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I know our manuals say to use 5w20 year-round, but with the summer heat and a bunch of long road trips coming up, I'm tempted to go to at least 5w30 for my next oil change.

Any of you change to a higher oil weight for the summer for your 7th gens?

 
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i use 5-30 all year for the last year and everything is fine.

 
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I use 5W20 from Royal Purple. And I recommend it to all my friends.

 
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Theres nothing wrong with using 5w-20 in the summer, in fact 5w-30 wouldn't be any better, remember that the "w" stands for "weather". Unless your pulling trailer or a heavy load, you'll be just fine.

[IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/IMG]

 
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I thought the "w" stood for winter, for cold weather startup?

I found this bit of info:
So I think there is a bit of difference in hot weather between 5w20 and 5w30, since the "20" oil will thin out more than the "30" in hot temperatures.

(But of course, no difference during the winter.)

 
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Ronin you are correct about the "w" , it does mean winter, and some people say "weather". Its really the same thing.

A straight oil, like a SAE 30, is great for summer climates because its "thinner" than a "10w" type oil. In the winter you want a oil that won't be a problem with very low tempuratures, thats why most northern cars run with a 10w or 15w type oil. In a warm climates the oil is quicker to "seperate" and lube the engine, the "thinning" of the oil is really just a mith, you really do want the oil to "thin out" because most oils in engines that are maintained regularly will have all the vitale engine parts protected quicker than a higher "w" type oil in warmer climates.

 
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ok, so yes or no on 5w 30

 
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5/w30 is fine either one will work
I use 5/w20 AMS all year round

 
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I was wondering the same thing. I just got a 2002 Civic ex. I figured the 5w-20 would be to thin. So you all agree it's ok to run that then? How many miles has anyone put on there motor with this oil?

 
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i still use 5w-20

 
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I got all my oil changes done at the dealer, so I guess I'm gonna stick with 5w20. Seems to be fine after 15,000mi.

 
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I used to use a 5W-30 all year round, I used to switch between a heavy weight oil and lighter weight oil from summer to winter...the heat kills the oil, especially when driving in the city.


2Hottie

 
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well. i have about 20K miles on my 2002 Civic EX. Even though they say you only have to change the oil every 5,000 miles, i do it every 3,000. But I have been using 5w-20 since I got the car and it is running with no problems. *^_^

 
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Same here but I am going to switch to Royal Purple 5W-20. Adds gas mileage and more protection

 
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10W 30 would definately be better for you car considering the temp, but to get the new "purple" oil doesn't cost that much more over time. 5 w 20 gets very runny in hot temp, but still works. just the facts i use 10 w 30 right now as its 90+ in ohio and 100% humidity

 
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I've got another question then:

What difference would outside temperature and humidity make to your engine oil when your car reaches normal operating temperatures? I mean, a normal car engine would be running at a steady temperature regardless of the outside temperature, whether it was winter or summer, right? And that normal engine operating temperature would be way higher than the outside ambient temperature.

So in summary: how does outside temperature affect engine oil that's inside an engine which is operating at a much higher constant temperature? I mean, wouldn't a light oil like 5w20 provide the same protection during winter and summer, if the internal engine temperature is always the same regardless of season?

 
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You got to remember guys, if you switch to the 5-30 your going to lose some gas mileage....Maybe 1-2 mpg.....I just run Amsoil 5-20 and cars been taking the summer heat so far....Its a lot quieter at idle and I've noticed a gas mileage increase......[IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/IMG]

 
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5w 20 all year[IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-tongue.gif[/IMG]

 
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I have used 5W-20 only for my 2K1 LX - currently nearing 44,000 miles. The temp needle seems to run in the same zone regardless of season.

 
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Very clever question Ronin, i didn't ever think about that before. i would also like an answer to this question. Anyone?[IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/IMG]

 
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Ronin does bring up a very valid point! Still sticking with 5w-20 myself - now over 46,000 miles and still running strong! Although I have used different brands of 5w-20.

 
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I think the engineers at Honda know what they're doing, so if they say 5w-20 all year around, thats what I'm going to do. I think Hondas track record speaks for itself.

 
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I don't. The reason they want u to use 20 is so they can rate the car as low emissions. But, the downside of that is it hurts your engine if you run it hard, as most of us do. I reccomend 5w30 or even 10w30, what I use, for the added protection. The higher the viscossity the more heat it can transfer so u do the math. Heat is the number one enemy of any engine. If u care about it, don't use 20.

