1st post, 1st DIY OC to synthetic, advice?

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RDC

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Feb 2, 2013
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SoCal
Upon approach of a 60K service, I decided to take the plunge and start doing the work myself. Please forgive me for asking what may be redundant questions, as I am a DIY noob and a bit overwhelmed by the amount of information on this site!

My car is a 2008 Honda Accord V6 EX-L with 56k miles, used roughly 75% suburban surface streets / 25% freeway driving in inland SoCal - mild winters, HOT summers. Service history followed the Honda Maintenance Minder, with oil changes being done at 10% oil life, performed at local dealership with Castrol dino. Based on what I've read, I probably should have had them done more frequently, but what's done is done.

I did my first DIY oil change last week, using Pennzoil Platinum 5W20 and a Honda OEM filter, which has the car running smoother and quieter. Good choices, or are there better, particulalry with the filter?

One thing I did notice when draining the old oil was a few small chunks of sludge plopping into the drain pan - not a lot, as most of the oil, albeit dirty, came out in a smooth, steady flow. One reason I went with a synthetic was for the cleaning properties. Can I expect more sludge to be worked out with PP, and if so, what should my future OCI's be?

Finally, I've read a few posts that suggest I can expect some burning of oil when making the change from dino to synthetic. How much would be considered abnormal? Two weeks in, the dipstick reads the same, but I have detected a burny smell after some drives. No visible leaks.

My apologies for a long winded first post, but I'm in learning mode, so any advice from those with experience is definitely appreciated!
 
Welcome to BITOG!

Stick with the PP it will serve you well. Dont forget to change your pcv valve every now and then
 
PP is a good oil, use it with confidence. Change it when your Oil Life Monitor hits 5%. I estimate that will be right around 7200 miles. As for other maintenance, I do a drain and fill with all my fluids every 30k or 3 years.

Transmission fluid $45 Coolant $22 P/S fluid $8 S fluid ($10 fluid pump at walmart. Just suck out fluid of the reseviour, the fill with new stuff. Go drive around, then repeat till all 4 bottles are empty. I usually do this over the course of 3-4 days).
Brake fluid $10
If that were my car, i would do two drain and fills on the transmission if its an automatic.

Originally Posted By: electrolover
Welcome to BITOG!

Stick with the PP it will serve you well. Dont forget to change your pcv valve every now and then


If his PCV is like my V6, its like $20+ i usually just take it out and brake clean it every 30k or 3 years.
 
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I think you're on the right track...and any synthetic is a good choice. I'd be a little concerned if chunks of sludge ever came out of my oil pan, though. That would make me definitely do a shorter oil change interval [1/2 the mileage of before or less] until the used oil no longer came out with chunks of sludge.
 
Originally Posted By: randomhero439
PP is a good oil, use it with confidence. Change it when your Oil Life Monitor hits 5%. I estimate that will be right around 7200 miles. As for other maintenance, I do a drain and fill with all my fluids every 30k or 3 years.

Transmission fluid $45 Coolant $22 P/S fluid $8 S fluid ($10 fluid pump at walmart. Just suck out fluid of the reseviour, the fill with new stuff. Go drive around, then repeat till all 4 bottles are empty. I usually do this over the course of 3-4 days).
Brake fluid $10
If that were my car, i would do two drain and fills on the transmission if its an automatic.

Originally Posted By: electrolover
Welcome to BITOG!

Stick with the PP it will serve you well. Dont forget to change your pcv valve every now and then


If his PCV is like my V6, its like $20+ i usually just take it out and brake clean it every 30k or 3 years.


The pcv is built in to the valvecover on my truck. I clean it with kroil. Seems to work well.
 
I'm surprised that a dealer is using a dino and not at least an HC synthetic. Were you using Castrol GTX 5/20 or something similar?? Also which exact engine is this, because most of the Honda Accords outside the US that are dealer maintained are using Castrol Edge 0/30 or 5/40? They do spec Magnetec 10/40 or GTX 5/30 in the alternative sections, but I am very surprised a dealer would not use either Castrol Edge, a similar Mobil 1 or Shell Helix oil.
If you just changed to a synthetic cut the next OCI to half of the recommended normal max figure and using a real Honda filter is a good idea, not so sure about the 5/20 but if your oil consumption is still low and you don't get to use a big right boot on hot days it won't make much of a difference as long as you use a major brand top quality full synthetic 0 or 5/20 and don't try and extend the OCI to the EU figure.
 
Originally Posted By: skyship
If you just changed to a synthetic cut the next OCI to half of the recommended normal max figure


Good advice

When i switched a couple cars to synthetic, i build up to it in increments
2500 miles OCI
5000 miles OCI
7500 miles OCI
Till i reached the max interval.
 
