97 Accord: Newbie questions re: my 2nd oil change

[Pajamarama]

Hello all --

My car: 1997 Honda Accord EX Wagon with auto trans. I purchased it 2 months ago. Bought it with 165k miles on it -- now has 167,500. It didn't come with maintenance records so I do not know much about its past.

The first thing I did when I got it was take it to the Honda dealer for an oil change. According to my receipt, they used 5w-20 despite the owner's manual specifying 5w-30.

My priorities for the car (in order) are:
a) protect/clean/maintain for long life
b) save money through longer change intervals or higher mpg
I really don't care about performance.

I drive about 75% city/25% highway.

Here are my questions:

a) Based on the price for the dealer's oil change ($29.95) I am assuming it was conventional oil. Should I stick with conventional or go with synthetic?

b) When I change it, should I stick with 5w-20 that the dealer put in or should I go back to the 5w-30 specified in the manual?

c) People (friends, coworkers) have been telling me I should consider "Seafoaming" my crankcase before I change the oil to help clean out gunk. Is there any real advantage to this? Any serious risks?

d) I am considering a change to Valvoline NextGen MaxLife/High Mileage when I hit 3k on the current oil. I like the recycled aspect, and there's a deal at my local Pep Boys. Thoughts?

e) As someone who just got a 15 year old car with unknown history, what else should I be considering re: engine lubrication?

Thanks for your thoughts and guidance.

 

[aquariuscsm]

I say no to Seafaom or any other additives. Just use motor oil and motor oil only. Next oil change,go back to the 30W per owner`s manual. My choice,M1 5W30.

 

[JOD]

I'd stay away from the seafoam or any other additives unless you know there's gunk that needs cleaned!

As far as viscosity, I'd probably go back to the spec'd oil--but there's not a huge difference between the two. I like the idea of the Nexgen Maxlife 5W30, since it's almost free right now. Brand just doesn't matter much in this application (or most others). Any SN/GF-5 oil is going to work just fine.

One thing you should consider doing soon is a valve adjustment. Besides the fact that it needs to be done (most likely), you'll get a good view of the valvetrain and then you'll know if you have a dirty engine in need of some cleaning. You can find some good tutorials on the interwebs for doing this. It's actually pretty simple and doesn't require a lot of tools.

 

[bigdawg74]

Originally Posted By: Pajamarama

a) Based on the price for the dealer's oil change ($29.95) I am assuming it was conventional oil. Should I stick with conventional or go with synthetic?

b) When I change it, should I stick with 5w-20 that the dealer put in or should I go back to the 5w-30 specified in the manual?

c) People (friends, coworkers) have been telling me I should consider "Seafoaming" my crankcase before I change the oil to help clean out gunk. Is there any real advantage to this? Any serious risks?

d) I am considering a change to Valvoline NextGen MaxLife/High Mileage when I hit 3k on the current oil. I like the recycled aspect, and there's a deal at my local Pep Boys. Thoughts?

e) As someone who just got a 15 year old car with unknown history, what else should I be considering re: engine lubrication?


A) If you are going to go with a 3k OCI, just go with conventional, as you will be wasting money with synthetic.
B) I would go with 5w30, but no real harm done with 5w20.
C) How do you know there is gunk in there? Not needed, IMHO.
D) Maxlife is a good oil and would serve you well I think.
E) I would consider changing all fluids (coolant/ATF/brake/power steering) so you have a baseline reference point for future maintenance.

 

[boosted]

Stay away from the seafoam, if the inside of the engine looks dirty or varnish on the dipstick do a few more cheap oil changes with a 5w30 and drain it at 2k, I would stay away from anything synthetic especially since you don't know what kind of oil was in the car for 160k before you bought it, and don't want to start some bad leaks like I see all day at work, get some conventional Havoline 5w30 or Valvoline WB and a decent filter and if you want to save money run it 5K and do a uoa and go from there.

 

[Mark_S]

When I purchase used cars, I change all fluids. I have no idea what is in the car, or for how long. For example, my daughter recently purchased a 2004 Chrysler T&C.

I replaced the oil and filter. I used Mobil 1 5W30 HM (you live in Atlanta, and if it were my Honda, I would use 5W30 or even 10W30) and a Pure 1 filter. Mobil 1 will clean the internals without using any additive.

