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Car Forum / Ford / Ford Explorer / July 2007oil life monitor question
I have a 2004 Limited w/ V-8, approx. 23,000 miles. It's only been about 2000 mi. since my last oil change, yet I'm getting a 'change oil soon' message. I'm 98-99% certain that it was reset at that time. Does the oil life monitor really monitor the oil or is it just an estimate based on mileage, elapsed time, etc.? Since it's still under warranty, is this something that the dealer can easily check? Thanks. Being 98% sure is pretty close to "assuming".... The instructions for resetting the oil life monitor are in your owners manual under "message center".... The instructions need to be followed exactly. We must remember that lube monkeys aren't the sharpest pencils in the box and we must allow them the odd transgression..... >I have a 2004 Limited w/ V-8, approx. 23,000 miles. It's only been about >2000 mi. since my last oil change, yet I'm getting a 'change oil soon' >message. I'm 98-99% certain that it was reset at that time. Does the oil >life monitor really monitor the oil or is it just an estimate based on >mileage, elapsed time, etc.? Since it's still under warranty, is this >something that the dealer can easily check? Thanks. What I mean is that I checked to make sure it was reset after the change. Is it possible that the oil could be uused up after 2000 miles? I haven't changed my driving habits. Or is the monitor off calibration? Thanks. > Being 98% sure is pretty close to "assuming".... The instructions for > resetting the oil life monitor are in your owners manual under "message [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >>mileage, elapsed time, etc.? Since it's still under warranty, is this >>something that the dealer can easily check? Thanks. If it really monitored the "quality of the oil", it would turn itself off when the oil was changed. You wouldn't have to manually turn it off. I believe it is just based on the miles driven since it was last reset. Tom > What I mean is that I checked to make sure it was reset after the change. > Is it possible that the oil could be uused up after 2000 miles? I haven't [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] >>>on mileage, elapsed time, etc.? Since it's still under warranty, is this >>>something that the dealer can easily check? Thanks. Don't know about 2004, but the oil change alarm on earlier models could be reset to a fraction of the full 5000 miles, in increments of 10%. If the 2004 model still has this feature, the most likely explanation would be that it was reset to 40%. Your owner's manual will have the procedure. > If it really monitored the "quality of the oil", it would turn itself off > when the oil was changed. You wouldn't have to manually turn it off. I [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >> haven't changed my driving habits. Or is the monitor off calibration? >> Thanks. >> What I mean is that I checked to make sure it was reset after the change. >> Is it possible that the oil could be uused up after 2000 miles? I >> haven't changed my driving habits. Or is the monitor off calibration? >> Thanks. I beleive the monitors on some vehicles do take other information into account, perhaps rpm/thottle activity, temp, and shift patterns ??? So maybe it could intelligently say the oil is played out.....that being said, I think it was simply not reset. Andy, I'm unsure of the strategy used for the oil life monitor on the 04s... but, AFAIK, it is simply a mile/time based display with no other computations considered.... The only thing that I can think of is that the lube monkey may have inadvertently "personalized" your oil change preference. Page 76 of your owners guide explains how to both reset the message and personalize this setting.... If you don't have the owner guide, you can download on from www.motorcraft.com ... select techical resources near the top and then select owner guides on the left of the window that pops up. HTH. Thanks for all the suggestions and help. Andy > Andy, I'm unsure of the strategy used for the oil life monitor on the > 04s... but, AFAIK, it is simply a mile/time based display with no other [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > HTH. |
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