Hello


My is commute 3 times a week and it’s roughly 1.9 miles each way. My engine never reaches operating temperature, max temp is about 150F.

My current oil change interval is 3500 miles. However I’m seeing moisture buildup on the underside of the oil cap.

Should I shorten my oil change intervals further?

Additionally has anyone hooked up a block heater to one of these cars?

 

Is there a "long route" you can take?

I regularly extend any short distance drives just enough to make sure the oil at least reaches operating temperature...and the M156 gets up to temperature pretty quickly.

 

drive more - important it gets to temp and operates there for a while to remove moisture from oil and just treat all them mechanical parts nice..

Driving 4 miles to work and back.... Golf cart would work better

 

The moisture is the oil never reaching its operating temperature for long enough to burn off the condensation. You could shorten the oil change interval but would probably make more sense to drive it for longer distances. Keep in mind that short trips are also awful for exhaust systems, battery life etc so the longer trips won't hurt one bit.

 

Why not walk to work? I do 4 miles a day and I'm sure I'm many years older.

 

Its -22 where I am currently so walking isn’t an option

 

Then finding a longer route is a better choice.

 

Yeah if it's that cold you should definitely be driving a bit further ...

 

This is experimental but unplugging the oil pump solenoid may reduce heating times other than that yes recommend driving it more, it is a C 63, enjoy it! https://mbworld.org/forums/w212-amg/...solenoids.html

 

The oil control valve doesn't exist on the m156 - he'd have nothing to unplug!

But, you can install the Mercedes block heater, this will keep your oil at a modest temperature when the car isn't driven, which allows it to warm up much faster when you start the engine. Also reduces cold-start wear and tear too! If you can't get the Mercedes part or too expensive, just a 40w light bulb jammed into the engine bay will do wonders to help.

 

Hmmm, didn't know that, thanks for confirming.

 

Like Catalina Island.

 

Maybe drive in reverse the whole way?

 

Driving a C63 less than 4 miles round trip has gotta be painful. That's like riding a mountain bike on a paved footpath in Florida.

 

That is one interesting way to warm up the fluid quicker : )

 

Ya that definitely is, can't even have fun with the car with temperatures like that.

 

How far does the wife drive on a daily basis? Assuming she has a car, maybe swap cars with her. Also, there are oil dipstick heaters that you could install. As a last resort, truckers have a technique they use in cold climates. They cover the grill with a fabric cover, that has a zipper. They can zip it all the way up in the worst cold to prevent air from flowing past the radiator.

 

G'Day Fella's,
Xavier, my best advice is, it would be benificial for you, but especially your cars engine, if you took it for a 30 + minute drive, at least once a week.
Hope that helps
Regards
Homer

 

This. In the same boat Hybrid work , one day a week, 13 miles round trip. But on Saturday mornings I get out early and run my errands. usually takes about 2.5 - 3 hours and I open her up, change oil every 3 months. LOL I am not alone. I have seen my share of ( insert Performance car here) on the road at this time.

 

I tried universal oil pan heaters plugged into a smart plug and then automated for when the temp outside reaches a certain degree, but they don’t stay on well, my concern with just taking out for a long trip once a week is that I’m worried my oil has broken down due to moisture build up, through out the week. No knocking or clatter on start up.

 

You can extract an oil sample through the dipstick tube and send it to Blackstone for analysis to take the guesswork out of it.

No real solution here other than driving your car more. Is there really no extended route you can take?

Drive a town over to a coffee shop, hit a drive through and double back?

As stated previously, M156 cars get up to temperature quick, so it won't take much more distance.

 

If you have a dipstick, buy a dipstick block heater. it's only 90 watts, but anything beats -22F.
https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/KAT15200

 

the oil is designed for subzero starts but for the love of god take a longer drive once a week. Fuel is the enemy of oil. 3500 seems fine since you're aware of it but honestly even donig used oil analysis anybody is gonna tell you that the oil is not good to use if you only drive that little. Theres nothing about a Mercedes that is particularly sensitive to this, but it has a huge oil capacity compared to normal cars which means its potentially holding TONS of unspent fuel as it makes it way past the rings in th AM vs a Honda civic with like a 4qt sump

 

I guess if I saw those kind of temperatures, my C63 would remain inside until it gets warmer. I concure that more ofter oil changes would be needed if you continue driving in those extreme conditions, but as said take a longer route to get things up to operating temps

 

But is it uphill both ways?