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oil change interval

14K views 22 replies 18 participants last post by  SportCar8806 
#1 ·
The oil change interval is not "specified" correct? it depends on the driving conditions and the oil sensor thats inside that measures the life of the oil

and

the break in period.... it says NOT to change the oil until first scheduled maintenance time... ????? I was gonna do it at like 1000 miles

hmm


anyone have any more info on this?
 
#4 ·
Its good to have yr first oil change at the stated time interval as the break in oil needs to be in the new engine for that specific time period. (~7000-7500miles) then there after i will do a 5K interval with synthetic oil.
 
#6 ·
I love seeing all the arguments in different forums about changing your oil every 2 miles during break in and using synthetics.

The bottom line is, follow your oil life sensor and that's good enough. Honda's not going to put a sensor in the car that makes it break because that hurts them money wise and rep wise. Unless my sensor breaks what's what I'm following.
 
#7 ·
Just FYI...I'm told by our dealer that Honda's break-in oil is Mobil 1. I would think that means that if you plan to use synthetics anyway, unless there's some logic regarding FRESH oil being important after a certain period for break-in...then there's not much reason to worry about an early change.

Of course, that's officially worth as much as my (nonexistent) Honda technician certification! :p
 
#8 ·
From Honda Owner Link:

Why should I wait to change the oil the first time?

Your Honda engine was delivered with an oil that is specially formulated for new engines that have not yet developed their "natural" wear patterns and may contain minute particles from the manufacturing process.

American Honda strongly recommends this special oil be left in the engine long enough for these wear patterns to develop, usually until the first maintenance interval specified in your Owner's Manual, based on your specific driving conditions. :eek:
 
#10 ·
KCsaint said:
From Honda Owner Link:

Why should I wait to change the oil the first time?

Your Honda engine was delivered with an oil that is specially formulated for new engines that have not yet developed their "natural" wear patterns and may contain minute particles from the manufacturing process.

American Honda strongly recommends this special oil be left in the engine long enough for these wear patterns to develop, usually until the first maintenance interval specified in your Owner's Manual, based on your specific driving conditions. :eek:
thats what i m trying to say.....:)
 
#11 ·
KCsaint said:
From Honda Owner Link:

Why should I wait to change the oil the first time?

Your Honda engine was delivered with an oil that is specially formulated for new engines that have not yet developed their "natural" wear patterns and may contain minute particles from the manufacturing process.

American Honda strongly recommends this special oil be left in the engine long enough for these wear patterns to develop, usually until the first maintenance interval specified in your Owner's Manual, based on your specific driving conditions. :eek:
that "special" stuff is molybdenium, you can actually find high amounts of it in Valvoline Max Life. Sounds wierd to use a high milage oil, but it works. But really there is no reason to bother changing it out, unless you have money to burn.
 
#14 ·
I was always change the 1st time a little early like 1/2 the expected life, but I’m use to older cars,

hmm I wonder if that sensor actually monitors oil or if it just counts miles?
you know like the service light that always come on after so many mile no matter what
 
#15 ·
ZigRoxi said:
hmm I wonder if that sensor actually monitors oil or if it just counts miles?
you know like the service light that always come on after so many mile no matter what
I doubt that it has an oil quality sensor, then again I could be wrong. The easiest way would be to count total engine revolutions. If you tear around blinking the shift light everywhere you go, you should change the oil more often. Counting revs would adress that.
 
#19 ·
My fav idiot was a guy who got 02 dodge ram. When it was new he let me drive it off the lot w/ 9 miles on the odometer, b/c he didn't know how to drive standard yet.
Long story short (not using synthetic oil) he changed the oil every 25k miles, and doesn't know why the motor has quite a bit of rod knock now, lol its 02 w/ 85k miles now. highway or not that’s just mean to that poor motor
 
#20 ·
If you look in your owners manual, it will tell you how long you can go before you change your oil. The dealership you got your car from should have told you before you left the lot. When I got my new civic, they told me it can last up to 10k miles (same as 04-05 civic) or when your oil life gets down to 5% (which I would never let it get that low). Your maintenance required light will still come on @ 7500 miles like all other new model honda's do.
 
#21 ·
For those of us who change our own oil, how is th oil monitor reset? I didn't see it in the owners manual. Additionally, does a vendor make a magnetic drain plug for these cars? If so, who? I have used these in all my cars and se metal on the magnet all the time. Will the filter catch it, probably but this thing has to last longer than my T-truck [4x4 V6], 400K (still on original clutch).
 
#22 ·
Erik said:
For those of us who change our own oil, how is th oil monitor reset? I didn't see it in the owners manual. Additionally, does a vendor make a magnetic drain plug for these cars? If so, who? I have used these in all my cars and se metal on the magnet all the time. Will the filter catch it, probably but this thing has to last longer than my T-truck [4x4 V6], 400K (still on original clutch).
The oil monitor does not get reset. It is a sensor that is constantly monitoring the oil. So when you change the oil, it will know. The maintance reminder is just a reminder on when to rotate your tires, I forget how to set that, but it is in your manual.
 
#23 ·
I think it does need to be reset when the oil is changed. Check out the section on resetting the Engine Oil Life Indicator as outlined step-by-step on page 212 of the manual. Resetting this not only brings the indicated oil life back to 100%, but the system also remembers which other maintenance items (if any) were displayed before resetting and knows which item codes to display next time the car needs service. The Maintenance Minder system looks at engine operating conditions such as average engine speed and average engine temperature, and it also uses accumulated engine revolutions to accurately tell you when you need to go in for service. Honda has created a kickass super-precise maintenance system so my advice is to not try and outsmart it!
 
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