The 3000 mile was for older cars that did not have a good clean gas back in the dark ages around 70's. The engine would get dirty so you have to change the filter and the oil every 3000 mile to keep it clean and running strong. Today's gas are detergent gas and it actually cleans the engine as you use it. In my experience it's not the frequency of the oil change that keep the engine running healthy but rather lack of oil when it gets low and engine gets damaged.

As a matter of fact my car hasn't had an oil change over 6 month and I just kept adding it to top off from going below the manufacturer's oil level. I drive about 1000 mile a month and right now and just passed 175,000 mile on the car.

To top this off, if you use synthetic oil, then the mileage goes even higher around 12,000 mile that means you don't even have to change for the next 12,000 mile interval.

Very very few vehicles would need oil changes at such a low figure. Current changes in almost all major manufacturers is 10,000miles or every year depending on which comes first. Exceptions of course eg artic or Sahara use with towing etc.

Running few hundred miles over your selected oil change will not adversely affect engine.

However.. Oil light ought not to flicker!, check level is ok? Then if it is..we may have faulty oil pump or pressure relief valve. Have garage check actual reassure as it may simply be our oil pressure sender at fault.

Before you take the advice of wanna-be mechanics, read this on When to Change your oil. It depends on FAR more than just the number of miles you drive

http://ricksfreeautorepairadvice.com/whe...

It won't make any difference. I would at least check the dipstick to make sure you have the proper oil level. If its low then add enough to top it off.

With AMSOIL you can go 25,000 miles on the same oil and filter as well as get a 6% savings in fuel.

For your 2002 SATURN L 200 SERIES WAGON 2.2L 4-cyl Engine Code [F] L61

You would need:

5 Quarts of SAE 5W-30 Signature Series 100% Synthetic Motor Oil (ASLQT)

1 Absolute Efficiency Oil Filter (EA15K03)

I do mine at 5K miles, easy to keep track of. It may be overdoing it, but I change it myself. whe 3000 mile thing wasn't a myth. That was a good rule of thumb back in the '50s to 70's when oil wasn't that good and sludge would build up. Modern oils are much better.

The oil light doesn't mean you need to get it changed right away, it means the pressure is low. Open the freeking hood and check the oil level, then if indicated by the dipstick, put a quart in. A car that old needs the level checked at least once a month.

Now is as good a time as any.

You don't need to change the oil every 3k. But you should do it every 5k.

You should routinely check the oil level with your dipstick to make sure you're not running low.

Oh man, you are totally fine. Cars don't need oil changes every 3000 miles. It's actually called the "3000 Mile Myth," and there's even a Wikipedia page dedicated to it. Edmunds says 10,000 miles is a better number.

The only thing to do is check your dipstick and make sure you aren't too low or anything. As long as you've got sufficient oil in the engine, it doesn't need to be changed in any hurry.

Approximately 3,000 miles 3,467.4 is fine too

I have a 2002 Saturn SL2 with about 154k miles on it. I'm about five miles over the 3,000 mile mark and I can't get an oil change today or tomorrow and I'll be putting about another 100 miles on it within that time. I know that oil changes at 3,000 miles aren't too terribly necessary, but my car does have a lot of miles and 2002 is starting to get pretty old. Also the oil light sometimes flickers on and off for just a split second. Do you think I can wait?