>> Many European cars now specify 12,000 mi oil changes based on using >> synthetic
>> oil.
>
> Even prior to synthetic, recreational oil changing was very uncommon in
> Europe. Motor oil is heavily taxed (as is gasoline), so drivers are not
> running around changing their oil unnecessarily at 3K miles. I had a
> friend from Italy that carried back tires from Costco in his suitcase when
> he went to Italy, because tires are so expensive there. He was telling me
> that he wanted to bring over oil as well, as it's $8/liter there. He keeps
> a Volvo 240 over there for when he goes to visit his family, and brings
> over parts from the U.S..
Last time I was at the duty-free shop at JFK, I saw diferent types of alcohol next to wipers and synthetic motor oil. Now I know why! ;-)