Depending on the provider and lubricant used (both type and amount), an engine oil and filter change can cost upwards of $500. For fleets doing in-house service, it might be $250 in supplies, but there's the consideration of downtime.
As fleets upgrade trucks, Chevron Senior Staff Engineer Shawn Whitacre said maintenance practices deployed on the older assets are in many cases simply carried over to newer models that are coming with longer service intervals from the factory, so carriers draining around 25,000 miles – a long-standing benchmark – could be spending countless hours and thousands of dollars per year on fluid changes that might not even be necessary.
"Old habits die hard," he said. "Engine builders and oil companies alike have worked hard over the last many years to deliver on improvements that have greatly extended oil life and allowed for longer maintenance intervals."
Larger sumps, better temperature management and better control of combustion enabled by improved cylinder designs "really enhance the way the engine treats the oil," Whitacre said. "At the same time, we've done a lot to enhance oil chemistry through better soot resistance and, even more recently, through enhancing the oxidative stability of the oil – really enhancing and fortifying the additive protection that allows it to withstand higher temperatures and last longer in the engine."
[Related: More profitably with the right engine oil]
