computersoc Posted September 21, 2018 Share Posted September 21, 2018 I got the P0028 CEL code randomly twice a few weeks ago. Haven't seen it since. I got an oil change today and was in the garage and the oil was pitch black and the mechanic even said it's extremely dirty. I was at 7800 miles with Royal Purple. I normally go 10k miles and the oil looks brand new. I know without an oil analysis that doesn't tell us much, but any idea why it would be so dark this time, and possible been the cause of the P0028? Last oil change was at the dealer when I gave them the oil to change. I wonder if they didn't change it and the oil is really at 17800 miles? If it were, would that cause damage? Thoughts? I'm at 111k miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tumbleweed 49 Posted September 21, 2018 Share Posted September 21, 2018 No way to tell what happened at this late date. How often have you been checking your oil? How did it look right after the last oil change? If the P0028 code has gone since you changed the oil, and hopefully the filter, It's probably going to be OK, you may have decreased your potential engine life but there is no way to know. Keep a close eye on your oil level. If you are suspicious of the dealer go elsewhere in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
computersoc Posted September 21, 2018 Author Share Posted September 21, 2018 Oil was down about 1/2 quart when normally it's never down or 1/4 down after 10k miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehsnils Posted September 21, 2018 Share Posted September 21, 2018 Did you save the old oil? It would have been good to send it for an analysis if you suspected some foul play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capttris Posted September 23, 2018 Share Posted September 23, 2018 When my Legacy was brand new I took it to the dealer closest to me for a few oil changes. They were offering a special price so I gave them a shot. I was taking my own oil samples to send in when I discovered that the OLD oil with 5000 miles on it had a higher viscosity than the NEW 0W20 that was going in! Basically, the dealer was probably using a 10W30 and I had the data to prove it. I brought the report to the service advisor and he told me "there is nobody here that can understand that" and to basically go away. The Service Manager wouldn't even come out of his office to meet with me. I haven't been back there for service work in 5 years and I tell everyone how terrible they are (they had other mistakes with other service work with my car as well) Moral of the story is the data speaks for itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrD123 Posted September 23, 2018 Share Posted September 23, 2018 Could be that the oil switching solenoid is on it's way out... 18k miles would be a lot for a single drain interval, but there's really no way to tell if that's what happened! Do you check the oil level now and then, and was it dark from right after the oil change? Royal Purple suggests really long intervals are allowable with some of their oils (12k for their regular and 15k for their HPS) - I would think in a NA engine, the risk (as long as the oil level is still ok) is pretty minimal - recommended interval from Subaru is 7.5k with conventional oil, so longer with a synthetic shouldn't be an issue. What do you use as a filter? Maybe they changed the oil, but forgot to do the filter? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fedaykin Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 Dealers are dodgy unless proven otherwise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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