That's what Briggs & Stratton equipped lawn mowers are advertising. I'm old school and change the oil in mine every year. I can't see this as a good thing for the motor. Does anyone here have one that you've never changed the oil?
Never Change Your Engine Oil
- Thread starter KenB259
- Start date
Signed-In Members Don't See This Ad
Signed-In Members Don't See This Ad
egnald
Member
I change the oil and after having to tear down and clean a carburetor I started using Stabil in my gasoline year round instead of just in the fall and over winter. In addition, even though the specifications say it is OK, I don't use ethanol gasoline blends either, just good old 100% gasoline. I was surprised to find that my new mower even has a screw on oil filter cartridge that gets replaced during oil changes. - Dave.
PS I had a pickup truck once that I never changed the oil in -- but then again I had to add a quart of new oil every couple of weeks.
PS I had a pickup truck once that I never changed the oil in -- but then again I had to add a quart of new oil every couple of weeks.
Yes I also use gas stabilizer year round. The same gas can fills lawnmowers and snowblowers, so I don't have to worry about old gas.
Kenny Durrant
Member
Here's my story. In the mid70s I worked on a grease rack for a Chevrolet dealership. There was a customer that worked for an oil company that swore that oil didn't breakdown unless run hot. Every 3000 miles he'd change the filter and add a quart of oil to fill it back up. Never knew of him having issues. When I was working at an asphalt plant grease sales people said that oil based grease stood up above and beyond clay base grease. Since small gas engines don't have filters not sure how that would work. Now since I'm on the lazy side I rarely change the oil in my mower. I do check it and if it looks dirty or iffy I'll change it. I'm on my 3rd one in 35+ years and never had engine failure. The issues were mower deck or steering issues.
Woodchipper
Member
I did some work for a neighbor, mainly replace the cruddy air filter and gap the plug. When I mentioned this to my son, the engineer, he said that the vast majority of people won't change oil. So...just add enough the bring it up the the full mark.
My grandfather always said oil is cheaper than machinery. Got my tractor and push mower on the list for next week. Also pull the tractor deck and remove the blades to sharpen. Always something!
My grandfather always said oil is cheaper than machinery. Got my tractor and push mower on the list for next week. Also pull the tractor deck and remove the blades to sharpen. Always something!
rixstix
Member
My walk behind mower has one of those Briggs engines. I've never changed the oil, always check the level, never had to top off, always have stabilized, ethanol added fuel & over winters in sub zero shed. Usually starts 2nd or 3rd pull after winter.
Sta-bil is good stuff. Had a generator sit 8 years & started 3rd pull.
Sta-bil is good stuff. Had a generator sit 8 years & started 3rd pull.
I think the new Briggs motors do have oil filters.
Curly
Member
Planned obsolescence. About the time it needs an oil change the mower dies and the repairs cost more than a new one so no oil changes needed. 
Curly
Member
Engine oil itself doesn't break down, it gets dirty and the additives break down. Oil recyclers filter, clean the oil of old additives and remove any water. Then they add new additives and the oil is ready to be used again. It is tested and rated to the same specs as new oil.
WriteON
Member
Unless the oil is something special...some kind of full synthetic I'd be uncomfortable not changing oil.
jttheclockman
Member
Had a Sears Craftsman walk behind with Briggs engine and I believe I changed the oil once in 25 years I had it. I never emptied the gas either and did not add stabilizer. Started every year after 2 pulls. Cleaned plug a couple times. had to get rid of it because the base rotted out and the wheels kept wearing out. Have another now that is 5 years old and again same thing. No oil change and no stabilizer. I do use stabilizer in Genny and also drain that down after test runs. My snow blower just died this year after 20 years. Just need to buy new carb. Cost just as much as if I rebuilt it. Cars are way different. I change oil every 6,000 miles.
Lew
Member
When I was in the Navy I trained in a T28 which had a 1425 radial horsepower engine. The plane was built in the early 1950s and I trained in the early 1970s so the planes had seen a lot of service. We used to asks the maintenance crew when we brought it back from a flight to check the gas and fill it up with oil.
Woodchipper
Member
Oil also collects micro bits of metal as the engine runs. That is the purpose of the oil filter. Ask yourself this question: Why does the motor vehicle manufacturers say to change the oil and filter every XXXX miles?
Something from a car magazine: "Change oil every XXXX miles." Internal combustion engines as on bulldozers, farm tractors, etc. use the hours spent in operation. Car: Change 3,000 miles. Average speed of 30 mph is 100 hours. Average speed of 50 mph is 60 hours. Which one has the most wear and tear?
