anybody using synthetic?

[fishboy]

if so what brands are good and what weight are you guys using. i am really starting to hate the 5w20 so i was thinking mobil one 10w30? or is that too much? what do you think?

[SpacemanSpiff]

I'm thinking about using Mobil1 0W-40
Just have to find an Autozone that has it in stock.

[SpeedRacer]

0w-40? they have that? and i need an oilchange soon what should i do i cant decide what oil to go with

[SpacemanSpiff]

0W-40 is a European car formula. It meets some of the more stringent wear-protection specs. for European cars. Unlike the Mobile1 (0,5&10)w-30's, it is not formulated primarily to meet CAFE rules on fuel economy.
The oil gurus at bobistheoilguy.com think pretty highly of the 0w-40 weight.
Since I am more interested in wear protection than getting 1 or 2 more mpg, and I do drive my car pretty hard, I'm gonna try the 0w-40 and see how it does.
I know that our manual calls for 5w-20, but some of the same Honda engines that require 5w-20 in the USA can magically use heavier weights overseas, so I think I'll be ok.

So far it is only available at Autozone.

[SpeedRacer]

so 0w-40 would be ok for my first oil change

[HondaMan]

Yep, put 5W30 Castrol Syntec in my ride yesterday.

[SpeedRacer]

how is that going for you honda man would you suggest it for me?

[fishboy]

cool. keep the suggestions coming. i am learning. so far i am going with 5w30, i was thinking of using this one too.

[SpacemanSpiff]

I think that 0W-40 will be ok for my first oil change, but I am willing to take the chance that it won't be as well. I've been reading everything I can find on the net about oil since I bought the car and feel like I am making a fairly educated guess based on my driving style, local climate, and what I want out of an oil. YMMV

I'd love to find out what oil the engine designers would specify without taking any marketing or regulatory issues into account, but that will never happen! I do believe that the heavier weights recommended in Japan, Europe, and Australia are better for preventing engine wear than 5w-20.
But is a 40 weight too heavy? I don't know. I have seen a post from someone else at Bob's with a Honda Accord who just put in some 0W-40. He seems happy with it so far, but only time & oil analysis will tell the whole story. I do plan to do oil analysis on mine so that I will know for sure what kind of job it is doing.

But when the rubber meets the road, the owners manual calls for 5w-20 only, so that is the only "safe" choice.

(The forums at
http://www.bobistheoilguy.com
are a great resource if you want to learn more about oil.)

[Hondatech]

I did my first oil change at 6000 km(4000ish miles) and switched to Castrol Syntec 5W30. Autocrossed twice and some hard, hard mountian driving. Every car I've owned for the last 7 years has used either Mobil 1 or Syntec.

[chunky]

on my first oil change, i went to the mobil 1 15w-50.

with that heavy of an oil, it's pretty much garanteed that you can't do anything bad to the motor in most driving scenarios. It's also formulated specifically for "performance driving" so it is not certified as an engery conserving oil. It's dark brown color indicates the presence of a high amount of anti-wear additives (good).

I was happy with the oil, but felt that I might have lost some power with such a heavy oil. So I wanted to go to a 10w-30 oil that still had a good anti-wear additive package. I decided to go with the redline oil. It was expensive as hell, over 3$ more per quart (7.99/qt v.s. 4.25/qt for the mobil 1). And to be perfectly honest, I could not feel any difference with the redline oil v.s. the mobil 1.

I think i'll be switching back to the 15w-50 as I drive my car very hard (i see redline in every gear through 3rd multiple times per day). It's cheaper, and although I do not have the oil analysis results to back it up, I think it will protect my motor just as well as the much more expensive redline oil.

[2fastcivic]

i havent done my oil change yet but when i do i'll either use Castrol Syntec or Mobil 1 5w-30. i plan on doing my oil change at 1500 miles. does anyone think that is too soon?

[snubnose]

I am not a car expert or a mechanic but I feel best going with the owner's manual recommendations, 5w-20. The manual is very adamant about using this weight.

Why would you deliberately go against the clear instructions in the manual? Maybe there are good reasons.

