hey buster, i also put some of the green stuff in my honda several days ago. as for my results, engine noise is the same as when I was running M1 5w-30, slightly more sluggish in the low end, and i believe my MPG has gone down. I averaged around 26-28 MPG before, getting about 22-23 now with the GC.
GC in a Honda 4cyl?
- Thread starter buster
- Start date
- Status
Dont you guys think that intial reactions like 'sluggishness' and a decrease in fuel economy over ride even very good wear numbers?
Patman
Staff member
I've never felt any of my cars get sluggish after switching to GC, in fact with most (if not all) of them I've noticed throttle response is better in the low end and midrange once I switch to GC, and the engine runs smoother too. I've never noticed a decrease in MPG after switching either.
Dont you guys think that intial reactions like 'sluggishness' and a decrease in fuel economy over ride even very good wear numbers? [/QUOTE]
i dont get what ur trying to say. sorry, im a bit slow at times
I just mean that the overwhelming evidence is that the use of GC minimizes engine wear. BUT if the use of this oil also gives the driver the impression that the car is 'sluggish' and/or there is a noticeable decrease in fuel economy I think it is very likely that the driver wont continue to use GC.
I'm going to see what my mpg is this week. I have 12 quarts of it. I'll either run it again or run it in the focus. If I feel it's making my car too sluggish, I'll switch to a good 20wt or M1 5w-30 EP. No big deal. Their seems to be more of a drag at lower rpms, nothing significant, but noticable. Like I said before, in other countries people run 15w-40 in VTEC engines, especially Japan. Doesn't make it ideal, but it won't hurt.
I think that if you drive easy, you will get a small difference in MPG but you're not really loosing any peak HP when other loads are more significant than the Visc. Revving without a load is very different than pulling a car around. If you don't see a significant MPG difference, I would just continue to use it.
ill most likely keep using it if I can find more of it. slight sluggishness and a drop in mpg doesnt bother me with the great wear ratings GC has
Thats what I'm thinking. Above 3k rpms the car feels great. I don't have any issues with it. Any car will feel more rev happy with a 20wt oil. BTW, I emailed Castrol U.K. and the their two top recommendations for Honda Accord's and Acura TSX's are Castrol 0w-30 SLX and 10w-40 Magnatec. The GF-4 20wts will probably prove to be excellent. The GF-3's were but that Japanese article about their concerns with 20wt GF-4 oils and timing chains concerned me a bit, which is why I'm running a 30wt oil.
I took the tank down to empty until the light went on. Filled it up with 13.10 gallons of gas. Exactly at the 1/2 way mark I put 220 miles on using the Green Castrol. I'd say 80% highway @ 75mph. I believe this comes out to around 33.8 mpg. I run regular 87 octane. (13/2 = 6.5 ....220/6.5 = 33.8 mpg). I will retest to confirm just for curiosity.
If your Honda's gas gage is anyhting like my 99 Civic's, the halfway point does NOT mean 50% tank. It is more like 40% full for me. 50% for me is 1-2mm above half.
You should divide the total miles driven as you're sitting at the pump, by the number of gallons you see on the pump once your back to full. It doesn't have to be an empty tank, just the miles driven over the gallons it takes back to "full".
EDIT: BTW, I saw no change in gas mileage on my 1.6l SOHC VTEC switching between M1 5w30, M1 10w30, Esso XD-3 15w40, AMSOIL ATM 10w30. I drive it hard, so parasitic losses are insignificant next to my power demands
30-35mpg, 42mpg was my record as I drove like a grandpa for 1/2 a tank last spring, on XD-3 15w40 no less!
You should divide the total miles driven as you're sitting at the pump, by the number of gallons you see on the pump once your back to full. It doesn't have to be an empty tank, just the miles driven over the gallons it takes back to "full".
EDIT: BTW, I saw no change in gas mileage on my 1.6l SOHC VTEC switching between M1 5w30, M1 10w30, Esso XD-3 15w40, AMSOIL ATM 10w30. I drive it hard, so parasitic losses are insignificant next to my power demands
Buster,
I've tried the GC mix w/ M1 0w20 and it still holds my MPG record of 47 mpg in my '03 Civic EX (conducted at "Grandpa" speed of 58 mph, however). I used 1 qt of GC and 3 qts of M1 0w20. I believe my UOA at 5,800 miles should still be on the UOA page...it was boringly impressive.
Maybe, if you are concerned about MPG...try a 50/50 mix of GC and Castrol Syntec 5w20 (or M1 5w20)... could be the best of both worlds... extremely low wear numbers with impressive response and mpg
Good Luck!
I've tried the GC mix w/ M1 0w20 and it still holds my MPG record of 47 mpg in my '03 Civic EX (conducted at "Grandpa" speed of 58 mph, however). I used 1 qt of GC and 3 qts of M1 0w20. I believe my UOA at 5,800 miles should still be on the UOA page...it was boringly impressive.
Maybe, if you are concerned about MPG...try a 50/50 mix of GC and Castrol Syntec 5w20 (or M1 5w20)... could be the best of both worlds... extremely low wear numbers with impressive response and mpg
Good Luck!
Well my third tank of gas while running the green stuff netted me 267 miles before the light came on. Pumped about 9.5 gallons of 87 at the Beacon before it shut off. So that comes to about 28.1 mpg with about %70 highway, 30% city, which is what I usually got when I was running M1 5w-30. Guess my engine just needed to get used to it.
Buster, I hope you "recycled" the GC for use in another vehicle or engine of some sort...I hate to think of barely-used GC being discarded.
At any rate, glad you found an oil that makes your Honda's engine happy.
At any rate, glad you found an oil that makes your Honda's engine happy.
Patman
Staff member
GC is still the best 0w-30 on the market, no doubt. I'd use it in a heartbeat if I had a car that called for a slightly thicker oil. I have to say I'm very happy with the 20wt in the Honda. The car does feel 100% better with it. From here forward I will only recommend 20wts for Honda's. With the UOA's as good as they are, protection isn't an issue and on top of it, your getting better MPG and HP so it's a no brainer.
I just put GC ow30 in my 1996 Civic 1.6L and notice no difference between this and the M1 5w30. Maybe just the newer 1.7L's as they are spec'd for 5w20.
- Status
Similar threads
