Do I really need an oil change after 430 miles?

[Lil Red Broncette]

Sounds like you did not reset the oil life monitor.

That is a possibility. I know it needs to be reset so seems odd. But maybe I did.

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[Lil Red Broncette]

The OLM goes off time as well as usage.

I think you are correct. If I forgot to reset, maybe because it had reached a year it decided it was needed. Or maybe 6 months it says needed, but that seems inconsistent with the supposed 10K mile interval unless they assume 20K+ miles a year which isn't typical.

 

[Lil Red Broncette]

I just had mine done (free from the dealer for the first two years). Just rolled over 4K miles. Service writer said that 6 months is recommended regardless of mileage, but 430 miles is overkill. Supposedly the range in the oil change indicator takes into account driving conditions. Vehicle was delivered in April of this year.

This is the red brooch in my profile pic and that was delivered in September 22. Low miles because of weekend driving and mostly local. It does seem unusual. If I forgot to reset, well I am just a bit over a year and maybe it is a year not 6 months. I am pretty sure I reset it but maybe not. The driving conditions weren't especially harsh except mostly local. I did change it today and the oil that came out was dark. Not black but clearly not looking new.

I get cleaner oil out of my explorer after 1700 miles, but in that case it is mostly highway driving. The explorer gets dark pretty quick though when doing short local runs.

 

[CGCarolinaBronco]

Started my Bronco and it comes up on the dash telling me I need an oil change. It has only been 430 miles since the last, but it was done back in April.

I was probably going to do it anyway regardless of mileage as it was over six months but I like to think I am much more aggressive about such things than recommendations so it feels really odd for the car to alert me as I am usually way ahead.

This will be the second oil change and the vehicle has under 1,300 miles. The change in April was done at 850 miles on the vehicle. That time it wasn't so weird because I was planning on doing the first around 1K miles or 6 months.

My other Bronco just had its second change, the intervals were a bit longer and I never got a warning. That one is at 5K miles.

For what it is worth my 21 year old Explorer got 14 oil changes over the same period I've had the broncos.

It’s calibrated as how many times you start your vehicle. There’s a video that shows how to reset oil life. I don’t drive mine much and started it every few days and mine did the same. I called the dealer and it’s based off of starting it not necessarily the miles. Hope that helps. Mileage as well but starting it does shorten oil life if your not driving it putting on miles.

 

[holdentx]

More Info:
Understanding Ford Intelligent Oil-Life Monitor (IOLM) System and Lights | YourMechanic Advice

What is the Intelligent Oil-Life Monitor System? (ford.com)

" The Ford IOLM system is not just a simple oil quality sensor, but a software based, algorithm-driven device that takes into account various operating conditions of the engine to determine when the oil needs changing. Certain driving habits can affect the life of the oil, as well as driving conditions such as temperature and driving terrain. "

" In order to receive the estimated due date and distance remaining, your vehicle must have been driven for 150 trips for the driving pattern to be detected and the estimates to be considered valid. If the driving pattern is not predictable, the service estimates will not be displayed. "

" If your Ford IOLM system is indicating that your vehicle is ready for servicing, have it checked out by a certified mechanic "

 

[holdentx]

I was supposed to add...

Most likely answer was the OLM was not reset at the last change, but as the last tip suggests, it might be worth taking it in for evaluation. Since the OLM is basically an app, it wouldn't be the first time some software in a vehicle was buggy.
Unfortunately if you take it in they'll just reset it and tell you to come back if it happens again - but at least you'll have it on your service history in case it happens again.

 

[Techun]

Why aren't you guys driving your broncos

 

[Lil Red Broncette]

It’s calibrated as how many times you start your vehicle. There’s a video that shows how to reset oil life. I don’t drive mine much and started it every few days and mine did the same. I called the dealer and it’s based off of starting it not necessarily the miles. Hope that helps. Mileage as well but starting it does shorten oil life if your not driving it putting on miles.

Even with the low miles I did drive it regularly, just fairly short distance s that may be a role. Anyway I changed the oil, reset it and we'll see what happens over the coming months.

 

[Lil Red Broncette]

Unfortunately if you take it in they'll just reset it and tell you to come back if it happens again - but at least you'll have it on your service history in case it happens again.

I won't dismiss the chance I forgot t reset it. And you are right that if I went to the dealer they would just reset it and do nothing else.

In any case it is too late, I changed the oil and reset it.

 

[Lil Red Broncette]

Why aren't you guys driving your broncos

It is a quirk of them being garaged in different states, my relative time at each location, and having a work vehicle to use where I have the bronco in question garaged.

 

[timhood]

I did an oil change because of the 6 months. Despite the low miles it was pretty dark. Not black but dark.

I only know how to do a full reset. There is some chance I forgot to reset but I recall checking it back the I changed the oil.

Dark-colored oil is not an indication of oil life or needing to change oil. Additives in many oils can cause them to be noticeably darker in even just 50 miles.

I would have expected that if you hadn’t reset the monitor, you would have continued to get notifications, but I’m not familiar enough with the Bronco’s notifications to know if they appear every time the vehicle is used after the first notification, or if they are occasional. If the latter, your extremely low mileage—430 over 6 months—would explain that. I would just reset the monitor and pay attention to when the next notification comes. You know the oil has only 430 miles on it, so it’s perfectly fine.

 

[DavidL]

I just did my first change at 11 months and 2300 miles. You are good.

 

[2023bronco]

The issue with time is that fuel mixes with the oil. On turbo engines especially, there is a lot of blow-by that gets past the pistons and into the crankcase. The compression on these engines is over 10:1, which is high. Oil that has mixed with fuel/combustion products is corrosive. So you don't want it sitting there even if you're not driving it. But if you put brand new oil in the car a year ago and never ran it, that oil would still be fine.

 

[Jawaburger]

I have yet to receive any oil change notification. My first oil change was at 2,500 miles, and the next two oil changes were after 7,500 miles each at about one year apart. My work commute is less than 3 miles, so even with vacation driving I only put about 7,500 miles on my vehicle each year.

 

[cubes32]

The oil life monitor does *not* use time as a factor. Oil doesn't age when your vehicle isn't running. I've had my Bronco nearly a year and just recently got the notification that I'll need to change it in about 800 miles. It even predicted when I'll reach the 800 miles so that I can schedule service accordingly. The predicted date will be over the 1 year mark.

Likely the monitor was not reset, though it is still surprising OP would get a notification even if the oil hadn't been changed 430 miles ago. (It isn't clear how many total miles are on the Bronco.)

My change oil notification has been triggered. The due date showing on my app is exactly one year to the date that I had my oil changed for the first time. The mileage from that first change until now is only about 4k miles, so it sure seems as though there is a date/time component to the change oil light.

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