When did you get your first oil change? The dealer told me "the car will tell you when you need it changed". Now...i know the newer engines you dont have to keep changing the oil every 3k miles (my dad does no matter what car he is driving...) but i am over 5k and havent seen anything on it. What about you guys, did you wait awhile for your first? I have heard and seen people not get their first oilc hange for a long time, hitting the 10k mile marker before their car told them to do it...

what do you all think? Im gonna setup an appointment to get it done after the holidays just to be safe but i wanted to get everyones oppinion on here about it.

 

As a previous 'grease monkey' and lube technician, you'll want to change that factory oil right away.
MINI's recommendations of time / usage on the engine oil is heavily over-estimated and it ruins valuable engine parts.
Most of the engine failure you will read up concerning vacuum pump failure, timing chain tensioner, and oil consumption are attributed to poor engine oil preventative maintenance.

I didn't wait; I did 500mi, 1500mi and 3000mi when I first received the car.
Now I'm typically on a 3K-4K mile change interval.

If you're wanting to keep things clean internally, change it out.

- Erik

 

In addition the previous comment, I would highly recommend that every once in a while you have the used oil analyze by a lab (such as Blackstone). In this manner, you can get a pretty good idea what is happening in YOUR engine over time.

 

My first oil change was around the 20k mile mark per the OBC. As long as you keep an eye on the oil level and you are not driving in a manner that constitutes severe duty, you should be just fine following the manufacturer's recommendation.

 

You're going to get a thousand different answers on this one. Some people wait the full 15,000 that is recommended by Mini. Others do 5,000 or less.

I wanted to get the original oil out of my car, because people had told me that it's important to do. So, I did my first oil change early. However, for my regular oil changes, I plan on splitting the factory recommendation in half and changing it every 7500 or so.

But again, everyone has their own opinion on this issue. For me, 15,000 seems like a lot of miles to put on before changing your oil, but it might not seem that crazy to you or anyone else.

I recommend doing the research, which you already seem to be doing, and going with what sounds right to you. Good luck.

 

I changed my break-in oil at 3k. Like most people here, I have no factual evidence to support or disprove my choice. However, I paid a small fortune for my MINI and I plan to keep it for a very long time. For that reason, an oil change is one of the cheapest, easiest forms of maintenance I can do to my car. Why anyone would spend what they do on a MINI and then not take the most basic of precautions like oil changes and premium fuel is simply beyond my understanding.

I will probably do mine every ~5k or so just for the cheap peace of mind alone. The recommended interval seems pretty absurd to my non-mechanic mind. Stretching the interval to 15k+ seems like voluntarily signing up for problems...I can't imagine the thought process on that one.

OP, whatever you choose, good luck and happy motoring!

 

I don't any faith in Mini's oil change schedule. Since they're paying for the warranty scheduled maintenance they are going push the intervals to the max to save money. They don't seem to be too concerned about engine failure, after your warranty expires. My feeling is 1st change at 1500 miles and then every 5000 miles going forward using a factory filter and good synthetic oil.

 

Oil change interval is one of the more controversial topics on this forum. There are some folks with very strong opinions on each side of the issue more frequent changes every 3K-5K vs obc directed, which is typically around 15K miles. It is also one of the more frequently posted topics, so if you search threads you will find a bunch of information and opinions.

Me, I change the oil every 5k miles at home. I also rotate the tires at each change to assure even wear on all four tires.

 

California just started a new campain to save oil. http://www.checkyournumber.org/

I saw it in the news yesterday.

 

I just did my first oil change at 10k on my new mini cooper s ... the oil was dirty as all but i had no signs of any type of engine failure and now i will regularly change it every 5k miles ...

 

I changed at 1,200 miles. Then I change about every 7,500 miles. I do this by changing in between the oil changes called for by the computer. If I have this done at dealer I make sure they do NOT reset the indicator so that I get the free one in about another 7,500 miles.

 

I'll echo what others have already said...I plan on changing mine after the break in period is over (actually, will be a few 100 miles past because of a trip) and then every 7500.

 

I'm for 7500 mile intervels. I'm also a firm believer in the oil catch can. The OCC pulls out alot of crud that would otherwise recirculate through the engine. Yeck!!!