Cadenza Eating Oil?

7640 Views 10 Replies 6 Participants Last post by Kia-Driver, Dec 29, 2021

sh30469

Discussion Starter · Jun 1, 2015 (Edited)

So I just went in on Saturday to get my oil changed. I noticed last time they reset my oil change counter in car that it went off early. I go for either 7 months or 7.5k miles but since I don't drive that much I just go every 7 months. I looked on the sticker and asked the girl why it was so low until in my next interval (3k or 3.5k mi don't remember). She talked to the tech and he said that if they wait for the 7mo/7.5kmi mark there isn't enough oil left on the dipstick, stating that there just wasn't enough oil. Have any of you heard this or seen anything similar? I got my car when they had the promo for 3yrs of free standard maintenance (worked out to first 5 are paid for you @ either every 7 months or every 7.5k miles). I am going to call corporate and see if they have heard it. If not, I will keep going at the factory suggested time. If they say I should bring it in when the dealer says then I will ask them to bump me up to 10 free standard maintenance since they halved my changing interval.

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socalifk7

· #2 · Jun 2, 2015

Probably best to just manually check the oil yourself. The service interval reset function is just a miles counter; nothing more. You can re-set this yourself; it has nothing to do with actual oil level or engine performance.

The tech's opinion as to when to how often to change oil is just that; "an opinion" (hopefully a professional one). The basic factory recommendation is 7.5K miles; but the recommendation changes for "heavy duty driving" like constant stop and go traffic; dusty conditions, etc. Regardless the decision of when to change oil is really up to you, as long as you have records of regular oil changes your warranty cannot be voided (and doesn't have to be at the dealer).

If your driving is normal, I would insist on the 7.5K miles interval and just do a periodic check. Remember you are the customer; it's your car.

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sh30469

Discussion Starter · #3 · Jun 2, 2015

Yes, and that is all fine and well, but if this is something they are seeing more of and actually want me to do it for good reason I'd rather be safe than sorry. No reason to go in for warranty repair if you can avoid it, even if you can point to a trail saying you did what the manual suggests. I Don't drive hard by any means which is what concerned me the most. My vehicle also has a 20yr/200K from the dealer itself. One of the stipulations to them honoring that deal is to do recommended maintenance and do it with them if possible (few more things but those are the basics). If Kia says something is different than they expected and you should service a bit sooner wouldn't you want to avoid trouble rather than pointing to what they originally said and say "nu uh, look; See!"? Lol.

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MadMax

· #4 · Jun 2, 2015

7 months might be too long too, regardless of the mileage. As oil pickups up dirt and buildup, even a little unburned fuel as standard blowby, it will break down the oil if left alone for too long. And you can't go by what they are saying, if in 7 months you haven't checked your oil at least 2 or 3 times you're really flirting with disaster. It's different for me in that I'm in every 3 months or so, but I still check at least once inbetween changes.

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Scynthyace

· #5 · Jun 2, 2015 (Edited)

My rule of thumb is 5k miles or 5 months. I typically drive about 4,200 miles in 5 months with normal driving, and so far I've been alright. It doesn't hurt anything but your wallet if you change it earlier then recommended, but if you wait too long, it can do damage. Of course you're sticking to the recommendations, so if something does blow up, you're following KIA's information, and therefore they're liable, not you, as long as you have your records in order.

Another side note: My car starts to feel sluggish around 4k miles, and then resumes its zippiness after the oil change. Try to feel it out next time, yours may do the same and at that point, I'd recommend a change.

Edit: I do my own oil changes, its a top-side filter and up until the coilovers, it was easy to do. There are no special seals or washers involved like some manufacturers, the only thing you lose is a record of maintenance, but I drive cars till I blow them up, so a warranty means nothing to me.

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socalifk7

· #6 · Jun 2, 2015

Certainly no issue with more changes the better. New oil and filter is always a cost effective way of protecting your engine. I'm running full synthetic at 10K intervals; since I drive about 20K a year that gives me new oil at least 2X a year.

It would be wasteful to change a full synthetic more often; so if I were to go to 5K intervals I would just use standard oil. I have never had an engine oil related issue with this approach and so far at 10,500 miles my "K7" doesn't burn a drop of oil; everything I put in comes back.

