Pennzoil 5W-30 - 94 Civic 1.5L - 3,000 miles

[Steve_RI]

Miles on vehicle 158,000; 3,000 on the sample. I bought this Civic with 155,000 miles and immediately did an Auto-rx treatment. Vehicle was well maintained and had regular 3,000 mile oil changes. I did the 1,500 mile clean phase and changed oil and filter. This sample represents 2,000 miles of the rinse phase with 2oz of LC for the last 1,000 miles - 3,000 miles total.

Schaeffer's did the oil analysis and noted the fuel dilution and H2O as well as the viscosity reduction. Vehicle is strictly for commuting and sees about 80 miles a day, 90% highway. I used FP almost every tank. The water is a little disconcerting, but I'm glad it was negative for antifreeze. Any comments are appreciated.

aluminum 3
chromium 2
iron 20
copper 4
lead 7
moly 159
potassium not tested
silicon 12
sodium not tested
calcium 1993
magnesium 10
phosphorus 859
zinc 905

% Antifreeze .0
Fuel Dilution Positive
H2O .2
Viscosity 8.48 (sheared to 20W)

 

[ToyotaNSaturn]

Steve, You're doing all the right things by Auto-RX, FL/LC, etc. Another UOA in of the same oil in another 3000 miles will give us some trend data of what's going on.

The high iron is probably from Auto-Rx cleaning up things, perhaps even an anomoly. Fuel dilution has at least partially caused the viscosity to nose-dive.

 

[JHZR2]

antifreeze is 0, but it would have been nice to get Na and K tested... that can tell a lot more.

I have to wonder if it decreased in viscosity because of the water and fuel in there, or because also of the high RPMs that those little engines must spin at fast highway speeds. Maybe some others can comment on the typical shear-stability of pennzoil.

I wouldnt think too much about the wear metals, lead and copper are OK for a 3k mile interval, iron is probably high because of the auto-rx cleaning out some junk in there, and it showing up in the analysis.

Good luck,

JMH

 

[Drew99GT]

That is for sure more shear than the wee little Honda would do I think. Gotta be fuel dilution, although Pennzoil 5w-30 has a history of shearing well into 20 weight range.

 

[Motorbike]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Steve_RI:

Viscosity 8.48 (sheared to 20W)

---

We don't know how much fuel is in it though so I would term it as the viscosity was reduced too... .

Some Honda's have fuel problems . I don't keep up with them but I'd try a designated fuel cleaner and retest interval after this .W/O fuel in the crankcase 5k would be easy . Notice how well Pennzoil protects with fuel dillution . It's a well formulated oil that works in so many engines .

Or hail 427Z06 , Jay and others who know the Honda's well .

 

[Palut]

quote:

---

Originally posted by JHZR2:
or because also of the high RPMs that those little engines must spin at fast highway speeds.

---

My 2.2L goes 1000 rpms for every 25 mph in 5th gear. 4k rpms when cruising at 100 mph.

I imagine this car with it's tiny engine is geared even higher. Is that the case Steve_RI?

 

[Steve_RI]

At 80mph, it's revving about 3300-3400 rpm's in 5th gear. Thanks for the replies

 

[Cutehumor]

don't rely on the antifreeze test. it's pretty much worthless. it will detect antifreeze but probably not until you see it on the dipstick. sodium and potassium is a better indicator to detect antifreeze leak early. my dad's sentra had a huge coolant leak and the uoa still said the antifreeze was 0. but huge amounts of antifreeze and sodium was in it. the fact the coolant reservior was running empty every month too.

 

[Bror Jace]

Steve_RI, I had a '95 DX 1.5L and had a coolant leak ... it was the head gasket. My UOAs are somewhere in the UOA section of this site. Your wear looks significantly higher than any of mine.

As was said above, the tell-tale signs were sodium and potassium ... along with elevated lead and iron. Car ran fine .... and strong. Only when really flogging it did I see the temp gauge rise a little.

My coolant level would periodically run low, be fine for a while then be low again a month (or even a week) later.

Again, as others said above, the leak has slight and I had no tell-tale signs such as milky residue in the oil or contamination in the recovery tank.

As for Pennzoil, most 5W-30s (and ever more 10W-30s) are shearing down quickly these days. Hard to find one which doesn't. I'm pretty sure this is by design ... for average fuel economy reasons.

--- Bror Jace

 

[Steve_RI]

Bror, thanks for the reply. That sounds exactly like what's happening to mine. I'm going to go with frequent oil changes for now and deal with the head gasket later. I'll have the leak down test done just to make sure.

My Pathfinder was destroyed this weekend. I was hit head on by a guy who crossed the center lane skidding out of control. I didn't have a belt on and my truck doesn't have an airbag (it's an 89). The police arrived at the scene expecting to find somebody dead or severely injured. The other guy was okay too. I'm sore as heck, but I'm very thankful to be alive, and I no have desire to pull a head off a civic right now.

 

[Steve_RI]

Well, my expansion tank is on the low side, so I'm assuming I've got a slow coolant leak, probably the head gasket. I pulled the plugs and they seem to be wearing normally. The car is running great and serving it's purpose as a long commuter. I'd rather not deal with a head gasket right now, at least not until I do the timing belt in 30,000 miles or so. Will LC and more frequent oil changes keep any long term effects at bay?

 

[Bror Jace]

Yikes!

Sorry to hear about your 'Finder but glad to hear you're OK.

The head-job on my 1.5L was about $800 from a pretty good independent shop. They pulled the head, sent it to a machine shop to be planed, tested and had the valves checked. There was some recession but I didn't want to spend the extra $400 to get the seats reground.

The garage also bought new, more flexible head bolts to complete the job. Evidently, the original head bolts were a part of the problem.

The shop fought with me at first, saying they were afraid I was mistaken about coolant contamination, but once they got the head apart they could see the spot where the leak was. UOA was right, every other indicator was wrong.

The Civic will run fine for a while ... but I'd consider using cheap oil and doing 2,000 mile changes until you decide to fix it, sell it or trade it in. You gotta flush that glycol out of the sump often ... even trace amounts eat up engines!

--- Bror Jace