Like others, I was very confused and skeptical about the 6,000 mile oil change interval suggested for my Patriot. At 3,000 miles I called the dealer to set up an oil change. The mechanics assured me that it was not necessary. I went home, pulled the dip stick and sure enough the oil looked brand new and the level was perfect. I now have about 4,500 miles and have checked the oil at about every 300. The oil is still good.

The point of all this rambling I guess is to say that while the 6,000 miles seems long, it may be right. If their warranty will cover it at that interval then I think I will listen.

Has anyone had any different experiences?

On my Wrangler, I have always done every 5-6K, and now I'm at 122k. It sounds, runs, and drives in perfect mechanical condition.

I will do the same interval on the Patriot.

The only reason to change at 3K would be for Towing or harsh conditions.

From my owner's manual:

Change Engine Oil
Road conditions and your kind of driving affects the interval at which your oil should be changed. Check the following list to decide if any apply to you.
• Day and night temperatures are below 32°F (0°C).
• Stop and Go driving.
• Extensive engine idling.
• Driving in dusty conditions.
• Short trips of less than 10 miles (16 km).
• More than 50% of your driving is at sustained high speeds during hot weather, above 90°F (32°C).
• Trailer towing.
• Taxi, Police or delivery service (commercial service).
• Off-Road or desert operation.

NOTE: If ANY of these apply to you then change your engine oil every 3,000 miles (5 000 km) or 3 months, whichever comes first, and follow schedule “B—All Engines” of the Maintenance Schedules section of this manual. If none of these apply to you, then change your engine oil at every interval shown on schedule “A” in the maintenance
schedule section of this manual. NOTE: Under no circumstances should oil change intervals exceed 6000 miles (10 000 km) or 6 months whichever comes first.


It seems most people should still follow 3k intervals accorind to the owner's manual. That may be an escape clause for any engine warranty work. If you read a little about engine oil analysis @ Bob Is the oil Guy, most people can safely go 5k+ miles on dino oil and way more on quality synthetic. You cannot judge oil quality visually by the dipstick.

I also decided to follow the recommendations in the owners manual for the 2008 Patriot. I don't know about the 2007 models but mine also has a oil life sensor feature that kicked on about 5,500 miles. Seemed about right to me and with the lifetime warranty I will see how it goes.

Many makes and models are now using the oil life sensors. Chevy for instance on my suburban says not to change the oil until it reaches 25% of its life but no more than 6 months.

Isnt the change oil light just determined by the miles traveled and not an actual sensor?

Isnt the change oil light just determined by the miles traveled and not an actual sensor?

It must sense something, mine came on at 2300 miles (Nov to Feb).
I am one of those that fall into the following categories for that period:
Day and night temps below 32°F (it was during winter)
Stop and Go (many stop signs and stoplights on my daily drive to and from work)
Short trips of less than 10 miles (my drive to work is 8 miles one way, so I had 2 short trips a day)

I did not get it changed until it hit 3000 miles.

Mine came on like Joes, at around 2500 miles. I had it changed then and am now at 5500 miles and guess what? Yep..the change-oil is pinging again. This is nuts. a 2500 mile average for oil changes?? Our driving is a mix of in-town driving with the occasional road trip (about 4 hours each way) to see the kids.
It must be a sensor but I still don't like the fact that it is telling me I need to change it so soon. I'll be calling the service guy and ask him if this is going to be the norm or if there is something I can do different to extent these trips in the service dept. (if nothing else, I'll switch to synthetic if I have to)

BTW, that list of exceptions to the 6000 miles oil change is awfully inclusive if you ask me. I bet 95% (just my WAG) of people will have at least ONE of those driving habits or conditions. Funnny how they didn't elaborate how many trips of less than 10 miles qualifies? 1 a month? a week? a day? Again, rather vague.
Either that, or I'm getting paranoid in my old age.:mad:

Mine came on like Joes, at around 2500 miles. I had it changed then and am now at 5500 miles and guess what? Yep..the change-oil is pinging again. This is nuts. a 2500 mile average for oil changes?? Our driving is a mix of in-town driving with the occasional road trip (about 4 hours each way) to see the kids.
It must be a sensor but I still don't like the fact that it is telling me I need to change it so soon. I'll be calling the service guy and ask him if this is going to be the norm or if there is something I can do different to extent these trips in the service dept. (if nothing else, I'll switch to synthetic if I have to)

BTW, that list of exceptions to the 6000 miles oil change is awfully inclusive if you ask me. I bet 95% (just my WAG) of people will have at least ONE of those driving habits or conditions. Funnny how they didn't elaborate how many trips of less than 10 miles qualifies? 1 a month? a week? a day? Again, rather vague.
Either that, or I'm getting paranoid in my old age.:mad:

what was the time frame that you drove the 2500 miles in. maybe its a time sensor. i really have never heard of a sensor that can sense oil. unless the computer determines your driving style in turning the light on.

what was the time frame that you drove the 2500 miles in. maybe its a time sensor. i really have never heard of a sensor that can sense oil. unless the computer determines your driving style in turning the light on.

I was thinking that it might be some sort of logarithm, but that sounds too difficult to really come up with because there are so many variables. I don't think that Chrysler has that Numb3rs wiz working for them.
My light came on after a total of 4 months and 2300 miles. I got it changed on month 5 at 3000 miles. My driving is still the same so the light should come on again at 5300. I am at 4500 right now so I still have a while to go. I will update my first post when it comes on again.

Do not know how the oil life sensor works on the Jeep, but on my wife's GM the sensor looks at average engine RPM and Miles driven. I would assume the Jeep sensor works the same way. Modern oils and filters make the 3k mile oil change a complete waste.

FWIW the sensor in my '08 Patriot came on yesterday for the first time at just over 5,500 miles. This is also about the same number of miles at which my former 2000 Impala would indicate needing an oil change as well. I used synthetic in the Impala because I was uncomfortable with going that far on dino oil...but the more I read the more I think today's oils are way better than years ago. Granted it'd an apples to oranges thing, but my wife's '03 Accord recommends 10k miles or annual oil changes; another reason I don't think 5,500-6,000 miles is that far fetched.

Also, dropped the Patriot off today with my free oil change coupon I got in the mail; I don't know what they charge to do an oil change but I have to think if I can go @ 6k miles between changes I might stop changing my own oil. Walking the 6 blocks from my office to the dealership is much less effort than it would be to go through the process of doing it myself...though I might rotate my tires tomorrow just to familiarize myself with the tire changing process.

what was the time frame that you drove the 2500 miles in. maybe its a time sensor. i really have never heard of a sensor that can sense oil. unless the computer determines your driving style in turning the light on.

I took it in within a few miles of having the light come on. Over 2500 but less than 2550.
This time I am waiting until the miles match. I was supposed to take it in at 5500 miles or so (according to the nice little sticker they put on my window). I'll take it in then. Then I am going to ask why in the hell I am getting this light early and why I can't go 6000 miles instead, between changes. All I know is I don't want to go at this interval so if worse comes to worse, I'll go synthetic next time. *sigh*