[SpacemanSpiff]

You have a good point Snubnose.
If I had any confidence that the engineers who designed the engine would recommend 5w-20 for my driving, I would use it in a heartbeat.
But I have a strong suspicion that other folks have a hand in that manual too. People like lawyers, technical writers, PR Hacks, and compliance personel all had a hand in what oil was specified for our engine.
In the USA, car companies have to meet certain fuel economy guidlines mandated by the government (EPA). To meet these higher fuel economy standards, the car makers are using thinner oil.
When Honda and Ford switched to 5W-20, they didnt change the engines, they just changed their recommendation. One year it was 5w-30, the next it was 5w-20.
The same engines that "require" 5w-20 & 5w-30 in the USA can magically use heavier weights when overseas. In Europe the emphasis is on longer drain intervals and better wear protection instead of fuel mileage, so heavier weights are used.
If I could just talk to a Honda engineer and hear him/her say that 5w-20 is the best for this engine under heavy loads & high heat, then I would have no problem using it. But that won't happen.

[silver ep]

anyone go to the dealer to get there oil changed? (should I just go to Valvoline?)

[snubnose]

Thanks for the info, spacemanspiff; it's a shame we can't put more trust in the owner's manual.

Like you, I am more interested in protecting my engine than being politically or environmentally correct.

It seems that a heavier oil might be the way to go.

[MoodySi]

I heard that once you go with synthetic, you have to stick with it, that true?

[xlr8]

i use redline 5w30 full synthetic. one thing i heard about the manual from my dealer, is do your first oil change between 3500-3750. im just going with what they say rateher then the manual. if i have a problem they will be the ones to warrenty it not the manual

[chunky]

Originally posted by MoodySi
I heard that once you go with synthetic, you have to stick with it, that true?

no.

but generally, you should decide on a brand & weight of oil and stick with it.

everytime you switch oil types, you introduce new additives to the engine. these additives compete for space on the cylinder walls - inevitabley, some are more "sticky" to the metal than others, so some of the older additives get pushed off to make room for the new ones, and this results in the engine burning oil. its usually temporary and will only last one or two oil change intervals.

consistency is the key. if you don't think you can consistently pay for a synthetic oil, just go with the conventional, but be very careful about changing the oil on time.

however, if you drive hard, it's in your interests to find the $$$ to do synthetic.

[Hondatech]

The owners manual suggests using 5W20 for fuel savings. Honda was able to reduce fleet (all cars sold in a year) fuel usage by 3% by switching to 5W20 from year 2000 recommended 5W30. 3% doesn't sound like much, but when it's measured across hundreds of thousands of cars, it earned Honda a lot of credit with the EPA.

[themi6group]

you shouldn't do your first oil change until at least 7,500 to 10,000 miles. the honda oil has special additives to help break the motor in. after that, normal recommended changes. you also shouldn't start using synthetics until maybe around 10,000 to 15,000 miles. breaking the motor in is the most important.

[silver ep]

Wow is that really true?? No oil change till 7,500 10,000 miles :confused:

Does anyone have proof of this?

[chunky]

Originally posted by themi6group
you shouldn't do your first oil change until at least 7,500 to 10,000 miles. the honda oil has special additives to help break the motor in. after that, normal recommended changes. you also shouldn't start using synthetics until maybe around 10,000 to 15,000 miles. breaking the motor in is the most important.

bahahhaa!

please tell me you didn't actually do that?

the additives in the oil just help with seating the rings, which happens within 1-2k miles. after that, the additives have no purpose.

Honda reccomends that you leave the oil in for one full oil change cycle, which can be anywhere from 3500 miles to 5000miles, but no more.

Look in the owners manual for the definition of "hard driving," you'll be surprised at how easy it is to fall under that classification. Stop and go driving = hard driving, highway driving = hard driving. If you drive hard, you have to follow the accelerated maintenance schedule, and this includes the first oil change.

do NOT leave your oil in for 7500 to 10,000 miles.

I siwtched to a full synthetic after 3000miles as I have done with ALL of my previous honda cars. I've never had any major (or minor) engine problem with any of them thus far, and all of them laid down respectable numbers at the dyno.

[fishboy]

what happens if you start using synthetic, can you go back to normal oil?

[chunky]

Originally posted by fishboy
what happens if you start using synthetic, can you go back to normal oil?

i covered that earlier in this thread.