I flushed the cooling system 6 times with distilled water, replaced the thermostat, and used Zerex G05 (the specified coolant).

For the transmission, I dropped the pan, replaced the filter, and flushed the system with ATF+4 (the specified fluid). The car already had a transmission oil cooler, but if it did not, I would have added one at the time. I would strongly suggest you take care of the transmission.

This is the only way you will know what is in your car and when you need to service it again.

 

[Dakota1820]

Here is what I would do and I do it to every car I buy pop the valve cover off and replace gasket I do this to get a good look at the valvetrain and can line where ect ect. If it is dirty run a cheap Dino oil for 2000 with some marvel mystery oil mixed in. I think the bottle says 20% I would run a 10w40 if I mix mmo in with it. After a couple 2000 mile runs of that I would switch to a 5w30 m1 for syn and change every 7500 miles or a Dino probably Quaker state or havoline both good oil at a good price and change it every 5,000.

 

[boosted]

Switching to M1 this late in the game wouldn't be smart. You will be adding a quart every 3-4 weeks at minimum and will have oil spots all over in your driveway. If this was a new Honda that you just bought I'd say go with the M1 or PU or any full syn. but you have lots of miles on Dino oil most likely and no issues, so why mess with a good thing.

+1 for cheveyboy14

 

[fdcg27]

You've heard from all the experts, now I'll tell you what I think as someone who's had at least one and usually two Hondas in the family fleet for the past thirty years.
You have an EX, so you have a VTEC engine.
It makes 145 BHP and will deliver surprisingly good performance and fuel economy.
The first order of business would be to try to document whether the timing belt has been changed.
You say you have no service records for the car, but many techs will mark the mileage at which they changed the timing belt on the belt cover.
Have a look.
If the belt has less than 100K on it, you have some breathing room.
If the belt has been in serice for more than 90K, or if you cannot determine whether it's ever been changed, you'd be wise to do it or have it done at once.
A failed belt, water pump or tensioner equals ruined engine.
IIRC, these engines use a seperate belt for the balance shaft, and there is an oil seal retainer that should be installed to prevent the seal from backing out.
Now, having done the timing belt, you can use any 5W-30 or 10W-30 you'd like.
Hondas usually neither leak nor consume oil, or at least mine never have, so feel free to use synthetic if you'd like.
You have at least some view of the cam and a rocker or two through the oil fill hole, so you can see just how dirty it looks up there.
Hondas are easy on oil, so any reasonable change schedule over the car's life will leave the engine pretty clean.
Check my sig for the oils I'm using in our two current Hondas, and be aware that I like 5-6K drains, although I could go much longer.
Honda never speced your car for a twenty grade, so I'd stick with a thirty.
I'd probably do a couple of drains and fills on the tranny, although your car should have a durable automatic, which was not always true with the V-6. Dropping the pan and replacing the filter would be a good move, as well.
Anyway, attend to the timing belt service, change the oil to a 5 or 10W-30 after a bit, and enjoy the car.
You should get another few years of daily use out of this fifteen year old machine.

 

[oilmaven]

My 1996 Accord "only" has 122,000 miles...and it's a V6. Many believe the 4 cylinder was a better engine (although I have no complaints). Tranny drain and fills are a simple enough job...just need a set of ramps, a couple of wrenches and fluid. I'd recommend 3 drain and fills (with a little driving in between to mix it with the remaining fluid)and I've been using Redline D4 for the last 60,000 miles or so...trans shifts beautifully (Honda DW-1 or Amsoil are other options). Rust can be an issue with these cars (especially behind the rear wheel wells on the sedans...not sure if it's a problem with the wagons). Your location means no road salt so that may not be an issue for you. I'm currently using Mobil Super High Mileage 5W30 (was originally using PP and QSUD before switching to Mobil 1 Synthetic HM...now have the high mileage blend in there...car uses NO oil with 5,000 OCI). These 5th generation Accords were possibly the pinnacle of Honda quality and reliability and that wagon is probably good for a good deal longer (may get a few arguments there). Enjoy the ride!

