2010 Honda Accord

[hwbehrens]

I'm new to the forums, and to oil knowledge in general, so I figured this would be a good place to start. Specs:

1. 2010 Honda Accord LX-P
2. 5w20, API (doesn't specify a quality level)
3. Riverside, CA
4. I drive it pretty easy - moderate acceleration up to around 75 or 80 on the freeway.
5. 70% highway, 20% stop-and-go, 10% city - usually ~450 miles/wk total.
6. No known problems.

I usually give a minute or two to warm up in the morning, but sometimes I'm in a hurry, so then it gets the
Either way, an oil and filter recommendation would both be appreciated. I'm fine with either synthetic or mineral oil. My primary goal is to maximize the useful life of the car, so if synthetic will extend the engine life, great, but on the other hand, it might be overkill for my car. I read a few other posts about it, and there doesn't seem to be a clear consensus either way. What do you think?

Currently, it still has the factory fill, with about ~2500 miles on it. The OLM says the first OCI should be around 8K miles, but I'm thinking it can't hurt to do the first change earlier. There was some discussion on another post* here on the forums that the FF is "high moly", which I didn't really understand, and that doing the change before the first OCI using regular, non-high-moly oil might be worse for the car in the long run. So, let's phrase it this way: when would YOU do the first change, and should I bother with this "high moly" stuff?

Original posts:
V-6 Accord recommendations
Civic recommendations

 

[ARCOgraphite]

To maintain the inherent advantage of a 5w-20 (like NO viscosity index improvers to gum up the works!!) I would stick with a 5w-20 especially in CALI. But, theoretical advantages of no vii less PPD aside, a good oil is a good oil no matter the weight. Why not buy and use the high moly content Honda oil? If you find the 20 weight to be noisy I would not hesitate to use Havoline DS 5w30 or Castrol EDGE 5w30 in this app.
-
To answer you, The moly is a friction modifier and antiwear agent added at about 800-1000ppm by honda and toyota for their new long life oils - this is a MUCH higher level than some name brand high moly oils that are dosed at around 200-300PPM, s for a filter - I would start with the OEM HONDA(Honeywell/FRAM!?) but try to find a more robust unit like a Wix in a larger form factor. I would have that break in oil out between 1500 and 3000 miles.

 

[Hermann]

On my now sold '05 Accord 2.4L I-4, I ran the FF to 5000 Miles. It never used oil when I traded at 50K. I used 5w-20 every OCI. Honda tech letters that you can subscribe to extoll the virtues of Moly. Most of the Moly in the FF comes from engine assembly lubes. My FF actually turned a dark green. Yes the oil has a good shot of it also. A excellent replacement oil would be Honda branded oil, or the Havoline ARCO mentioned. It has a good dose of Moly also. There is even a recent UOA for Havoline on the forum.

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubb...nt=2&page=1

 

[Dave Hess]

5 or 6K miles for the FF

 

[gathermewool]

Accord uses the maintenance minder, right? I'd use that for your first and all subsequent intervals, with the aforementioned oils and filter - all good suggestions.

Also, on-the-go warmup is ideal. Letting your car warmup for any amount of time by idling causes more wear, IMO.

 

[spasm3]

Originally Posted By: gathermewool
Accord uses the maintenance minder, right? I'd use that for your first and all subsequent intervals, with the aforementioned oils and filter - all good suggestions.

Also, on-the-go warmup is ideal. Letting your car warmup for any amount of time by idling causes more wear, IMO.


I'm curious how idling causes wear?

 

[AlienBug]

Originally Posted By: spasm3
Originally Posted By: gathermewool
Accord uses the maintenance minder, right? I'd use that for your first and all subsequent intervals, with the aforementioned oils and filter - all good suggestions.

Also, on-the-go warmup is ideal. Letting your car warmup for any amount of time by idling causes more wear, IMO.


I'm curious how idling causes wear?


Others may have a more detailed explanation, but if your engine is running while the car isn't moving, any wear that accumulates during that time is "wasted" so to speak. If your drive to work is 10 minutes, but you let your car warm up for 5 minutes before driving off, it was running 50% longer than necessary.

The car is also getting 0 mpg and emitting pollutants while sitting in the driveway running. JMO, and there have been loads of threads about the relative merits of warming up by idling vs. get-in-and-drive. I tend to let the car idle just long enough to put my seatbelt on.

 

[gib]

Follow the maintenance minder and that engine will last a very, very long time.

As for which oil to choose, in your climate and driving pattern, pretty much anything from cheap Supertech to expensive RLI will get the job done. I will say that I do like 0w oils, so I'd probably go with the Honda 0w20 or perhaps the newly reformulated Mobil 1 0w20.

 

[Audi Junkie]

As I see, there are 2 choices.

Conventional oil at a fixed interval. (I prefer timed, x number of months)

Synthetic oil at the olm intervals.

If you change your own oil, do the dino DIY.

If a mechanic does it, extend to olm intervals with synthetic oil of your choice.

