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ok, i have a little bit over 3000 miles on my civic, i took it to the dealer that i bought it from to get the oil changed. the service rep got into my car, started it, and saw that it was just 3000 miles, so he told me that honda puts in some additives in the oil from the factory to help break in the car better, so its recommended that i change the oil at 5000 miles or so. it sounded logical, so i left without changing the oil. the next day i was driving around when i came across another honda dealership, i decided to go in and see what they say about the oil change thing. the service rep told me that its all a bunch of crap and that i should get it changed if i want to change it, there are no additives in the oil. i told him i dont have the time to get the oil changed, and i left.
i misplaced my manual, so i couldn't check it to confirm, but the first dealer, the one i bought my car from seems trustworthy, what do you guys say?

 
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honda does service new cars at 5,000 miles with the special oil....search

 
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a search yielded this:
Road and track Q&A about oil change

 
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1st oil change @ 5K mi, use regular oil, then change it again @ 8-9K mi...at this point you can switch to a full synthetic if you'd like.

 
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That big of an interval between oil changes? Did not know this...

 
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I changed the oil for the first time in my car at 2,500. I'd much rather have changed it at 1000, but I got all kinds of flack from the stealer.
I run 5w30 full synthetic. I change mine every two to three thousand miles regardless.

jaz

 
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My dealer said the first oil change is at 7500. I told him thats BS. And he went on about how they put heavier weight oil into new cars for the break in period. I dont know if this is correct, but thats just what my dealer told me. I changed mine at 6k something and now I'm about to get it changed again with 10k on my car. The manual says every 3k, but if you dont do a lot of crazy driving (like racing or going towards redline) I would go 5k. Just a thought.

 
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I read an article awhile back that the "special" oil Honda uses is no different than any dino oil you buy at the store. I changed mine at 1000, 3000, and put syn in at 5000.

 
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Dudes...you can safely drive up to 5K mi on regular oil...trust me, i've done it, on a SC engine, no less. If you go full synth, then you can drive up to 10K miles on it before the next change.

 
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My dealer told me not to change the oil until 3750 miles (something about a break in period), then he said it was up to me as far as what schedule to follow.

 
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I noticed that in the 'Scheduled Checkup' guide, that I have to go in for a "Type-A" servicing at 8000Km's. I'm now at 8000Km's, but I don't want to have to take it to them...I changed the oil at 5000Km's.

What should I do? Should I NOT take it in? Will they try to screw me with warranties if I haven't taken it to them for the checkup?

I need an alignment anyways, so I thought about bringing it in to them...but then remembered how retardedly expensive a dealer is.

Any suggestions? Do I need to bring it in???

 
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do it yourself, or take it to someone you trust. personally, i do not trust the dealer

 
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fewf.

thanks dragoon!

i hate the dealer as well. they charge about 30% more than everyone else, and they don't even do a better job!

sheesh.

 
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Are we to imply by your statement that dino juice will get dirtier and break down twice as fast as synthetic? I don't think so. The good thing about synthetic oil is the resistance to heat. It will not burn like dino juice, not in the heat generated by our Hondas, anyway. In a turboprop or turbojet, yes! That is the reason why you don't use synthetic oil in a rotary engine. You see, rotary engines "inject" oil into the combustion chamber to lube the apex seals. If you use synthetic then it doesn't burn and just accumulates. That's a bad thing. That's why we use it in our military jets as well. The old P&W we had in the planes I used to work on were hogs. They were madd oil consumers. Now that they replaced them with the GEs that use synthetic you don't have to fill the oil reservoir every 3 or 4 flights.

As far as the interval goes, it's up to you. But, anyone who knows about engines will tell you that it's better to change your oil more frequently. The reason is oil becomes dirty with foreign particles and looses it's lubing and cooling properties due to thermal breakdown. Next time you change your oil compare the new and the old. Nasty, isn't it? Do you really want that in your engine? I don't! And, if I may recommend, use 5W30 and not the 5W20 Honda tells us to use. Your engine will thank you for it after 150k.

 
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Modern synthetics are so advanced that they rarely or very very slowly break down. The problem is the detergents in the oil do and the oil gets dirty over time. Amsoil says you can go insane amounts of mileage on their oil without it breaking down...which is true, but they also recommend changing the oil filter at more regular intervals.

 
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Just a simple question. You're suppose to do the first oil change earlier than the rest right? The reason being that bits of metal gets into the oil from the break in period of a new car. Can someone knowledgeable shed some light on this?

 
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Unless you've performed a complete tear-down and rebuild on a D17A (or happen to be a Honda technician), it'll be tough to find someone really knowledgeable on this engine. That said, you'd better stick with the factory recommended break-in procedures or what the dealer recommends for you. This way if anything should happen to the powertrain, all warranties are valid and enforceable.

 
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We're talking about the extended longevity of this engine, like 100K+. You could simply not change the oil at all during the 36K mile warranty and probably have it run fine. Don't expect it to last to 100K though. Frankly, I think a 36K mile warrany on a Honda is pathetic.

