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Hey all,

So I had a Mustang that was totaled about a month ago and I've been having a really hard time finding another Mustang that I want so I had decided to look for a Civic as a daily driver.

I finally just picked one up today. It's a 98 LX sedan with an auto. It's got 126k on it and the seller seemed really honest and stand up but he did not have any maintenance records to go with the car. He said he just had the oil changed two weeks ago and claimed to be using synthetic.

I first want to get the oil changed ASAP just for the piece of mind and to know exactly where i'm at. My question is would it be in fact safe to use synthetic oil at 126k miles? Also what is the TRUE amount of oil to use and what weight? Cause in the Mustang community the book says to use 6 quarts of 5w20 but everyone knows to use at least 5w30 instead and use at least 6.5 to 7 quarts because the factory fill capacity is a bit too low. I'm wondering if the same kinda thing applies to Civics.

I'm thinking about simply using standard Mobil 1 synthetic oil with a Mobil 1 filter. Seem ok to everyone?


Thanks,
Brandon

 
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A Mustang guy eh

jk welcome to the site

Mobil 1 is overpriced, I tried it and it wasn't nearly as good as royal purple, which I expected since it's a group III synthetic blend, not a true synthetic group IV like royal purple. If you want to go the synthetic route, royal purple is the way to go, it's the best oil available at the price point in my opinion. Use 5w-30 and fill it up to the second full line, usually that's just below 4 quarts. Amsoil and Motul are also excellent choices, but they're more expensive.

Filter wise:
Mobil 1, K&N, Royal Purple, Hamp and Toyo Roki OEM are excellent higher end filters, $10-20 price range. Puralator pureone and Wix make good budget filters. Stay away from fram and honeywell fram OEM filters.

 
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Thanks for replying. Yeah, I used royal purple in my Mustang. I always ordered it online because I got the best deals from a particular site with their discount code.

So whichever synthetic oil I choose to go with, will it be safe to use it on a 126k mi car?

 
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Valvoline maxlife is a great oil for high milage cars. People have tested their used maxlife oil with great results

 
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It would only be safe if it's already been converted, I wouldn't make the transition at 126k miles.

 
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Okay that's a problem...cause the seller stated that he used "regular synthetic oil" and he usually took the car to Firestone for the maintenance work. I have no idea how true that is. I could call the seller tomorrow and see how sure he is. He seems to be the honest type and I am more worried about him not truely knowing rather than lying.

I need this car to last so I want to do what's best for the longevity of the motor. Would the chances be good for me if I simply just use M1 and be done with it?

Also, can any of you guys confirm the size of the drain plug? I don't have many tools on hand but I have a 16mm wrench which I used on the Mustang. Not sure if the Civic is the same. I will be SOL if I am missing tools halfway into my oil change. I tried looking it up online but all I found was the size of the threading and not the actual bolt head...

 
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I'm pretty confident it's a 17mm head on the drain plug.

Regular synthetic oil, sounds like he doesn't know what synthetic oil is, more likely he just got the regular oil change. If you use M1 and be done with it you'll probably be fine, since it's not a true full synthetic. It's really impossible predict how an engine responds to an upgrade in oil type though, there are so many factors that affect it, from the type of gas used, to how well it's been maintained, to the way it's been driven.

 
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Alright guys so I just changed the oil tonight. The oil I drained out was nasty as ****, I highly doubt it was changed 2 weeks ago like the seller claimed. When you shine bright flashlight into the tray of oil, you can see almost like a dark dark green tint to the old oil. I hope it hasn't mixed with coolant.

Anyway I screwed on an M1 filter and poured about 3.8 quarts of M1 in there. After letting the car sit for a while, I checked the dipstick and it read like a hair below the top hole. I hope I didn't put too much.

I also spent a good amount of time wiping down the oil pan and this big silver thing to the right of the engine which took me a while to realize it was probably the tranny lol...I know nothing about Honda's.

Took the car out for a drive and definitely drove a whole lot smoother and quieter. No leaks whatsoever so far and I hope it stays that way. I also noticed one of the bolts that hold the oil pan up was loose but I couldn't tighten it all the way was these brackets were in the way. Another stud coming out of the edge of the oil pan was also missing a nut and I was somehow so lucky that the one random nut I had in my tool box fit the stud exactly.