Originally Posted By: Brule
I think you're on the right track...and any synthetic is a good choice. I'd be a little concerned if chunks of sludge ever came out of my oil pan, though. That would make me definitely do a shorter oil change interval [1/2 the mileage of before or less] until the used oil no longer came out with chunks of sludge.


Good call.
 
Originally Posted By: randomhero439
Originally Posted By: skyship
If you just changed to a synthetic cut the next OCI to half of the recommended normal max figure


Good advice

When i switched a couple cars to synthetic, i build up to it in increments
2500 miles OCI
5000 miles OCI
7500 miles OCI
Till i reached the max interval.


I'd do this, but your overall mileage is still fairly low. Run Pennzoil Ultra one OCI and then switch back to PP and change whenever it says to.
 
Thank you all for your quick and informative feedback!
Originally Posted By: electrolover
Welcome to BITOG!

Stick with the PP it will serve you well. Dont forget to change your pcv valve every now and then


I bought the PP based on the shelf talker touting its cleansing capabilities - marketing at its finest! I'm glad to see the hype is legit. Honda recommends changing the PCV valve at 60K, so I guess I'm due.

Originally Posted By: randomhero439
PP is a good oil, use it with confidence. Change it when your Oil Life Monitor hits 5%. I estimate that will be right around 7200 miles. As for other maintenance, I do a drain and fill with all my fluids every 30k or 3 years.

Transmission fluid $45 Coolant $22 P/S fluid $8 S fluid ($10 fluid pump at walmart. Just suck out fluid of the reseviour, the fill with new stuff. Go drive around, then repeat till all 4 bottles are empty. I usually do this over the course of 3-4 days).
Brake fluid $10
If that were my car, i would do two drain and fills on the transmission if its an automatic.

If his PCV is like my V6, its like $20+ i usually just take it out and brake clean it every 30k or 3 years.


How do you know when the PCV needs to be replaced, compared to cleaning? I'm leaning towards replacing, considering the mostly city miles the car has.

I did a drain and fill of the ATF, shifting is much smoother. I am thinking of doing another - the first one I had done was at 48K, this one at 56K. I might do two more - some people on the Honda sites suggest a drain/fill x 3 to clear almost all of the old stuff out.

I also swapped out the power steering fluid, which looked like coffee, with great results. No more groaning and much more responsive. I'm doing brake fluid in the upcoming week when I replace pads and rotors on the front.

Originally Posted By: Brule
I think you're on the right track...and any synthetic is a good choice. I'd be a little concerned if chunks of sludge ever came out of my oil pan, though. That would make me definitely do a shorter oil change interval [1/2 the mileage of before or less] until the used oil no longer came out with chunks of sludge.


I wasn't as concerned with the sludge when I did the oil change as I am after doing some research! There was only two or three small blobs, but seeing it with my own eyes drives the point home that I need to increase the frequency of my oil changes.

Originally Posted By: skyship
I'm surprised that a dealer is using a dino and not at least an HC synthetic. Were you using Castrol GTX 5/20 or something similar?? Also which exact engine is this, because most of the Honda Accords outside the US that are dealer maintained are using Castrol Edge 0/30 or 5/40? They do spec Magnetec 10/40 or GTX 5/30 in the alternative sections, but I am very surprised a dealer would not use either Castrol Edge, a similar Mobil 1 or Shell Helix oil.
If you just changed to a synthetic cut the next OCI to half of the recommended normal max figure and using a real Honda filter is a good idea, not so sure about the 5/20 but if your oil consumption is still low and you don't get to use a big right boot on hot days it won't make much of a difference as long as you use a major brand top quality full synthetic 0 or 5/20 and don't try and extend the OCI to the EU figure.


In USA, 5W20 is the recommended viscosity. Looking at service records, dealership used regular Castrol for the last OC, "bulk" oil before that. Synthetic would be roughly a $30 upcharge. From what I understand, profit margins at dealerships trump what's best for the consumer. The same dealership suggested I needed new sensors in my key to control the locks for $180, when all I needed was new batteries. After finding a sheared bolt on the air cleaner assembly, I know going DIY was the right move.

Originally Posted By: randomhero439

Good advice

When i switched a couple cars to synthetic, i build up to it in increments
2500 miles OCI
5000 miles OCI
7500 miles OCI
Till i reached the max interval.

Did you have any crud in those cars? If so, did the cleansing properties in synthetics help eliminate it?
Originally Posted By: Cujobob


I'd do this, but your overall mileage is still fairly low. Run Pennzoil Ultra one OCI and then switch back to PP and change whenever it says to.

When would be best to use the PU? Next oil change? Is there a significant difference between PP and PU?

Thanks again for the help, everyone!
 
Originally Posted By: shell_user
PU I have been told by members here has a little stronger cleaning additive package.


