Hey all! Been lurking around here for a few days. Awesome, knowledgeable community. Kudos for the great discussions!
As a mid 20's dude who entered the workforce a little over a year ago, I try to make the most of my things. And I'm paranoid about my car's engine:
- Car's a 2001 Honda Accord EX v6.
- Owner's manual says the car takes API certified oil. Prefers 5w20, but that 5w30 will do in a pinch:
Quote:
If 5W-20 oil is not available, a 5W-30 oil may be used. However, it should be replaced with 5W-20 at the next oil change.
- OCI for "normal conditions" is listed @ 7500 miles, "severe conditions" @ 3750
- I live in San Diego. Weather's pretty consistently between 60 and 80 degrees. Recently moved to more hilly area, but it's not too bad.
- I tend to drive pretty slow and easy in the past year and a half or so. Used to drive a good amount faster, but never all that hard.
- I don't drive every day, and the trips I take are often pretty short with the exception of a ~bimonthly trip to LA, which is about 300 miles. Average mileage/year historically works out to 12,760 miles.
- I prefer longer OCI, and have gone primarily synthetic since I've owned the car.
- Last time I got an oil change, I was told there were some oil leaks from the pistons(need to confirm location). Other known issues are described below.
I got the car back in 2014 @ 131k miles. Records show that it was taking 5w30 for most of its life (with 5w20 near the beginning, when the previous owner changed at the dealer). I bought it in LA and put in Penzoil dino 5w30 before I drove it down to SD. Took it to a Pepboys, as my car experience was limited to shadowing my uncle at his home garage.
At ~135 (still 2014), I took it to a local shop to get checked out for a weird brake noise. Turns out it was just oxidized rotors. I got along well with the guy, though, and decided to have my oil changed. Dude was a fast talker, and was well known by local Uber/Lyft drivers and had good online ratings.
He convinced me that 20w50 Royal Purple Synthetic was best for my older, worn engine. Said something along the lines of "The stuff your manual says is basically water, I've seen oil under a microscope". My quick google search for "thick oil old car" turned up enough results that I made the snap decision to trust him.
This continued for about 3 years/44,000 miles. I'd buy the 20w50 Royal Purple online, take it in, and he'd swap it out, charging for the filter and labor. In total, changes were coming out to $60+ a change (oil + labor) with 7,500 - 8,00 OCI. I was moving every school year at this point, and never brought down my tools or questioned the dude
.
I moved again after I graduated, further south this time. Jan 2018, I took it to a different local shop, where I left the mechanic open-mouthed when I told him the viscosity. He consulted a senior dude, who told him to put in something similarly thick since something thinner might leak (citing evidence of a leak on the motor, as described in the list above). Ended up putting in Dino of same or slightly lower viscosity (I can get details later), which I took because I was in a rush to swap the oil for a longish drive (~400 miles).
Fast forward to last weekend @ 183,100 (~4,400 OCI on the dino mentioned above). After freaking myself out and reading some other sites online, I put in Mobil 1 Extended Performance High Mileage 10w30 synthetic with a Bosch filter I'd bought when I first got the car. Reading up here, I'm starting to think it might not have been the best/cheapest choice. I've haven't even put 60 miles on it since the change (so this could all be in my head), but the car seems to warm up faster, stay at a lower temp, accelerate quicker, and maintain a lower RPM at any speed. I haven't been able to find evidence of a leak on the floor under the spots I park.
I'm kicking myself for not reading up on things sooner, and taking the guy at face value
. After the change yesterday, I'm pretty confident I can handle changes myself down the line (I've actually got some tools now).
Does my car need saving? If so can/should I save it? What would you guys recommend?
Thanks for reading! And help!
David
As a mid 20's dude who entered the workforce a little over a year ago, I try to make the most of my things. And I'm paranoid about my car's engine:
- Car's a 2001 Honda Accord EX v6.
- Owner's manual says the car takes API certified oil. Prefers 5w20, but that 5w30 will do in a pinch:
Quote:
If 5W-20 oil is not available, a 5W-30 oil may be used. However, it should be replaced with 5W-20 at the next oil change.
- OCI for "normal conditions" is listed @ 7500 miles, "severe conditions" @ 3750
- I live in San Diego. Weather's pretty consistently between 60 and 80 degrees. Recently moved to more hilly area, but it's not too bad.
- I tend to drive pretty slow and easy in the past year and a half or so. Used to drive a good amount faster, but never all that hard.
- I don't drive every day, and the trips I take are often pretty short with the exception of a ~bimonthly trip to LA, which is about 300 miles. Average mileage/year historically works out to 12,760 miles.
- I prefer longer OCI, and have gone primarily synthetic since I've owned the car.
- Last time I got an oil change, I was told there were some oil leaks from the pistons(need to confirm location). Other known issues are described below.
I got the car back in 2014 @ 131k miles. Records show that it was taking 5w30 for most of its life (with 5w20 near the beginning, when the previous owner changed at the dealer). I bought it in LA and put in Penzoil dino 5w30 before I drove it down to SD. Took it to a Pepboys, as my car experience was limited to shadowing my uncle at his home garage.
At ~135 (still 2014), I took it to a local shop to get checked out for a weird brake noise. Turns out it was just oxidized rotors. I got along well with the guy, though, and decided to have my oil changed. Dude was a fast talker, and was well known by local Uber/Lyft drivers and had good online ratings.
He convinced me that 20w50 Royal Purple Synthetic was best for my older, worn engine. Said something along the lines of "The stuff your manual says is basically water, I've seen oil under a microscope". My quick google search for "thick oil old car" turned up enough results that I made the snap decision to trust him.
This continued for about 3 years/44,000 miles. I'd buy the 20w50 Royal Purple online, take it in, and he'd swap it out, charging for the filter and labor. In total, changes were coming out to $60+ a change (oil + labor) with 7,500 - 8,00 OCI. I was moving every school year at this point, and never brought down my tools or questioned the dude
I moved again after I graduated, further south this time. Jan 2018, I took it to a different local shop, where I left the mechanic open-mouthed when I told him the viscosity. He consulted a senior dude, who told him to put in something similarly thick since something thinner might leak (citing evidence of a leak on the motor, as described in the list above). Ended up putting in Dino of same or slightly lower viscosity (I can get details later), which I took because I was in a rush to swap the oil for a longish drive (~400 miles).
Fast forward to last weekend @ 183,100 (~4,400 OCI on the dino mentioned above). After freaking myself out and reading some other sites online, I put in Mobil 1 Extended Performance High Mileage 10w30 synthetic with a Bosch filter I'd bought when I first got the car. Reading up here, I'm starting to think it might not have been the best/cheapest choice. I've haven't even put 60 miles on it since the change (so this could all be in my head), but the car seems to warm up faster, stay at a lower temp, accelerate quicker, and maintain a lower RPM at any speed. I haven't been able to find evidence of a leak on the floor under the spots I park.
I'm kicking myself for not reading up on things sooner, and taking the guy at face value
Does my car need saving? If so can/should I save it? What would you guys recommend?
Thanks for reading! And help!
David