I'll err on the side of caution.
Something from a car magazine: "Change oil every XXXX miles." Internal combustion engines as on bulldozers, farm tractors, etc. use the hours spent in operation. Car: Change 3,000 miles. Average speed of 30 mph is 100 hours. Average speed of 50 mph is 60 hours. Which one has the most wear and tear?
I'll err on the side of caution.
Me too.
Curly
Member
WriteON
Member
When I bought an air compressor years ago .. the service person said more important than changing the oil was maintaining the proper level. My friends/neighbors ..neither the hubby or wife understood maintenance. Neither took their car in for service. One day while crossing a bridge the motor smoked and locked up. Fortunately Ford replaced the engine under warranty. Yes experience is the best teacher.
I had my Mini Cooper serviced last week. I asked about trans fluid change… was told it's permanent. Maybe some oils/fluids are that good.
I had my Mini Cooper serviced last week. I asked about trans fluid change… was told it's permanent. Maybe some oils/fluids are that good.
jttheclockman
Member
Cars are different animals than lawn mowers and weed wackers and things like that. A car is under more extreme conditions. Tranny fluid should be changed every 60,000 miles. Then there is changing transfer case oil and differential oils and that is why car makers offer plans for those changes. Another factor is how were the miles put on a car? There are hard miles which are city miles and easy miles which are highway. But still wear and tear breaks down oils.
Woodchipper
Member
Lawn mowers run at full blast all the time wit no way to control the RPMs. Cars don't...especially if you sit in Atlanta traffic in the AM and PM.
My Ryobi weed trimmer was dual- cord and battery. Cord gave up the ghost a few years ago and no parts available. Now all Ryobi tools are battery at 40V.
My Ryobi weed trimmer was dual- cord and battery. Cord gave up the ghost a few years ago and no parts available. Now all Ryobi tools are battery at 40V.
egnald
Member
With my Cub Cadet lawn mower the engineers made the oil change a very easy and clean process with a twist and pull drain plug that is designed to have a short piece of hose attached - virtually painless except for getting the used oil taken to our the recycling center. - Dave
My John Deere has that type of drain plug too, works well. Now if I could figure out how to get the oil filter off without making a mess, I'd be happier. I use a funnel that is moldable, but I still make a mess.
SteveG
Member
That is the way EVERY ICE tool should be designed, but it seems that some of those tools/engines are purposely designed and configured to make oil changes be such a nuisance factor that it discourages the routine preventive maintenance. Begs the question: WHY? Also, encourages me to pay attention at the point of purchase, and avoid such items.
jttheclockman
Member
Changing oil filters on most cars today are no fun either. There use to be an older gentleman in my Chevy dealership who just changed oils and fluids. He actually made many different funnels to catch the oil when he pulled filters. Some were pretty ingenious.
WriteON
Member
How about suction/vacuum devices to extract the oil. I used one on a Vortec blower on a Mustang. I realize there will some residue on the botton on the pan. I hated oil changes on the Toro snow blower.
greenacres2
Member
The Mercedes i have owned all had cartridge-type filters mounted at the top of the engine (300D, 560SEL, C240). I used a vacuum pump (Mi-T-Vac i think) to suck oil out and the filter mostly drained itself at the same time. More than once i went home for lunch, started the vac, ate, went back out and changed the filter and filled the oil--all in a shirt & tie. All was accessible enough that you didn't even rub the fenders/bumper with your dress slacks. Loved my wife's Scion XB, but the oil filter was mounted vertically at the bottom of the engine--couldn't change that from the garage floor without getting oil from fingertips to elbow!!
Filling oil after vacuum extraction probably left a small amount of oil in the crankcase, but it always took the fill amount to put oil back in. May have to start doing my own changes again--not a bad job except for the filter change in most cars!!
Woodchipper
Member
egnald, I have that on my Husky but the factory didn't tighten the drain. Whole thing comes out and drains on the frame. I catch the oil in a pan I got when I was able to DIM (do it myself). Wrench or socket will not fit to tighten the valve. I have a HF pump to drain oil from the push mower.
Motor vehicles- I'm of the opinion that a designer should work in a dealer shop before designing any motor vehicle. When my son helped with the car, lawn mower, etc., he wanted to be and now is an ME. I told him, "If I catch you designing something like this, I'll kick your butt around the block."
