One after the other

[jfoster1980]

I just got a used pontiac grand am se 99' I've already had to replace the alternator witch was a good 400 bucks because of the tow fees included not good, mechanic said it was because GM alternators don't like the heat and its really hot here heat wave style! a week later i started leaking anti freeze bad I put some Bars Stop leak liquid aluminum it seem to have slowed the problem and then finally it stopped leaking all together. really though the cars great I think. Basically the question is my "Change Oil" light came on in my instrument panel, how many miles do I have before i should really change it its only about 150-200 miles over the required change of 3000 miles? thanks any help would be appreciated.

[xeroinfinity]

The booklet that came with the car says around 4000 miles. On my 99' 3.4L come on around 6000 mile. But I change mine at around 4000miles, sometimes it gets changed within 100mls other times i have waited till the light came on ie. 6000miles. I had used castrol gtx 10w 30 in all my cars, now I use their syntec and it's good for a really long time, just a little expensive.
A good idea is to write down the mileage and keep trac your self, I NEVER TRUST SENSORS like in the oil system. It also has a LOW oil light and mine came on, when it was out of oil and, the engine was overheating. So the moral of the story check oil weekly and change the oil reg. dont forget the air filter too. Also check for anti freeze or stop leak in the oil. If the oil has a foamie brown stuff in the oil fill cap, you probly have anti-frze in the oil and that isn't good at all!

[Mr. Luos]

The oil life sensor doesn't read oil. It reads how many rotations the motor has made. For most people, whenever that comes on is a good time to change the oil.

I am picky. Mobil 1, delco filters, every 3 months or 3,000 miles, whichever comes first.

[xeroinfinity]

Ya. That is true. Being picky is the way to prolong the life of the engine. I wasn't exactly sure about How the oil sending units work, but keeping track of mileage your self is a wise choise. I also us delco filters, i have an adaptor for two filters into one so it hold a little more oil and double protection. No notice in oil pressure drop , works great.