 
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Yes, it doesn't matter what kind of engine it is, on a new car the oil should be changed earlier than the other oil changes. As the car is broken in, tiny bits of metal, dust and other particles from the engine come off, making the oil pretty dirty pretty quick.

I change my oil every 2.5k miles. The more the better, people can say 5k, but it only does good to your engine if you change it frequently.
Whenever I change my oil at 2.5k miles, the oil's pretty dirty. And I don't race or do anything damaging like red-lining the car. Even at 2.5k, I notice a difference everytime.

First one earlier, afterwards change at regular intervals. 2.5-3k is best.

 
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I don't know what to say to this...I did perform the first oil change at 5k miles, rather than the recommended 7500...the oil was clean though: Pretty damn close to brand new oil...I know 'cause I perform my own oil changes. Ditto for my second oil change at 9k miles: Oil was clean.

At that point I switched over to full synthetic (Mobil1 super syn, 5W-30) and changed to Royal Purple synth, same weight, at 16k miles.

I am now on full Royal Purple: The tranny now has Max-Gear oil and the radiator has Purple Ice in it.

Shift feel has improved...and I have noticed my engine doesn't have to rev as high at cruising speeds and revs easier and smoother. E.g: I used to cruise at 80mph doing something like 52-5300 rpm; now, it only takes 42-4300rpm to cruise at the same speed...could be just the engine continuing to seal and increase pressure...

Edit: Oh, almost forgot: The best benefit (for me) of running Royal Purple is that the engine is so quiet and smooth at idle, even with the A/C running. Before i would hear a slight clatter at idle and teh idle speed was not smooth and steady.

 
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<<<Just a simple question. You're suppose to do the first oil change earlier than the rest right? The reason being that bits of metal gets into the oil from the break in period of a new car. Can someone knowledgeable shed some light on this?>>>

I wouldn't call myself knowledgable, but, on my suzuki gsf1200, I changed the oil at 1000 miles, and got a load of metal shavings and copper bits in the oil, that otherwise (at high rpm) bypass the filter and could get directly into my cylindars.

On the honda, I waited all the way untill 2500, because stupid honda said I'd void the warrenty, and got out a lot more shavings and other metal parts. Were I to start again with a brand new engine, I'd tell honda to go screw themselves, and change it at 1000.

Yes, that is the whole point of changing it soon.

jaz

 
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I do the oil changes myself too. Actually I didn't change the filter but changed the oil when I reached 1k (cus' I didn't have the friggin oil filter clamp/wrench thingy at the time) and man it was dirty.

Is your car an automatic?? Cus' I hit 4200 RPM going about 100 mph...

 
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Let's get the FACTORY MANUAL out and see what it says.

Under SEVERE CONDITIONS (which most cars are under) it says to change the oil every five thousand miles. In fact, here are the pages straight out of the manual downloaded off Honda's webpage.


PAGE 1


PAGE 2


And just to add to this. I was at my dealership getting the 15,000 mile service done and of course my dealership has their own maintenance schedule to follow. They guy was surprised at what the manufacturer's maintenance schedule consisted of. But if you think about it, Honda knows their cars and personally it will save you a little money if you follow the manufacturer's schedule over the dealerships schedule.

Just my $.02

Later.

 
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yeah but ther is no harm in changing it every 3,000 miles, if you go turbo, I suggest you change it at least every 2,500 milles. I think it is more beneficial to change the oil every 3k rather them the 7,500 honda suggests.

 
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cool, thanks for scanning those first couple pages, i think i will stick with what the manual says, btw, should a new manual cost $50? i'm pretty sure i lost mine, and when i called the dealer, they told me that it would be $50, thats a little excessive isn't it?

 
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Hey slick, download the manual off HONDA's webpage. It's in PDF form.

Later.

 
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thanks a lot, it will be a lot cheaper for me to download the pdf and print it.

 
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O.K. here it us boys and girls, on a stock civic (and by stock I mean no extensive engine work, turbo, SC, or nitrous, I DO NOT however mean intake and headers and exhaust..etc.) you change your oil every 5 thousand miles, just like the pic says, starting at 5, and changing it from then on every 5. This is what Honda recommends, and Honda designed this car, many engineers worked long hard days and nights to come up with this plan, who are you to deviate from it. Honda dealerships on the other hand are full of idiots who really don't know WTF they are tlaking about, especially the ones that work at the oil service part. Go talk to a real tech where they actually "work" on the cars ( a lot of them are import enthusiasts not altezza guys, but the EG hatch guys with b18c motors and Turbos) and they will tell you exactly what schedule to use on your car if you have modified it beyond I/H/E.

 
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hmmm.. manual says at 10,000miles

 
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Well, my manual says 7,500mi normal conditions and 5,000mi. severe conditions. Severe conditions apply to most everyone. I change mine every 3,000mi.