Motor vehicles- I'm of the opinion that a designer should work in a dealer shop before designing any motor vehicle. When my son helped with the car, lawn mower, etc., he wanted to be and now is an ME. I told him, "If I catch you designing something like this, I'll kick your butt around the block."
monophoto
Member
I bought a new car last year - another ICE. I wanted an EV, but when I looked carefully at the numbers, I concluded that I don't drive enough miles in a year to generate the savings in operating cost needed to offset the higher first cost of an EV. But to the point of this thread, I gave up on doing car maintenance many years ago. I did download and install new 'head unit' software in my car yesterday, but anything else is just too difficult and requires specialized tools that I don't want to own.
Lawnmowers are another matter. I routinely empty the gas tank, change the spark plug (replacements are cheap, and it doesn't make sense to put an old one back in after taking it out to safely do other work), change the oil, change the air filter and sharpen the blade at the end of each season so that it's ready to go when my wife tells me that I need to mow the next Spring. I do take it in every three or four years to have the belts and control cables replaced.
Snowblower is another matter. I have an Ariens that does a good job, but the spark plug is very hard to access, and getting to it requires disconnecting a tiny primer hose. When I first got the machine, I found that the primer hose was so small that it was almost impossible to reconnect without splitting the hose. So my practice is has become that at the end of the season, I drain and replace the oil, and drain the gas tank. Then, in alternate years I take it in to have the spark plug replaced and have the blower mechanics serviced.
Incidentally, I routinely use Stabil in the gas for the mower and blower. My process for draining the gas at the end of the season involves pumping as much as possible from the machine going into storage into the machine I'm preparing for use, and then running the engine to get rid of anything that is left over. I also have a two-cycle ICE leaf blower that typically is fed from the same bulk container of stabilized gas, but with oil added to the mix. I try to empty the leaf blower tank and the can of oil-gas mix at the end of the season, but my experience has been that using Stabil will allow me to store the gas-oil mix over a season if necessary.
Lawnmowers are another matter. I routinely empty the gas tank, change the spark plug (replacements are cheap, and it doesn't make sense to put an old one back in after taking it out to safely do other work), change the oil, change the air filter and sharpen the blade at the end of each season so that it's ready to go when my wife tells me that I need to mow the next Spring. I do take it in every three or four years to have the belts and control cables replaced.
Snowblower is another matter. I have an Ariens that does a good job, but the spark plug is very hard to access, and getting to it requires disconnecting a tiny primer hose. When I first got the machine, I found that the primer hose was so small that it was almost impossible to reconnect without splitting the hose. So my practice is has become that at the end of the season, I drain and replace the oil, and drain the gas tank. Then, in alternate years I take it in to have the spark plug replaced and have the blower mechanics serviced.
Incidentally, I routinely use Stabil in the gas for the mower and blower. My process for draining the gas at the end of the season involves pumping as much as possible from the machine going into storage into the machine I'm preparing for use, and then running the engine to get rid of anything that is left over. I also have a two-cycle ICE leaf blower that typically is fed from the same bulk container of stabilized gas, but with oil added to the mix. I try to empty the leaf blower tank and the can of oil-gas mix at the end of the season, but my experience has been that using Stabil will allow me to store the gas-oil mix over a season if necessary.
My old cub cadet didn't have this. Was a pain as it drained on to the frame. Sold it a few months ago and bought a new one. It has the setup you mention. Haven't changed the oil on it yet (only mowed 3 times with it as of now), but will be much easier. I also hate taking the decks off these things. Bought a HF lift so now I can clean, change/sharpen blades without taking the deck off. Soo much easier. Lol
WriteON
Member
Any reason a filter can't be changed every other oil chance or are they not meant to last that long
egnald
Member
So glad to hear about the lift. I was debating on buying one, but now I'm sold. - Thanks, Dave
I got the red heavy duty one! Works great.
Woodchipper
Member
Lift would be good but no place to store it. Should have got a bigger storage building. 
Really doesn't take up a whole bunch of room. The wide lift arm and tire racks come right off. The front of the lift drops down low enough to roll under a bench.Lift would be good but no place to store it. Should have got a bigger storage building.
Woodchipper
Member
bsshog40, that would take up half of the building.
wolf creek knives
Member
I have the same lift Bobby. Works great and saves my back and knees ( both knees are Titanium but it still hurts to kneel on them). When I'm under it I use jack stands as an added safety feature.
I hear ya Tom. I should've bought one years ago. Don't know how many times I've cussed out my lawnmower removing and replacing the deck. Lol