17 Civic 1.5T, 58K on odo, PP 5W30, 7,382 OCI

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Mar 4, 2003
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225
Location
Wellington, Florida
I meant to change at 6K but my daughter is always on the move, racking up the miles, to the tune of more than 2K per month.... oh to be 23 again... sigh

After all the fuss about dilution, and rising oil levels because of fuel in the oil, this little Civic seems to be unfazed at this point. IIRC, short trips were often mentioned as a factor in the fuel dilution issue, if so, I think a daily 50 mile commute and monthly 400 mile road trip might be the main compensating factors in this pretty good UOA. Other than the low viscousity, I don't think there's anything to even squint at in this UOA.

Does anyone have comments about what might be contributing to the lowered viscousity, and should I be concerned?

I just replaced the oil with PP 5W30 again, but also stocked up on PUP 5W20. I tried to find Pennz Euro but couldn't find it in the grade, or price range, I desired. All the cars at home are recommended to use 0W20, but in my "infinite wisdom," I'm going with the 5W20 since winters in South FL are pretty rare.

Edit: stocked up on PUP 5W20, previously stated PP 5W20.

17 Civic Sep 2022.jpg


17 Civic UOA History Sep 2022.jpg
 
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Since thining is common look at a different brand that is thicker. Is it spec for 20 weight out?
If so your good sticking with your 5w 30 in south florida
 
Wow she puts on a lot of miles. I really like the Civic with a 1.5 engine they are quite fast if you consider the gas mileage they obtain as well. Very good report on the oil since I know fuel dilution is a problem with the 1.5 engine. Since the sample indicates the wear level is above average I would not worry about the low viscosity as well. I think the 1.5 engine has more problems in cold weather and short trips. Honda's are usually really good engines but there is always a few that turn up with problems.
 
Does anyone have comments about what might be contributing to the lowered viscousity, and should I be concerned?
PP5W30 starts off low at 9.9, so that's part of it. The other part I think is BS's fuel% are usually conservative. With a 385 flashpoint, there's a good chance that actual fuel % is higher, which could be enough to account for the viscosity drop from 9.9 to 8.2. I say keep using 5W30, your ending viscosity is smack dab in the middle of the 20 grade range. No need (IMO) to go thicker than you already are running.
I tried to find Pennz Euro but couldn't find it in the grade, or price range, I desired.
My WM always has Euro L on their shelves which is 5W30 with some nice European approvals. It's $26.44 for a 5qt jug. I'm trying it myself on one of our cars.
 
PP5W30 starts off low at 9.9, so that's part of it. The other part I think is BS's fuel% are usually conservative. With a 385 flashpoint, there's a good chance that actual fuel % is higher, which could be enough to account for the viscosity drop from 9.9 to 8.2. I say keep using 5W30, your ending viscosity is smack dab in the middle of the 20 grade range. No need (IMO) to go thicker than you already are running.

My WM always has Euro L on their shelves which is 5W30 with some nice European approvals. It's $26.44 for a 5qt jug. I'm trying it myself on one of our cars.
There's that low Boron again. Hmmm.
 
There's that low Boron again. Hmmm.
I also noticed the UOA from 5/21/22 does not look like the rest of the PP5W30s. The additive package does not look like the other PPs.

edit: it actually looks like Pennzoil Euro L 5W30! Much higher viscosity, less moly, more calcium, higher TBN with similar miles to current UOA.
 
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Does anyone have comments about what might be contributing to the lowered viscousity, and should I be concerned?
It's fuel.

Blackstone doesn't measure fuel, it's inferred (badly) from flashpoint. If you are concerned about fuel (and it looks like you should be) use another lab like OAI or Polaris, that properly measures fuel using GC.
 
I also noticed the UOA from 5/21/22 does not look like the rest of the PP5W30s. The additive package does not look like the other PPs.

edit: it actually looks like Pennzoil Euro L 5W30! Much higher viscosity, less moly, more calcium, higher TBN with similar miles to current UOA.
I saw that too and I can't figure it out. Pretty sure I never picked up anything other than PP5W30. Will try to perform the next change at 6K (which I always say but always miss) and see what the oil looks like then.
 
I saw that too and I can't figure it out. Pretty sure I never picked up anything other than PP5W30. Will try to perform the next change at 6K (which I always say but always miss) and see what the oil looks like then.
Either you accidentally grabbed a jug of the Euro L (it's also Pennzoil and also 5W30, so easy to do), or it's a manufacturing error (poured wrong oil into jug).
 
Well, unfortunately, it wouldn't be the first time. People have been encouraged to have Blackstone re-run their sample when it seemed "off" and on more than one occasion it came back looking totally different and in-line with what was expected the first time around.
 
Well, unfortunately, it wouldn't be the first time. People have been encouraged to have Blackstone re-run their sample when it seemed "off" and on more than one occasion it came back looking totally different and in-line with what was expected the first time around.
With as big a chunk of the business as they have, this is more visible, I'm sure. The other players make mistakes too, we just don't see them because they aren't 75% of all UOAs. Actually, I don't know what percentage they are, but that number seems about what I see posted on here.
 
With as big a chunk of the business as they have, this is more visible, I'm sure. The other players make mistakes too, we just don't see them because they aren't 75% of all UOAs. Actually, I don't know what percentage they are, but that number seems about what I see posted on here.
Which, quite frankly, is unfortunate, because other labs like OAI/Polaris, provide better reports with more valuable information.
 
Taking a quick glance at his spreadsheet, it looks more likely that it was a different oil, not a BS error. Too many variables are in error, which, just by coincidence, largely correlate to the specs of another oil formula.

I think sometimes the simplest explanation is the most likely.
 
Taking a quick glance at his spreadsheet, it looks more likely that it was a different oil, not a BS error. Too many variables are in error, which, just by coincidence, largely correlate to the specs of another oil formula.

I think sometimes the simplest explanation is the most likely.
Around here, any explanation that can throw BS under the bus is the preferred explanation.
 
Thanks, Chinee, for the detailed post. This info gives me confidence that I can run Pennzoil 5w30 for 5,000 with no problem. Thanks, again!
 
Thanks, Chinee, for the detailed post. This info gives me confidence that I can run Pennzoil 5w30 for 5,000 with no problem. Thanks, again!
I agree, this UOA inspires confidence... with 58K on the odometer and almost 8K OCI, this combo seems to work well.
  • Almost no short trips
  • Relatively long daily commutes
  • Hot FL temperatures
  • ... and I don't think she's an aggressive (racing) driver
I'm going to stick with PP 5W30 and a 7.5K OCI.
 
Taking a quick glance at his spreadsheet, it looks more likely that it was a different oil, not a BS error. Too many variables are in error, which, just by coincidence, largely correlate to the specs of another oil formula.

I think sometimes the simplest explanation is the most likely.
Around here, any explanation that can throw BS under the bus is the preferred explanation.
We've had samples mixed up before, which does of course mean it's probably a different oil, but it could be Blackstone's error, not his.
 
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