 

[Gebo]

You can see in my sig the cars I am responsible for taking care of. They are not all mine but I am the "maintenance man". I agree with fdcg27g's comments. I'd just to an overall tune-up.

In my Acura and my son's Prelude we only use Honda's PSF and Coolant. I don't have a automatic transmission but you may want to stick with OEM here as well.

Also, in every car/van I buy (as they are all older, see my miles) I do the Auto-Rx treatment and the RedLine fuel injector cleaner right off the bat. The next things I do dare change the brake fluid with a power bleeder and drain and refill the coolant. By sure and find the block drains if your car has them and I'm assuming it does.

 

[fdcg27]

We have both a fifth and a sixth gen Accord, and I consider the '99 a better car overall than the '97.
We've owned the '99 since new and the '97 since '03, so neither is new to our little fleet.
Still, these are really good cars, and can last a long time with only minimal maintenance.

 

[Geonerd]

Originally Posted By: Pajamarama
Hello all --

My car: 1997 Honda Accord EX Wagon with auto trans. I purchased it 2 months ago. Bought it with 165k miles on it -- now has 167,500. It didn't come with maintenance records so I do not know much about its past.

The first thing I did when I got it was take it to the Honda dealer for an oil change. According to my receipt, they used 5w-20 despite the owner's manual specifying 5w-30.

My priorities for the car (in order) are:
a) protect/clean/maintain for long life
b) save money through longer change intervals or higher mpg
I really don't care about performance.

I drive about 75% city/25% highway.

Here are my questions:

a) Based on the price for the dealer's oil change ($29.95) I am assuming it was conventional oil. Should I stick with conventional or go with synthetic?

b) When I change it, should I stick with 5w-20 that the dealer put in or should I go back to the 5w-30 specified in the manual?

c) People (friends, coworkers) have been telling me I should consider "Seafoaming" my crankcase before I change the oil to help clean out gunk. Is there any real advantage to this? Any serious risks?

d) I am considering a change to Valvoline NextGen MaxLife/High Mileage when I hit 3k on the current oil. I like the recycled aspect, and there's a deal at my local Pep Boys. Thoughts?

e) As someone who just got a 15 year old car with unknown history, what else should I be considering re: engine lubrication?

Thanks for your thoughts and guidance.


No oil on the planet will save a detectable amount of gas. If you want to improve MPG, alter your driving. You don't have to be an OCD idiot like the 'hypermiler' fools you may have seen on TeeVee. Just anticipate lights and traffic around town, and cut a few MPH from your freeway cruising speed. 90% of the population barrels into predictably red lights as a matter of course. Simply avoiding this will increase your city MPG by 25%, easy.

Best protection is to use a high quality filter and change the oil. Using a slightly thicker 'high mileage' oil will provide a little extra oil film thickness in the bearings. This is probably unnecessary, but it can't hurt either.

a) Doesn't much matter. Dino will go 5~7K in that engine, Syn 10K+ Given that it's 'new' to you, I might run a few short dino changes, just to "clean it up."

b) I'd go with the Xw-30. Living in Georgia, the X doesn't much matter either. 0w, 5w, or 10W will all work fine

c) NO. Suggest you peek under the oil fill cap in search of sludge. (A thin film of goo is does not qualify.) Unless the engine is significantly gooped up, there is no sane reason to 'flush' the poor thing.

d) Sure. The car really won't care. Use what's on sale.

e) The Accord engines are next to bomb proof. Unless the oil was completely ignored, there should be no issues.

I do suggest you use a decent filter. Pay $5 for a Purolator, Wix, or other well constructed unit. Avoid the Orange Can of Death! Also suggest you change your own oil. You'll be able to choose quality materials, and will know that it's getting done correctly.

Do you know when the timing belt was last changed? If there is no record, assume the worst and plan to get this done soon. A broken belt can cause near-catastrophic damage to the pistons, valves, and head. You can do this yourself in a long afternoon.

p.s.
Don't neglect the transmission fluid. You can go for a full service at the shop, or DIY by repeatedly draining and refilling the pan. Each cycle wlll change out a quart or so. Eventually, you'll wind up with 'mostly' new fluid. This is somewhat wasteful of fluid, but avoids the often silly shop labor fees.