to clog resulting in more serious damage.