2007 Honda Pilot has two recommended oil weights. What would YOU do?

Cripes, Honda's original spec of 5w-20 was never a mistake. The switch to 0w-20 was to gain that minute mpg improvement to better meet government standards. With that said, during your New England winters use 0w-20 if it makes you feel better.
 
I would use full synthetic oil, regardless of the grade. Consider a 5w30 synthetic to see how the oil consumption is after a run.

Some grades are not synthetic. So, I'd take a full synthetic 0w20 over a conventional 5w20. But if you shop smart, I doubt that you'd notice any difference among full synthetic 0w20/5w20/....
 
So I found that Honda seems to recommend 0w20 over 5w20. I just have to wonder if they decided that 0w20 was superior, and this is their way of getting people over to 0w20 while not admitting 5w20 is a mistake.

My source:
Your source link doesn't appear to be working. Wouldn't mind looking at that if you have a working link.
 
I have a 2007 Pilot AWD (J35A9) which does not have VCM. The FWD had the VCM engine. I have 235k on the clock, and have always used Synthetic, mostly Mobil1 until a year ago. Their 0w20 AFE made the engine run a bit rackety. The 0w30 AFE wasn't too bad. Picked up a bunch of PP 5w30 last year and the Pilot really likes it. I also tried The Kirkland 5w30 in both the Pilot and 07 Accord 4cyl, and they both seem to run a bit smoother and less noisy than the 0w20 and 5w20 I used to use. Same is true for my Ascent. It likes the PP5w30, so that is what I am using.

I live in NC now, but am from the Northeast, and the Pilot never had issues with the 5w30 in the cold while up north for the holidays. You can do what you want, but any good synthetic 5w20 or 5w30 will be fine.
 
It would save time, and, perhaps, money. My other car is 0w20 specced, but I would only switch to 0w20 for the Pilot if I would not be causing harm. There may be a good reason why 0w20 was added as an option as well. Hence my original post. Thanks for asking!
No harm in using a 0W-20 oil. At normal operating temperatures it's the same "thickness" as a 5W-20 oil.

The big difference is that 0W flows easier in extreme cold. And it's likely to be a synthetic and more expensive.
 
I'm the oddball that thinks this way: if I lived up North and saw those temps, I'd want a 0W. But, I also know I have a -20 spec vehicle that consumes oil even on HM oils, so I'd want a -30. So my first choice would be a 0W-30. If that isn't easy to find and/or is expensive (usually it's both), then my next choice would be a 0W-20/5W-30 frankenbrew to get me somewhere in the ballpark of a 2W-25.

Edit: I service a 2005 J35A6 regularly and have used everything from 0W-20 to 10W-30. It is one of the least picky engines I've ever serviced. Just keep it full of something and it'll run forever. 224K and still running strong, even the original transmission without any repairs!
I like that 'frankenbrew" idea of your approximate 2w25! I never thought of that. Neat trick making your own brew. I know some will catch a coronary over it. LOL 👍
 
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