And better basestock.
If what your after is cleaning I suggest using regular pennzoil and use some mmo in the crankcase as per their directions. Do a short interval(2000 miles) and inspect the oil. If its really obvious that the oil is dirty do the mmo thing again. Once you think the inside cleaned then move up to ultra.
Just my opinion but if you have actual chunks I don't think just oil is going to clean up your issue.
 
Originally Posted By: Clevy
Originally Posted By: shell_user
PU I have been told by members here has a little stronger cleaning additive package.


And better basestock.
If what your after is cleaning I suggest using regular pennzoil and use some mmo in the crankcase as per their directions. Do a short interval(2000 miles) and inspect the oil. If its really obvious that the oil is dirty do the mmo thing again. Once you think the inside cleaned then move up to ultra.
Just my opinion but if you have actual chunks I don't think just oil is going to clean up your issue.


Ouch! Maybe chunks was the wrong word, "globs" might describe it better. Not hard or solid, more of a mucousy consistency. Is this a symptom of a major problem?
 
Not necessarily bad, just needs a bit of cleanup. As mentioned, Pennzoil Ultra is a little better for cleaning. It's pretty much the top oil you can find affordable between its cleaning capability and how long one can use it for. Platinum is a great oil but will probably take a bit longer to clean things out.
 
Would this be the best course of action?

1. Change out current PP after 2,500 miles
2. Refill with PU, change after 5,000 miles
3. Refill with PP, change after 7,500 miles
4. Refill with PP, change per Maintenance Minder @ 5%

Sorry for the hand-holding requests, but I just want the family car to run its best, and you all know a heck of a lot more about it than I do.
 
Theres two ways to go about it.

1) run PYB 5/30 with 20% MMO at 3k intervals for a couple ocis

2) run a couple 3k ocis with PP or PU (PU is actually even better) and then slowly increase the length of your intervals to the factory recommendation.
Example: two 3k ocis, then 5k and so on.

If you go the synthetic route you also have the option of adding a pint of mmo for the last 500 miles to speed things along.

Its also a good idea to cut open your used oil filters and see whats inside. This will give you an idea of whats going on inside your engine.

Me personally, id just run PP with 3k ocis for a while and then switch to PU and 5k ocis until you feel comfortable going by the OLM.
 
I still have the old filter in the garage, I haven't been to the recycler yet. What, in particular, should I be looking for, and what's the best tool to open it up?

Also, would installing a new PCV valve help?
 
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Originally Posted By: RDC
I still have the old filter in the garage, I haven't been to the recycler yet. What, in particular, should I be looking for, and what's the best tool to open it up?

Also, would installing a new PCV valve help?


If there is something wrong with the PVC valve then yes change it.
K. So we are talking about globs here. You have lots of options. I think eletrolover may have the best course of action.
I all for oil additive as a way to solve a problem when trying to save a buck. We don't know if you have a problem yet.
Can you see inside the oil fill hole or is there a baffle blocking your view? If you can see inside,and there is actual sludge then I suggest adding a flush type additive.
If you aren't comfortable with the leave in and drive type(some people aren't and that's fine) then I suggest and idle type flush from a major name company.
If you are fine with a leave in type many on this board like a product called Kreen. You have to order it online. MMO also has a large following here. Auto RX has gotten alot of press as well.
Personally if you think there is a problem I would use mmo 1000 miles before you plan on changing the oil.
I would also use PYB and short intervals at first. Just so you can closely monitor what's going on. Once you are sure it's under control step up to ultra. I'd run 5000 miles first,take a good look at the old oil,maybe get a uoa done then make any adjustments in the interval from there.
Just my personal thoughts.
 
Originally Posted By: RDC
I still have the old filter in the garage, I haven't been to the recycler yet. What, in particular, should I be looking for, and what's the best tool to open it up?

Also, would installing a new PCV valve help?


Yeah just cut the top (the part with the threads) off with a hacksaw. Then pull out the element and check for sludge or black crusty stuff. Check the oil filter section for pics of how people do it.

A working pcv system is extremely important. Its never a bad idea to replace the pcv or clean it every now and then. If they get clogged it will cause sludge.
 
I looked inside the oil fill hole and it's clean as a whistle, so I'm assuming that the engine as a whole doesn't have a major sludge problem. I ordered a new PCV valve today, since recommended replacement is 60k and I'm nearly there. Would it be wise to change the O-rings with the PCV?

I think I'm going to go with 3k OCI with PP a few times, as I'm uneasy about using additives just yet. I am definitely going to check out different filters, as I've read that Honda's latest OEM filter, which I'm currently using, is a low quality Fram in a blue can. Any suggestions are welcome.

Thanks again for all the help!
 
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