Do not, I repeat, do not use the 5w20 that Honda recommends. Instead use 5w30 or 10w30. I use 5 in the winter and 10 in the summer. Xw20 does not provide enough protection to engine parts because the viscosity never reaches the thickness needed for LONG LASTING protection. You get better mileage because of the reduced viscosity. However, your car will run warmer and you might risk pre-ignition or detonation if you drive under extreeme conditions. The higher the second number is the more protection you get at higher engine temps. The Xw20 is fine if you don't ever rev your car past 3000 RPMs and stuff. That's how it's tested in the factory.

Yes, that's what the manual says, I know, but read how they test their cars. Do you rev above 3000 RPM? Well, during their oil and fuel efficiency tests THEY DON'T! Use your 5w20 and change it every 10k miles if you want to. I'll continue to follow my advice and when it comes time to rebuild the engine, as you surely will if you keep the car over 150K miles, I'll still be driving mine with the original engine.

Those of us who have studied engine internals know the danger posed by FOD in the oil. FOD stands for Foreign Objecd Debris/Damage, depending on who you ask. The particles that are deposited in your oil actually thicken it. If you start with a 20 SAE top weight and you run for, say, 10k miles, you might have a 40-50 top weight oil equivalent by the time you change your oil. This is not good for a car. You should never run your car with to high or too low a viscosity. If you maintain your oil viscosity as constant as possible you are helping your engine last alot longer. Those same particles that get incorporated in your oil reduce the thermal efficiency of your oil, i.e. it won't carry heat away from the metal as efficiently as it should, plus the added particles cause friction, creating more heat that can lead to pre-ignition and detonation. Those are all bad for your engine, if you haven't figured it out yet.

That's why I put 3k miles as a recommended oil change interval. That is what I live by. My 86 Mazda 323 lived to the ripe old age of 193,391 miles before the engine needed to be rebuilt for the first and only time. The only reason that happened is because my father bottomed out the oil pan and the engine oil light never came on. We found out it had no oil when the car overheated and started knocking. Two weeks after we rebuilt the engine the car was stolen and when recovered it was useless.

For those of you who change your own oil and say you drive over 3k do me a favor: Next time you change your oil at your regular interval compare the oil that you are changing with the oil you are putting in. Put them both in a plastic cup or a glass or something you can see through. Notice anyting? Yeah, that old oil is nasty dirty. Do you really want that in your car? I don't!


Now, as for Ronin's question. Your coolant is run through an air to water heat exchanger (radiator) The hotter the outside air temp (OAT) the less it will cool the coolant running through those lines. That's why your engine does run at higher temps in higher OAT situations. Its reversed when talking about cold OATs. If you ever drove in really cold temps, like up in Washington in the winter, you might notice it. My RX-7 would never warm up because it was so cold outside.

EDIT: Spelling

 
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to all of u misinformed guys out there...the W is stand for weight

 
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I think YOU'RE misinformed[IMG]i/expressions/laugh2.gif[/IMG][IMG]i/expressions/laugh2.gif[/IMG][IMG]i/expressions/laugh2.gif[/IMG] The "W" means that the oil maintains its viscosity at 0°F, there for is suitable for Winter use, it has nothing to do with weight.

 
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If you don't believe me Look for yourself my missinformed brotha!

 
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I live in a tropical country where there is only two seasons (winter, summer). In winter the temp never goes further down than 45 F and in summer it stays between 80 and 100 F (98% humidity). So i use 10w40. Do you think its too heavy?

My car is made in japan and the manual gives the following choice of engine oil to use:

For ambient temp range of -20 to 100 F:
0w20, 0W30, 0w40, 5w30, 5w40

For ambient temp range of 0 to 100 F:
10w30, 10w40

For ambient temp range of 10 to 100 F:
15w40

The strange thing out of this is that there is no 5w20 specified in my manual nor on my oil filler cap!!!

 
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Good post silverdevil. It's good to learn somethin new. When I change my oil (which won't be any time soon) I think I'll go with the 30 oil. I run my car hard sometimes, but more frequent at night. Don't want the engine blowing up in my face. The weather is pretty warm here and I do change my oil every 3k miles... had nothing but 5w-20 in the engine and now I'm at 21,200 miles just about. 5w-20 always looked so thin... bleh.

 
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I have worked on camshaft design for Honda motor company for the last 16 years.
the 5w 20 oil specification is so that the variable valve timing will work correctly on the 2.4 L engine that was in a lot of the Honda Accord models. If you change the viscosity of the oil that you use you change the pressure that function to make this system work correctly.

 
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thanks for the input, but... This thread is 19 years old, so if you could try to not revive very old threads...