 

[moto94536]

I always warm up my car for 2-3 minutes, winter time 5 minutes.

 

[gathermewool]

Originally Posted By: AlienBug
Originally Posted By: spasm3
Originally Posted By: gathermewool
Accord uses the maintenance minder, right? I'd use that for your first and all subsequent intervals, with the aforementioned oils and filter - all good suggestions.

Also, on-the-go warmup is ideal. Letting your car warmup for any amount of time by idling causes more wear, IMO.


I'm curious how idling causes wear?


Others may have a more detailed explanation, but if your engine is running while the car isn't moving, any wear that accumulates during that time is "wasted" so to speak. If your drive to work is 10 minutes, but you let your car warm up for 5 minutes before driving off, it was running 50% longer than necessary.

The car is also getting 0 mpg and emitting pollutants while sitting in the driveway running. JMO, and there have been loads of threads about the relative merits of warming up by idling vs. get-in-and-drive. I tend to let the car idle just long enough to put my seatbelt on.


Couldn't have said it better. Thanks.

Even in the dead of winter, I never let my cars idle longer than it takes for the air pump to cycle off - ~45 seconds or so. I have no problem with those who do otherwise, unless they say they do so because it's better for the car.

HOWEVER comma my old 97 Legacy would sound like death (piston slap) and shifted terribly (finicky transmission) if I didn't let it warm up for at least a minute, so to each his own for any particular situation.

 

[Audi Junkie]

I say warm at idle for 1 sec every degree below freezing F. Above freezing, just start and go.

 

[gathermewool]

Originally Posted By: Audi Junkie
I say warm at idle for 1 sec every degree below freezing F. Above freezing, just start and go.


I think I remember you (or some one) posting that last year when all of the how-long-should-I-warm'er-up threads popped up. I like this, though my 15 second wait for the air pump to cycle off is usually about the time it takes me to buckle up, get the radio on and shift to reverse, anyway (I meant 15 seconds earlier, not 45. I'm exhausted from a long day, so 15 seconds might not be right, either.)

2-3 minutes (5 min in the winter) in NV seems excessive if you're doing it for the car's sake.

I'm curious what makes you say that a good dino couldn't be used following the MM.

 

[Audi Junkie]

I'm saying that the average bitog guy wants to do better than a bare minimum. Some want to use synth, and the olm is an excellent way to justify it. Other guys want to put more effort in and get the best result, but in a cost-effective way. For them, more frequent changes of conventional oil will (imo) reward their effort with a better result. Sure, someone could change at 3k with synth, but I'm trying to offer two viable options that will appeal to the most people, maybe who have different approaches. Both ways have merit and are "justifyable".

 

[ARCOgraphite]

++My nexdoor neighbors start their Minivan about 1/2 to 1 hour before they pile in the car and drive 2 houses down. Common Moronic Idiots.

++Since this thread was hijacked for the warmup issue

AFA Warmup, I have found over the past 30 years that cars with lamda fuel feedback control like to have a hot 02 sensor and be closed loop before you start off. The car seems to run better the rest of the day. Cant figure this out. The rich morning runs without warmup must set bad coefficients in the lookup tables. In New England, We have many 45F deg mornings and 75F degree afternoons which might add to this issue.

 

[Lethal1ty17]

we have a 2002 honda accord v6 that also specs 5w20. im not sure if its the same engine still in the newer accords but here is what i'd do.

first of all i'd go synthetic 5w30 for longer oci's and better cleaning ability. since its new there will be little to clean but if you run a good oil from the start, the chances of having a dirty engine down the road will be slim to none. i'd set the oci's at about 8-9k, hondas are easy on oil. a 0w20 wouldnt hurt but unless you get below something like -44 degree (cant remember) it wont make a difference, and 5w20 is more sheer stable than 0w20 because it needs less additives to maintain the advertised grade. im also not sure if any mineral based oil can be a thin 0w20 viscosity and maintain that, could be wrong though.

pennzoil platinum would not be on the top of my list for synthetics. filled our accord up with Pennzoil Platinum 5w20, it has around 122k on the engine and it because noticably louder than with the old worn out oil. i've found that mobil 1 and Mobil 1 Extended Performance run the smoothest and quietest so far. i've had good results with castrol edge in other cars too so it would also be among my top picks.

and lastly the OEM filter or a PureOne would be more than up to the job. PureOne is around $6.

 

[gathermewool]

Originally Posted By: Audi Junkie
I'm saying that the average bitog guy wants to do better than a bare minimum. Some want to use synth, and the olm is an excellent way to justify it. Other guys want to put more effort in and get the best result, but in a cost-effective way. For them, more frequent changes of conventional oil will (imo) reward their effort with a better result. Sure, someone could change at 3k with synth, but I'm trying to offer two viable options that will appeal to the most people, maybe who have different approaches. Both ways have merit and are "justifyable".


Totally agree.

