[AccordinToHonda]

I've read a lot about why Honda switched from using 5w30 in most of their cars their cars to 5w20. It seems as though it was mainly to increase their CAFE ratings that they report to the government.
What I was wondering though, is if they made any changes to their engines such as clearances or something that would make the engines run better on the 5w20 oil. I know that my 98 accord 4cyl used 5w30, while the 2002 with the same engine was recommended to run 5w20. Did honda make any changes to the engines to optimize the use of this oil? If not, wouldn't the 5w30 provide better wear protection? Let me know what you guys think about this.

 

[MortsAccord]

I would bet they switched to that weight soley for the purpose of increasing MPG test and/or and stricter emission laws.

I doubt they tried to make better tolerances which required a 5w20.

 

[Darkness]

exactly. what he said^^^^^^^

 

[AccordinToHonda]

So would 5w30 be the better choice for oil? It seems like the marginal MPG gain wouldn't be worth less engine protection.

 

[tienlude]

dude, 5-30 10 -30....all hondas.


the weights differ for different cars..
hondas fall under 530 1030

just because all those weights are available, doesnt mean those are your choices to choose from, lol..

 

[Anomoly]

lighter oil will produce higher MPG and HP with the fuel crisis, and tough economy why do you really think it was changed? because they spent extra $$ on production??, or because they can brag to you about their new higher MPG and more powerful car?

 

[Darkness]

lighter oil will produce higher MPG and HP with the fuel crisis, and tough economy why do you really think it was changed? because they spent extra $$ on production??, or because they can brag to you about their new higher MPG and more powerful car?

we should all just convert to diesel and run our cars on fryer greese while getting 65 mpg. you'd have 4 cyl motors lasting 350K easily. diesel v8's already last that long.

p.s. did they every bring that 2.2 liter turbo diesel motor over from japan that a was going into the crv, accord, and civic. they got 96 mpg on the test car.

 

[AccordinToHonda]

Diesel does have it's advantages. I think they have plans to put that diesel engine in the 2010 TSX. I wouldn't mind having the BMW 335d. 265hp, 425lb-ft. That would have to be fun to drive around while getting 36mpg highway.

 

[Darkness]

Diesel does have it's advantages. I think they have plans to put that diesel engine in the 2010 TSX. I wouldn't mind having the BMW 335d. 265hp, 425lb-ft. That would have to be fun to drive around while getting 36mpg highway.

pure sex.

 

[wipeout97]

Gotta throw in my two cents.....

These guys are right, it has more to do with mpg and environmental standards then a better oil. The 5-20 is just a little too thin in my opinion and I have noticed more scarring on internals than with 5w-30. I would like to give everyone a tip though, if you are going to stick with the oe preferred 5-20 I highly recommend an oil filter magnet. You can find these at some Oreillys auto parts, I believe they are carried by all but most store clerks are a bit slow. Typically if you ask for an oil filter magnet like they use on nascar vehicles the clerks will know what you are talking about. I have seen first hand results of the ability to get he metal out of the engine better than a filter alone can do. We also noticed the scarring seemed to reduce a little. On another note, these products may claim mpg savings or the ability to extend oil change intervals....I would not count on that or recommend it so much but would recommend them to anyone looking for an added advantage.

Peace

 

[AccordinToHonda]

So i have an 03 Accord v6, would i be cool just to switch from the 5w20 to 5w30. I did think it was a little odd that they would recommend such a thin oil but didn't really second think it when it came to changing my oil. I've been using synthetic 5w20 which i hear is supposed to have higher film strength than even conventional 5w30. I still kind of want to switch to something else though.

 

[Darkness]

i just run 10w-30 no matter what hehe

 

[wipeout97]

The syn 5-20 would not bother me as much as the dyno 5-20. Just make sure you are using a good filter (non-fram) and you should be ok imo. I would still highly recommend you read my above post for extra particle removal. If you can stop the scarring you will not lose compression over time or see that infamous glass-like look on your crank bearings.

 

[MortsAccord]

I would use a 10w30 synthetic oil If you were in a climate where the temp never fell below 32 degreese F I would use 10W40. Somewhere in the owners manual it will (or should) tell you wnat kind of weights are appropriate based on the temperatures your car will be operating in.

The biggest misconception about "synthetic" oil these days is that most of these so called synths are in no way synthetic at all. The only REAL synth Mobil 1 makes is their extended performance line, there may be other products but I'm talking about 0w20 to 10w40.

I would recommend Amsoil as the best synthetic oil you can buy for nearly any use, sometimes redline is better for some uses such as extreme racing conditions. Amsoil makes (IMO) the best synthetic oils available.

If you want to go with a "cheaper" alternative to the real synthetics, penzoil platinum or Valvoline Synpower would be my next choice down, they have good test results but I can't say which would protect against wear the most, as neither of them have produced 4ball results for their spec sheets.


Choosing an oil is 1/2 the battle , you also need good filtration to keep wear away. PureOne filters from purolator, Mobil1 filters and Amsoil filters are the best that I have seen. I would go with PureOne because of their price

As for the use of magnets, you can buy neo magnets from a online store that are coated with rubber for FAR less than those so called "oil filter magnets" Neobydeum magnets are inexpensive if you know where to get them from.

 

[AccordinToHonda]

For the newer cars in which they recommend 5w20, they don't give any alternatives in the owners manual for different temperatures. Basically what I'm wondering is this. Assuming no engine changes were made when honda initially switched to recommending 5w20, is it possible that with later model engines, they actually adjusted specifications so that the engines would be optimized for a thinner oil?

Also, so when Mobil 1 says fully synthetic on the bottle as well as on the data sheet on their website, it still isn't fully syn?

 

[wipeout97]

On the newer cars they also recommend 10k oil changes using dyno oil.....if you have seen the impact of this you would automatically know not to. I have not noticed anything that would warrant the drop in oil weight other than mpg. As always you the owner can make the best decision for the car . You can always try the 5w-30 and see what impact it has on mpg maybe 1 or 2 mpg lower? Not a huge loss for the peace of mind.

 

[AccordinToHonda]

I agree, the tradeoff for engine longevity at a cost of a few mpg seems like a no brainer. Plus i can get the 5w30 in 4qt jugs which will save me a few $.

Also for cold starting, 5w30 and 5w20 should start the same right? Since the're both 5w. It's been getting pretty cold at night in the midwest this winter. We've had over a dozen days below 0 and several in the -teens.

Also regarding warranty. I still have the powertrain warranty for another 1 1/2 years. Using 5w30 souldn't affect their coverage right?

 

[wipeout97]

Nope, that change in oil grade will not void warranty as 5w-20 is only "recommended". If engine failure ever occurred save yourself argument time by just not mentioning it. Shop mechanics get fickle over various things so just save yourself a headache.

If cold starts are on your mind I would recommend looking more to your oil filter than just oil. Make sure your oil filter has an "anti-drain valve" or "catch valve" which prevents all the oil from flowing back through to your oil pan. It will keep your upper engine more lubricated on cold or dry starts. I do have to warn you that these valves can give you a bogus low oil indicator at times if the spring on the valve is too stiff. There was a case where this happened a few years ago and the guy had a hard time believing me but sure enough it turned out to be the filter causing the warning indicator. When I am at the store next time I may open a few just to have the info to post on here. It is easy to see it if you look inside the filter .

 

[AccordinToHonda]

I have just been using the honda oil filters. I heard from a few people that those are pretty good. Kind of expensive though.

 

[wipeout97]

anyone have current knowledge of who makes oe filters for honda? I know fram did but I thought they lost the contract 2-3 years ago?