Portable Device which tests oil contamination

[Aquineas]

I saw this on Autoblog; Lubricheck is a $39.95 device which tests a drop of your oil and tells you how contaminated it is (translation: lets you know when you need an oil change). It looks interesting. It would be nice if this were OE (as I believe something similar is on BMWs).

 

[Mark_888]

I saw this on Autoblog; Lubricheck is a $39.95 device which tests a drop of your oil and tells you how contaminated it is (translation: lets you know when you need an oil change). It looks interesting. It would be nice if this were OE (as I believe something similar is on BMWs).

If you car is under warranty, you cannot postpone the oil change interval beyond that specified in the owner's manual, even if the device says it is OK to do so. So not sure what good it is.

 

[EXBMWGUY]

There might be some real value if you are way under the factory specified OCI, but your device says the oil is way too contaminated. Short trips and other foul-driving conditions, like the sandstorm I encountered in AZ one time, can dictate an oil change at 3,000, or even under 1,000 miles such as I had to do. Man, you wouldn't believe how ugly that oil was!

 

[Aquineas]

I never go beyond 7500 miles. The issue is, since I live in Texas, which is considered "extreme duty" from an oil-change perspective, I'd like to know if I can get a little more mileage/time out of an oil change than 3000-3500 miles.

With regards to warranty, the reason I have my oil changed at the dealer is due to potential warranty issues.