A coworker asked me for advice on oil changes intervals for his 2004 Maxima tonight. He said the dealer puts an OC sticker every 3700 miles, and he usually takes it in before 4000 miles. He's originally from NYC area, so oil to him was never something to think about; just take it to the dealer when the sticker says to. He has zero concept of oil quality nor what affects how long he can extend out his oil changes. He and another coworker had confused, unbelieving looks on their faces when my answer was, as always, "depends," and that some cars on certain oils could easily go 25kmi or more on anoil change.

With out a GM OLM, Honda MM or used oil analysis, there's really know way to know exactly how long you can go. I told him that if he wants to keep it simple, and going to the dealer for changes at whatever they charge isn't an issue, to just follow their recommendation. I told him that he could probably easily go to 5kmi based on his driving style, but can't suggest anything longer with out an used oil analysis. He wouldn't even consider a used oil analysis. He trusts primary and secondary plant chemistry, but won't trust oil chemistry analysis.

Luckily, the OP has a MM, and I think I'd trust that using even dealer bulk oil. With that being said, I wouldn't be true BITOGER unless I was trying to find the perfect oil/filter combination to allow for TWO MM cycles before changing!


Originally Posted By: ARCOgraphite
++My nexdoor neighbors start their Minivan about 1/2 to 1 hour before they pile in the car and drive 2 houses down. Common Moronic Idiots.


Completely different circumstance, but when I was a kid my dad used to let his old Chevy (carb'd) van warm up for 15-20 min in the winter while getting ready before driving around a mile to Dunkin Donuts and then another mile to work. We were always early, so we'd sit there with the van running for half an hour while we sipped coffee (hot cocoa for me.) The warm van was his last respite before spending the rest of the bitter day in the brick yard.

All and all, I think most people either change their oil way too often - so even excessive idling really won't amount to a hill of beans - or way too infrequently - usually not leading to any problems at all, short term.

 

[bigmike]

Originally Posted By: hwbehrens
I'm new to the forums, and to oil knowledge in general, so I figured this would be a good place to start. Specs:

1. 2010 Honda Accord LX-P
2. 5w20, API (doesn't specify a quality level)
3. Riverside, CA
4. I drive it pretty easy - moderate acceleration up to around 75 or 80 on the freeway.
5. 70% highway, 20% stop-and-go, 10% city - usually ~450 miles/wk total.
6. No known problems.

I usually give a minute or two to warm up in the morning, but sometimes I'm in a hurry, so then it gets the
Either way, an oil and filter recommendation would both be appreciated. I'm fine with either synthetic or mineral oil. My primary goal is to maximize the useful life of the car, so if synthetic will extend the engine life, great, but on the other hand, it might be overkill for my car. I read a few other posts about it, and there doesn't seem to be a clear consensus either way. What do you think?

Currently, it still has the factory fill, with about ~2500 miles on it. The OLM says the first OCI should be around 8K miles, but I'm thinking it can't hurt to do the first change earlier. There was some discussion on another post* here on the forums that the FF is "high moly", which I didn't really understand, and that doing the change before the first OCI using regular, non-high-moly oil might be worse for the car in the long run. So, let's phrase it this way: when would YOU do the first change, and should I bother with this "high moly" stuff?

Original posts:
V-6 Accord recommendations
Civic recommendations


I have almost the same car, purchased in 2/2009 and has 17-18k miles on it now.

Skip the idle warmup process. You don't need it. Just take it easy until it's at operating temperature. 0w20 won't hurt anything. If you find a good deal on it, go ahead and purchase it.

With that much HW miles, follow the MM on the car. I'd recommend synthetic use. We have seen conventional oils handle high mileage, but I feel more peace of mind with synthetics following the MM. You'll probably get 6k~8k per OCI. A It's a 2.4 that has been shown to be pretty easy on oil. I've used Pennzoil Platinum and Mobil 1, but any good synthetic will work fine.

Filter choice would be any good filter. I use Bosch, Purolator PureOne, and Mobil filters. Cutting them open shows they all look good.

I did the first change when the MM reached 15%. The mileage was near 6500 miles.

You might want to read up on molybdenum.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molybdenum

If you want to really maximize the useful life of the car, change the AT fluid early and often. I did the first drain/refill at 12k miles and added a magnefine filter on the return line as well. Next drain/refill I'll do will be approximately at 20k miles.

BTW, make sure you get a washer for the drain plug and AT plug.

 

[FZ1]

Good info above from other Honda owners. Here's what I run in my,perfectly running,02 Accord V6 at 108k. Mobil 1 Extended Performance 5w20,Change it 2x per year(March and September). M1 or Oem oil filter. Oem only AF. 10 second warm up and drive it easily. Hope this helps.

 

[chaser06]

OK another Honda guy here...

I run synthetic (for me it's Mobil 1). Using the maintenance minder I usually attain 9-10k OCI's. Pure One oil filters are used

The auto transmission gets a drain and fill every 15k (about twice a year).

81,500 miles and running strong.