Determining maintenance intervals...

Lamar · Aug 31, 2006

Dear group;
For eons the established way of determining maintenance intervals, ie, oil changes, tune-ups, etc has been by miles driven or months. While this established method is an acceptable form of scheduling maintenance, is it the BEST form of doing it? I don't think that it is. I've installed hour meters on my YJ and my FJ-40 and I feel that this method more closely monitors the time in which maintenance needs to be performed than the odometer does. I change the oil on my junk after every 500 hours of engine operations and every 350 of operation if used heavily in the 4WD mode (the rainy season). I flush and refill the cooling system every 5,000 hours, along with a tune-up. The reason why I am posting this topic is because this is the method that has been used to keep track of maintenance schedules on our company FJ-70s for quite a number of years and I just noted yesterday that my company provided FJ-70 now has 386,000(238,271 miles) kilometers on the odometer and it hasn't been through a major maintenance cycle since it was purchased new from the dealer in 1989. IMVHO, pushing a quarter million miles on the same engine in some very rough terrain is a pretty good testament to this maintenance philosophy.
Your friend;
LAMAR

Nuzzy · Aug 31, 2006

Out of curiosity, where did you pick up your hour meters?

Gaylord · Aug 31, 2006

Nuzzy,
Hour meters are avaliable at most auto parts stores and avalaible at any boating store. I personaly don't keep track of miles or hours. I pull the dip stick, if it looks nasty it gets changed..lol. Other stuff like plugs, well they get changed when I have time and money. Come to think of it the Rubi has 30k and the original plugs..lol

Freeride · Aug 31, 2006

On the Jeep and motorcycle, I don't really follow specific maintenance intervals - I just go WAY overboard. Each one get's 3-4 oil changes per year, which for the Jeep works out to every 2-3K miles, and the bike every 1K miles. Diff fluid 2x per year, ATF and transfercase get a full flush every year.

The wife's Focus I just follow standard maintenance.

KarlVP · Aug 31, 2006

I rack up the miles pretty quick on my 1998 2.5L TJ I would say I put around 15000 to 20000 a year on it. I change the oil every 3K. When I do that, everything greasable gets greased. Diff fluid gets changed about 3 times a year whether it needs it or not.

Tranny T-case changed once a year. Also gets seafoamed once a year, after the sea foam, I change my plugs, wires, Cap and Rotor.

All other stuff, as it fails, I replace or upgrade. So far the only thing that has failed that wasn't "my fault" was the TPS. The Catalytic Converter failed too but that was under warranty.

My "on road" vehicles, I follow the manufacturer reccomendations.

I do like the idea of an hour meter on trail only vehicles. They might only see 3000 to 5000 miles a year. But what hour interval for maintenance?

Lamar · Aug 31, 2006

Dear group;
I ordered mine through Grainger, or maybe it was Carr-McMaster, I really don't remember which one it was, but I do remember that they are in a thick catalog, so it has to be one or the other. Hour meters (AKA Hobbs meters) can be purchased at any heavy equipment compnay, just make sure that you get the 12V one. I connected mine in series to the alternator wire and they work very well.
Your friend;
LAMAR