Okay...I'm having a little trouble understanding this. Was all the clean oil a shock to the car's system, was this a coincidence or was this something else entirely?
I can remember the day when I looked under the hood of my new car and the little dipstick thingies were color-coded. I thought a new day had dawned. But, regarding the oil light...when my gas light comes on, I know I am supposed to add gas. So, when the oil light comes on, I should think I would need to add oil. Cars, IMO, should have a little light that comes on that looks like a coffee filter, which would tell me to stop and get a cup of coffee...no, just kidding...it would tell me to change the oil filter. Wouldn't that be a logical answer to the oil light confusion?
Lord Mr. Ford, what have you done
Jerry Reed - 1973
Well, if you're one of the millions who own one of them gas drinking, piston clinking,
air polluting, smoke belching, four wheeled buggies from Detroit City, then pay attention;
I'm about to sing your song son.
Well, I'm not a man appointed judge
To bear ill-will and hold a grudge
But I think it's time I said me a few choice words
All about that demon automobile
A metal box with the polyglass wheel
The end result to the dream of Henry Ford
Well, I've got a car that's mine alone
That me and the finance company own
A ready made pile of manufactured grief
And if I ain't out of gas in the pouring rain
I'm a-changing a flat in a hurricane
I once spent three days lost on a cloverleaf
Well, it ain't just the smoke and the traffic jam
That makes me the bitter fool I am
But this four wheel buggy is a-dollaring me to death
For gas and oils and fluids and grease
And wires and tires and anti-freeze
And them accessories, well honey that's something else
Well, you can get a stereo tape and a color tv
Get a backseat bar and reclining seats
And just pay once a month, like you do your rent
Well, I figured it up and over a period of time
This four thousand dollar car of mine
Costs fourteen thousand dollars and ninety-nine cents
Well, now Lord Mr. Ford, I just wish that you could see
What your simple horseless carriage has become
Well, it seems your contribution to man
To say the least, got a little out of hand
Well, Lord Mr. Ford, what have you done
Now the average American father and mother
Own one whole car and half another
And I bet that half a car is a trick to buy, don't you?
But the thing that amazes me I guess
Is the way we measure a man's success
By the kind of an automobile he can afford to buy
Well now, red light, green light, traffic cop
Right turn, no turn, must turn, stop
Get out the credit card honey, we're out of gas
Well, now all the car's placed end to end
Would reach to the moon and back again
And there'd probably be some fool pull out to pass
Well now, how I yearn for the good old days
Without that carbon monoxide haze
A-hanging over the roar of the interstate
Well, if the Lord that made the moon and stars
Would have meant for me and you to have cars
He'd have seen that we was all born with a parking space
Lord Mr. Ford, I just wish that you could see
What your simple horseless carriage has become
Well, it seems your contribution to man
To say the least, got a little out of hand
Well, Lord Mr. Ford, what have you done
Come away with me Lucille
In my smoking, choking automobile
My wife's Honda had little colored indicators in the dash that lit up when it was due for oil change. IMO, it would be much more effective if the vehicle just didn't start if an oil change is due :o)
Okay...I'm having a little trouble understanding this. Was all the clean oil a shock to the car's system, was this a coincidence or was this something else entirely?
The oil light comes on when the oil pressure is insufficient to keep the engine lubricated (most likely because the engine is just about out of oil). It wouldn't be a "shock" to the system to add clean oil, but there is a reason why the oil light is red - that means you didn't check the oil level often enough and you're frying the engine every second you're running it with that little oil (pressure). That "momentary" oil starvation, and the resultant engine blow-up, is likely what happened to that guy.
I can remember the day when I looked under the hood of my new car and the little dipstick thingies were color-coded. I thought a new day had dawned. But, regarding the oil light...when my gas light comes on, I know I am supposed to add gas. So, when the oil light comes on, I should think I would need to add oil. Cars, IMO, should have a little light that comes on that looks like a coffee filter, which would tell me to stop and get a cup of coffee...no, just kidding...it would tell me to change the oil filter. Wouldn't that be a logical answer to the oil light confusion?
A lot of newer cars do have a "change oil soon" light on it (my dad's Saturns are among them). Most of these are purely mileage based (and pop on every 3,000 miles like clockwork) though some (like the Mini Cooper) actually have sensors to determine just how worn out the oil is (Car and Driver did a long-term test of a Mini and it told them to change the oil only twice over 40,000 miles).
The "change oil" and "low gas" lights are amber/yellow/orange (depending on the car and your definition of color) instead of red (like the low oil pressure/high temperature/low voltage lights) because they're not the "drop everything, stop RIGHT NOW, and fix me before driving another yard" type of thing.