turbotim

My HHR SS is my first GM vehicle (don't shoot me all I have ever owned before have been Ford products). So I am new to the oil life system on these vehicles. After the 500 mile engine break-in would it be a good idea to drain the oil and change the filter? An old drag racing friend of mine advised doing this to drain out any metal particles, casting materials, etc.. collected in the oil from break-in. What he says makes sense however the owner's manual does not suggest this and states to follow the oil life monitor.

What are you guys doing? Would there be any adverse effects to changing the oil shortly after 500 miles?

tim_tenn

I always did my first oil change on a new car at 1,000 miles, regardless of manufacturer. My parents did this while I was growing up, and always said that it was very important. Honestly, my HHR is the first new vehicle that I have not done this with. I hope I'm not making a mistake. The oil and filter that I just removed looked good, however. Not sludgey, not black -- dirty, yes, but I've seen worse.

an08HHR

Just follow what it says in the owners manual. Chevy's doesn't have a "break in". Engines aren't like they were years ago, they are better.

CarlsSS

When I bought my SS as a dealer demo it had 3,200 mi. on it. That was one of the first questions I asked the parts manager (who had driven the car) and he said it had not been changed yet. I was a little concerned with this, but he assured me that GM doesn't feel this early first oil change is necessary with this vehicle. It comes from the factory with Mobil 1 synthetic, so it is not going to "wear in" like the typical engines with conventional oil, bearings clearances, and parts.

The dealarship gave me 2 free oil changes so I took advantage of the first one right away at delivery, despite the oil life monitor being only at 48%. I'm sure I could have waited longer... The oil was barely brown on the dipstick, it was more for my peace of mind! That is subjective for each individual owner of course! I like doing all my own oil changes just to be able to monitor that.

This high performance motor has a number of things that would influence this initial "break in" period. As I mentioned the bearing clearances are one, more clearances = less wear in. They don't use a lot of the additives like cam lube and stuff like that when they assemble these engines anymore. The tolerances and alignments of assemblies are much more precise than a typical commodity engine. The type of driving, the temps and weather can influence this too of course!

HPVOHHR

I just had mine done today... had about 800 miles on it.

It may not be absolutely necessary, but I feel much better knowing that is has a fresh fill now :)

SSROADSTER

I am over 1200 miles now, will probably change in the next week or so....

JoeR

Due to the internet, myth and lore lives on better than ever!!

rommer

Changing your oil "for peace of mind" is like throwing away a tank of gas and is very wasteful. Since they won't let us drill for more oil in the US we shouldn't be throwing out oil which is still good. Just my 2 cents and worth less than what you paid for it.

Nebulous1

It's not a myth. Not that long ago that it was a well-known fact that small metal shavings (and other things) came off various engine parts during the break-in period. Leaving those shavings going through the lubrication system caused premature and completely unnecessary engine wear. A lot of manufacturers specifically stated that this was an issue, so the first oil change should be soon, generally around 1,000 miles. The resources involved in producing a vehicle are no small thing, but it takes a heck of a lot more energy to obtain the needed raw materials, refine them, ship them to part producers, produce parts, ship the parts to the vehicle assembly point, assemble the parts into a complete vehicle, then finally ship the vehicle to the dealership. (Whew!) And that's just the short version. So, you can see that the resources involved in vehicle production far outweigh the several quarts of oil for an oil change.

The question is whether one believes that the manufacturer really has eliminated all of those metal shavings and other things floating around in the lubrication system.

If you believe those shavings are in your oil causing extra engine wear, then it makes sense to change the oil early on. Myself, I figure if it was still necessary these days GM would recommend it in the owner's manual. After all, with that powertrain warranty, failure to recommend an early change would cost GM money due to powertrain warranty costs. It would certainly be cheaper for GM to recommend that the consumer change the oil early (costs GM nothing) than GM having to rebuild the engine due to excessive premature wear caused by shavings.

So, my bet is that the early oil change is no longer necessary. But I won't disrespect anyone who's assessment differs from mine.

I think GM has done a good job to conserve lubrication oil over the lifetime of the vehicle with the computer monitored oil change system based on engine rotations instead of simple mileage. I am projecting my first oil change at around 10,000 miles. That's a hell of a lot better than every 3,000 miles on older vehicles. But let's not forget that gasoline is produced from petroleum as well. Habitually taking steps to maximize your MPG, and combining trips to reduce unnecessary driving will greatly reduce the unnecessary consumption of petroleum products. Be happy that GM has designed this vehicle with such a high fun factor and cargo space while still getting good mileage, and that you own one!

hunter

We will be drilling in the US very soon. The demand is here now and so is the desire. Not a single real reason not to. It's here and plentiful and good for Americans and America itself. Who is "they" that won't let us drill? People that shouldn't have any power or authority and are only interested in control?