[fishboy]

doh. thanks.

[themi6group]

Originally posted by chunky


bahahhaa!

please tell me you didn't actually do that?

the additives in the oil just help with seating the rings, which happens within 1-2k miles. after that, the additives have no purpose.

Honda reccomends that you leave the oil in for one full oil change cycle, which can be anywhere from 3500 miles to 5000miles, but no more.

Look in the owners manual for the definition of "hard driving," you'll be surprised at how easy it is to fall under that classification. Stop and go driving = hard driving, highway driving = hard driving. If you drive hard, you have to follow the accelerated maintenance schedule, and this includes the first oil change.

do NOT leave your oil in for 7500 to 10,000 miles.

I siwtched to a full synthetic after 3000miles as I have done with ALL of my previous honda cars. I've never had any major (or minor) engine problem with any of them thus far, and all of them laid down respectable numbers at the dyno.

cool out man, i only have 216 miles on my ride. i'm far away from my first oil change. numerous honda technicians have said to do the first oil change near 7,500. maybe under normal driving conditions? full synthetics shouldn't be used that early. what's the use? some of you chaps just use it just because. you never race nor does your engine produce that much need for it. i only ran synthetic in my turbo civic because it was f/i and raced. synthetic is the best but you should have some good miles on those pistons, rings, rods, and crankshaft first. true once you go synthetic you should stay because of the different polymers that normal petroleum based oils contain. it's only highly recommended, not written in stone.

[sonic imperial]

I always go to the dealer to get my oil changed. The reason is because I have free lifetime oil changes. So I let honda take care of it so if anything goes wrong it's their fault.

[silver ep]

Im going to go to the dealer too!

[Mechanic]

Originally posted by MoodySi
I heard that once you go with synthetic, you have to stick with it, that true?

No. All synthetics are fully compatable with all conventional motor oils. You can go back and forth to your heart's content. The only effect is that you will diminish the benefits of the synthetic oil (excellent flow rate in cold weather; extreme resistence to thermal breakdown in hot) in direct proportion to how much is in your engine. For what it's worth, I recommend Mobile 1 5w-30. (Go to 5-20 when the temp is consistently below 40 degrees.) Your engine will run forever.

[SpeedRacer]

5w-30 you say eh...
well is this good for racing too? i need an oil that is good for day to day driving to work but also for smashing the gas pedal racing and going to the track plus i like to drive down and up real curvy roads with my friends for fun often so i dont know i am comming up on 5000 miles what do i do i want to pick the best choice

[Mechanic]

Originally posted by SpeedRacer
5w-30 you say eh...
well is this good for racing too? i need an oil that is good for day to day driving to work but also for smashing the gas pedal racing and going to the track plus i like to drive down and up real curvy roads with my friends for fun often so i dont know i am comming up on 5000 miles what do i do i want to pick the best choice

My competition days consisted of road courses, not 1/4 mile runs. For road courses where I was going to be running flat to the floor for a half-hour in several sessions (generating tons of heat), I ran 10w-40 and thought it came out of the cans/bottles like glue, it was so thick. I also had an oil cooler. But, in my street cars, before 5w-30 existed, I used 10w-30. You're trying to use one motor for both situations, which means you have to find a happy medium which isn't easy. Because you live in California, you can use 10w-40 on the street, but it will affect your mileage and will not provide the same start-up protection as a 5w-30, which flows more easily. So, your start- ups and first few miles (3 miles or so) should be easy ones until your car's up to normal operating temp. Hondas have very close bearing tolerances, so in a sense, you are working against yourself with the heavier oil. But, you correct that you are going to need the protection of a 40-weight when you are on the bottle, particular if you do it often. (By the way, there's no way in hell that I'd run N02 on a stock street engine. It's murder on the rings, pistons, rods and bearings, none of which were engineered with that sort of use in mind. Think gernade.)

[themi6group]

SpeedRacer, i'd go with 5w30. it's perfect for engine protection and gas effieciency. running no2 is fine as long as the shots are low on a stock engine. 50 shot is fine but you need to address some fuel issues and ensure your engine is getting the correct oil. i used to run 0w-40 motul on my other ride and it held up perfectly for the street and autox track.