03 Honda Civic EX | Pennzoil Euro L 5W30 | 3438 mi

[himemsys]

The iron levels are finally starting to drop. Had a head gasket job done over 16,000 miles ago.

Oil Analyzers forgot to put that I added 1qt of make-up oil in this interval. The car has a weepy crankshaft seal. Doesn't leak enough to leave a stain on the ground, but it does spread around the crossmembers, which I wipe down whenever I'm under the car. Uses about a qt every 2000 miles or so. I will try M1 EP HM 5W30 next to see if the oil loss will go down at all.

 

[VTECOverRated]

Is it the crank seal on the right side? Those are a paint to get to. If its the one on the left, you should be able to remove your wheel and reach it. (or vice versa sides, I am going off memory for an 03).

Didn't know Pennzoil doesn't have moly in its oil (or trace amounts its seems like).

 

[himemsys]

Is it the crank seal on the right side? Those are a paint to get to. If its the one on the left, you should be able to remove your wheel and reach it. (or vice versa sides, I am going off memory for an 03).

Didn't know Pennzoil doesn't have moly in its oil (or trace amounts its seems like).

It's the seal on the driver side. I'm just leaving it alone until it starts to get worse. It seems very manageable at the moment.

The Euro L Pennzoil is an ACEA C3 oil that is formulated differently than most of their other oils. Here's a link to the VOA:

PP Euro L 5W30 VOA

Taken from a freshly shaken, then opened 5qt jug. Jug is dated October 2021, so it was on the shelf a year before I bought it. Viscosity is spec'd at 12.5 so this actually came in a little thin at 11.92. Nice approvals: General Motors dexos2™ (license GB2E1104014) MB-Approval 229.31/229.51 BMW...

bobistheoilguy.com

 

[fantastic]

4.65 PPM/1k Iron is not exactly great. Especially when replacing 1/4 quart of the sump capacity. But these cars are good little buckets to get us around in & adding 1 qt every 2k is still manageable. Have you thought about a xxw-40 oil? Thanks for testing your Honda.

 

[wpod]

Go for the gusto and use a syn blend high mileage oil.

 

[himemsys]

4.65 PPM/1k Iron is not exactly great. Especially when replacing 1/4 quart of the sump capacity. But these cars are good little buckets to get us around in & adding 1 qt every 2k is still manageable. Have you thought about a xxw-40 oil? Thanks for testing your Honda.

Yeah, I'm not thrilled with that number, but it is slowly coming down over 16k miles.
First UOA after headgasket change was 56ppm per 1k
2nd was 23ppm per 1k
then it dropped to 6ppm and 5.5ppm on the next two samples.
Now at 4.65.

 

[fantastic]

Yeah, I'm not thrilled with that number, but it is slowly coming down over 16k miles.
First UOA after headgasket change was 56ppm per 1k
2nd was 23ppm per 1k
then it dropped to 6ppm and 5.5ppm on the next two samples.
Now at 4.65.

Thanks for the details. That sounds like a great trend & maybe it's not so bad after all.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

Is this an DOHC engine or TGDI?

 

[himemsys]

Is this an DOHC engine or TGDI?

It's a 2003. So SOHC VTEC.

 

[Artem]

Ah yes, the good ol’ single cam VTEC. I had one for a little while. Revs happily for days without complaining.

So if 2% fuel in the sample is considered “normal” (1 on the scale) then at what point does it cross over into #2 on the scale and gets labeled as “abnormal”???