Aligning with a dealer or special warranty is certainly understandable. I'm not a big fan of aftermarket warranties (from the dealer alone) especially when KIA offers a 10yr/100K power train already from the factory, but each of us should decide which plan best meets our needs.

With past vehicles (BMW, etc.) I did not have a good experience with after-market warranties. They are pure profit for the dealer and can be hard to enforce when there's a dispute as the dealer just sells them, but does not process the warranty claims. There are often many clauses and reasons for denial of payment, so buyer beware on these.

The only non-manufacture warranty I recommend is the one from CarMax. It was fair-priced and they never denied a claim for my Mercedes ML (and there were many claims with that SUV). CarMax also allows the use of any dealer or local independent shop; you don't have to take it back to them.

Here's to clean oil!

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Scynthyace

· #7 · Jun 2, 2015

Been thinking about going Synthetic... Might have to consider it more when I do my oil next.

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sh30469

Discussion Starter · #8 · Jun 3, 2015

socalifk7 said:
Certainly no issue with more changes the better. New oil and filter is always a cost effective way of protecting your engine. I'm running full synthetic at 10K intervals; since I drive about 20K a year that gives me new oil at least 2X a year.

It would be wasteful to change a full synthetic more often; so if I were to go to 5K intervals I would just use standard oil. I have never had an engine oil related issue with this approach and so far at 10,500 miles my "K7" doesn't burn a drop of oil; everything I put in comes back.

Aligning with a dealer or special warranty is certainly understandable. I'm not a big fan of aftermarket warranties (from the dealer alone) especially when KIA offers a 10yr/100K power train already from the factory, but each of us should decide which plan best meets our needs.

With past vehicles (BMW, etc.) I did not have a good experience with after-market warranties. They are pure profit for the dealer and can be hard to enforce when there's a dispute as the dealer just sells them, but does not process the warranty claims. There are often many clauses and reasons for denial of payment, so buyer beware on these.

The only non-manufacture warranty I recommend is the one from CarMax. It was fair-priced and they never denied a claim for my Mercedes ML (and there were many claims with that SUV). CarMax also allows the use of any dealer or local independent shop; you don't have to take it back to them.

Here's to clean oil!

Luckily the extra dealer add-on warranty for the 20yr/200k is free (cars on lot are the same price roughly as other dealers w/o extra warranty). And from what I hear our oil is part synth. I can't imagine how I'd be burning oil up, as I've already stated, I baby car and am very easy on it. Not in stop and go traffic much except some rush hour traffic that isn't usually TOO bad. I honestly wouldn't put it past the dealer to be saying that to get me in there more often for more $$$. I go to the dealer for 1. their warranty (again, free) and 2. for the actual records. I also keep a paper copy of every visit in my glove compartment

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Kia-Driver

· #9 · Dec 23, 2021

Sorry for dredging up an old thread, but it seemed the best location for my comments. My Cadenza has increased its oil consumption lately. I had switched to full synthetic shortly after buying it, so my changes are usually every 7K miles. Lately it's burning about a quart by the 5K point. I had my mechanic check for leaks and there are none, to it appears to be burning it. Anyone else have the issue?
Mine's a 2014.

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onlyjeeps

· #10 · Dec 28, 2021

You didn't mention how many miles you currently have on it.

So, just like you, I switched to full synthetic oil (Mobile 1) right after I got it, 12K miles in my case. I change the oil at 7500-8000 mile intervals and it now has 98,000 miles on it. My difference is I have not experienced any oil losses so far. Definitely not leaking any and not burning any as far as I can tell. Have you checked for blow by or if the PCV valve is bad? Just thinking of things that can cause excess oil consumption that wouldn't be obvious like a leak would.

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Kia-Driver

· #11 · Dec 29, 2021

I have a bit over 96K. I bought it with 48K and I assume it was just standard dino oil before that point. I switched to synthetic with my first oil change (probably around 53-55K). I haven't checked the PCV valve, so I'll start there.
Mine was originally a lease, then the lessee appears to have purchased it and later sold it. That's about all I know.

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