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I was curious about a few different aspects of caring for my civic. I have a 04 Civic LX with about 41k miles. I've been having the oil changed every 3k miles since I bought the car. However, I've read that I don't really need to do it until 5k miles.

I was also wondering about getting a tune up for my car. Would I need one at 41k miles? If so, what is usually done in a tune up? Is it something I should be able to do myself? I need to take my car into honda anyways, there is a rattling noise sounding like my bearings comming from one of my left tires. Since I have full warranty on it, I might as well use it.

thank you

 
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2k-3k mile oil change is the best for your engine because it doesnt let dirty black oil get cycled around your engine. Sure you could let it go for 5k miles but it wouldn't really be best for your car. A tune up you can probably do yourself with the help of a haynes manual i did it and it wasnt a problem. Basically a tune up is changing spark plugs, head gasket and your timing belt. If I left anything out anyone feel free to add

 
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What is the difficulty of doing a head gasket change? It almost seems a little daunting. I've done basic car care before; oil change, tire change, spark plugs, brakes, exhaust manifold gaskets and such but never anything with the actual engine like head gaskets. I don't have a haynes as of yet, but I do have access to an all-data program. Would that work as well?

Also, I know some cars prefer certin spark plugs (like saturn perfers ngk plugs, and will through codes if bosch plugs are used), what is the best for a civic lx? I've seen ngk recommended on here, so I will probably use that unless other wise recommended.

thank you
jeff

 
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Yea i use NGK's also they work fine with no problem, the head gasket its not to hard its probably siliconed into the head so when you pull it out and put the new one in you have to be sure to seal it with silicon all around otherwise you'll get oil leaks. Im not to familiar with all data programs but if they show you how to take it apart with details of the parts im sure you could use it

 
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I would suggest having your oil changed at 3K miles as opposed to 5K, as it can really make a difference in the performance and durability of your car. We took very good care of our Civic and it lasted us for over 100K miles with very few problems. It sounds like you are doing the right thing, and I hope you will be happy with your Civic for a long time!

 
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ok people i gues there's no mechanics on this forum so i'll start by explaining WHAT A HEAD GASKET IS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! a head gasket is the gasket between the head and the block... this is not a regular maintainance item that's like saying you have to change your pistons every 75k miles... you do, however, have a valve cover gasket wich is also known as a head cover gasket that you may change easily... this is not necessary unless you have small oil leaks from here, wich at 40k miles, you shouldn't... and ifyou do, that should be able to be fixed under warranty. now to cover a tune up... like gonein60 said, plugs, wires... cap and rotor where applicable.. not sure but i'm almost positive an 04 civic has coil packs wich is not a maint. item... i also believe an 04 civic has a coil on plug set up wich means you will not have plug wires. you simply have the boot that goes from the coil to the plug... a few other things you would want to check out at the time of a tune up are: fuel filter, air filter, crank case pcv(pressure control valve) also, check all your belts and hoses for cracking/swelling... that's all i would do at 40k.... maybe a trans. filter change if it's an automatic (in wich case you change fluid also) and maybe a coolant flush... at 50k or so i would look into brake wear... and i think this covers most of what i would do... the best bet is always to check your maintainance chart in your owners manual because that's straight from honda... and as far as the 5k between oil changes, if you use a good quality oil and filter (that means dont get u'r sh**T done at walmart people!!!) you will be able to go 5k miles because newer engines aren't as dirty as older ones... most people (including myself) continue to change oil at 3k though because it's safer that way...

 
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whoops haha my bad i got the head gasket confused with the gasket in the cylinder head

 
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What's written in the manual that came with your car? That's the guideline you should follow. The guideline laid out at the service department of the dealership is to make money for the dealership.

 
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I agree that you should have the oil changed at least every 3,000 miles. I know the manuels say 5,000, but I don't know why. Our manuel said that too, but our car does not run as smooth when it's gone over 3,000 without an oil change.

 
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I used to always go with the 3000 mile rule. On the 06 Civic it has an oil viscosity sensor that gives you a percentage of oil life. Im at 2200 miles now and my oil life is at 80%! Im going to do an oil change at 3000 and switch to synthetic. But after the initial change Im going to run it up to 5K between changes (I put on 2k miles + a month).

I also think 40k is a little premature for a tune up on an 04. Those plugs should be good to at least 80k. I ran plugs on a Ford Ranger to 120k and they came out with clean tips and correct gaps. I had no improvement in performance or fuel economy after the tune up either. Cars are just made so much better these days.

 
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Is it true that the 06 Civics come with a "break in" oil that should be driven for around 5000 miles to help with the seals and filtering out little pieces of the endgine that can worn off as it breaks in? I had a friend who got one that took it to the dealer for their oil change at about 3000mi and they sent him home.

 
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Never heard of it. You can never change oil too much. Suprised a dealer would turn anyone away, wheter they need service or not. They must have been really busy. I know alot of car people who do the first change at 1000 miles to get all the metal shavings out of the engine oil and filter. I will probaly do mine this weekend and Im almost at 3k.

 
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I thought you had to change it MORE often when its new. 3k miles would be considered good.

if I was him I would be finding out why they turned him away.