honda860

Hey everyone. I just bought my 05 Civic EX special edition like last month after trading in my old civic and Im wondering about oil changes. Honda gives me like six free oil changes with them and im wondering when i should do my first one.

I know your not suppose to work the engine for like the first 500 which i havent I mean i baby the thing but Im wondering when i should do my first oil change and if i shouldhave them switch up the oil in it or what. I dont know if i should go synthetic and if i did if they would put synthetic in for me.

Let me know what u think Because i believe its after the first 1000 miles i should have it changed. Thanks for your help

Jrfish007

iTrader: (3)

You can use what ever oil you want whenever you want, but after being in many discussions on this forum about oil, I would just go with the Honda 5w20 (which a synthetic blend) every 5k. If you are using the proper oil, there is no need to change it before 5k.

As for oil type, the Honda oil they use is a synthetic blend like I said, but after your oil changes run out, Honda motor oil becomes somewhat expensive ($4-5 a quart I think?), so you may choose to go with a cheaper oil and do it your self, in this case just go with normal oil. Synthetic oil is best for engines that produce lots of heat because the synthetic oil will last longer against the heat (i.e. a turbo car or racing motor with high compression, that kind of engine) we don't have that (at least in stock form), so there is no need to use synthetic oil our cars unless you really want to on our fuel efficient economy car.

Jrfish007

iTrader: (3)

Oh yeah, on breaking in your engine, you should actually take your car to about 5-6k RPMS in the beginning to properly set the rings. This does NOT mean full throttle, just gently take the car up into higher RPMS. If you haven't no big deal, your car may start to burn small amounts of oil later in life (i.e 150,000+ miles), maybe not, unfortunately it is also dependant on how the assembly line felt that day. I'm sure someone will jump on me for this and say I'm wrong, but many knowledgeable people have agreed with me on this.

honda860

thanx for your help man. I'll do as you said. I wonder why i heard after the first 1000 miles get a oil change. but who knows better then someone who has a honda right. thanks again man

Jrfish007

iTrader: (3)

lol... I actually don't own a myself at the moment, I have an F-150 I use on my horse farm, but I've had 6 Honda's in the past, 2 brand new, and personally know a couple of engineers that work at Honda R&D. The oil Honda puts in at the factory has some special detergents that are meant to take off the “assembly grease” that prevents premature wear on the motor on initial startup. So yeah, just go 5k and you'll be fine. Welcome to the site and hope you enjoy your car, they're are really nice cars.

jttegx

iTrader: (3)

if you want to be safe, i would say 2k. because you dont know exactly how long that oil has been standing in the engine alone probably not even started up or moved from the months its been there. basic rule of thumb is changing motor oil every 4 months or xxxx miles, whichever comes first.

when i bought mine brand new, i changed it with honda oil at 2k. THEN moved on to fully syn oils. if you have the free honda oil changes, take advantage and use them. motor oil cost a lot IMO.

Jrfish007

iTrader: (3)

ehh... maybe. But oil sits on containers on the shelf for how long before you buy it? The only thing that will kill oil over time is sulfur; it will make your oil more acidic. Sulfur is introduced usually by bad gas (Ohio fuel is generally sulfur rich ) Since they don't run the car that much before you buy it, and Honda actually puts the first gallon of gas in and the first 2 miles, and I'm guessing the gas Honda uses is low sulfur gas, so the pH of your oil probably fine. But in the end, change it when ever you feel like it, you won't hurt much as long as you wait a good 1000 miles. Now if you have a diesle, things change.

S2000man01

iTrader: (1)

DO NOT change the factory oil until 5000 miles. 1k or 2k is NOT enough.

the factory oil has a high molybdenum count, which assists the engine break in properly. during the first 5000 miles or so, the engine runs hotter than any other time during it's life span (under normal operation). this is because the surfaces in the engine are ridged and need to be smoothed over. moly helps both dissipate heat and smooth the engine, allowing proper break in.

again, do NOT do your first oil change until about 5000 miles.