Most European cars now leave the factory with oil changes every 10,000 miles, some 15,000. Some have a service indicator that decides by itself.
I do not go by these numbers. A long interval keeps the maintenance cost low in the first years, when the car is under warranty or free maintenance. Some of the guidance also comes from the environmental side. Fewer oil changes means less waste oil, and thin oil helps the fuel economy numbers in the EPA test. All of this counts while the car is new. It is not made for the owner who keeps the car to 150,000 miles and more.
When I open engines that lived on these intervals I see sludge under the valve cover, timing chains and guides worn early, scored cam lobes, and engines that burn oil.
Turbo and direct injection engines suffer the most. Fuel gets past the rings into the oil, most on short trips and in the cold, and the oil gets thin. The turbo bearings run in this same oil at very high speed and heat.
I change oil every 5,000 to 7,000 miles. With short trips, a lot of idling, towing or a tuned engine, sooner.
The oil has to have the approval the engine needs. It is written on the bottle, like BMW LL-01, MB 229.5 or VW 504 00. Same viscosity is not the same oil. The filter has to be OE or the same quality.
If you plan to keep the car for a long time, change the oil more often than the book says.
Also: European car service · Diagnostics