Question on 2001 Honda Civic EX oil change

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When changing my oil, how can I get 1/2 quart or so of oil in the engine drained out? I remove the oil from the oil pan and replace the filter, but when I put in about 3.25 quarts, the dipstick lines up on the top whole for oil (meaning the oil is full). Honda says I can hold 3.7 quarts. How can I remove the .5 quarts from my engine when doing an oil change?

Thanks in advance,
Oren
 
Don't take what the manufacturer says as gospel...if it's full, it's full.

In regards to getting what you can out of the car, where is the drain plug located on the pan? I ask this because, for example, my truck's drain plug is located on the bottom rear of the pan, so parking it uphill will get a little more out.

Also, make sure to take the fill cap off when draining your oil.

Lastly, let it drain for awhile.
 
What makes you think the dip-stick is correctly marked?

I have a CAT 14.6L Diesel that is rated at 10 gal oil capacity. If you fill it to the full mark it takes 10.8 gal to fill.

I have a Cummins 5.9L Diesel that is rated at 11 QT Capacity and takes 12.0 QT to fill to the full mark.

In both cases I was told to fill only to rated capacity and remark the dip-stick to reflect the correct level.

I would contact Honda (Not the Dealer!) and ask whether you should go by capacity and re-mark the dipstick or go by the current mark on the dip-stick.

Gene
 
how are you changing the oil? ive never encountered this problem with my civic which requires 3.7q as well
 
it took me about 5 DIY oil changes to figure this out.

1-open the filler cap.
2-leave the oil filter off
3-let drain for at least 30min.(you will be surprised at how much more comes out after the first deluge.)
4-vehicle must be DRIVEN at least 10-15 minutes before change.
5-depending on where your drain hole is, use a jack to change the angle of the vehicle as appropriate to get the last bits out.
6-check fill level properly. oil hot, car level, (my wife thinks I'm crazy but I use a level on the chassis to check this) and at least 1-2 minutes after shutting engine off.

Every vehicle I have, I put in more oil than the service manual specs. my 92 legend calls for, I think, 4.7L and I put in about 5.3-5.4L comfortably, not overfilled. right on the full line of the dipstick.
when I first started doing my own oil changes, I could barely put in 4.5L in this car, mostly because I didn't understand how to use the jack to get all the oil out.(drain plug is on drivers side halfway down the pan and my driveway is on an incline)
good luck. it's fun when you do it right.
 
quote:

Originally posted by Storm897:
When changing my oil, how can I get 1/2 quart or so of oil in the engine drained out? I remove the oil from the oil pan and replace the filter, but when I put in about 3.25 quarts, the dipstick lines up on the top whole for oil (meaning the oil is full). Honda says I can hold 3.7 quarts. How can I remove the .5 quarts from my engine when doing an oil change?

Thanks in advance,
Oren


After you put in the new oil, you should start the car, let it run for a few minutes, shut it off, let it cool down for about 5-10 minutes, then check the level. You may find that the oil level will go down slightly because there'll be oil in the filter now.
 
quote:

Originally posted by Jelly:
Don't take what the manufacturer says as gospel...if it's full, it's full.

In regards to getting what you can out of the car, where is the drain plug located on the pan? I ask this because, for example, my truck's drain plug is located on the bottom rear of the pan, so parking it uphill will get a little more out.

Also, make sure to take the fill cap off when draining your oil.

Lastly, let it drain for awhile.


On the bottom of the car is my oil pan. If you go to this site, it shows the location of my oil pan drain bolt.
Click here
 
quote:

Originally posted by Storm897:
Click here

Quaker State and Fram...nice.
rolleyes.gif
 
quote:

Originally posted by berge:
it took me about 5 DIY oil changes to figure this out.

1-open the filler cap.
2-leave the oil filter off
3-let drain for at least 30min.(you will be surprised at how much more comes out after the first deluge.)
4-vehicle must be DRIVEN at least 10-15 minutes before change.
5-depending on where your drain hole is, use a jack to change the angle of the vehicle as appropriate to get the last bits out.
6-check fill level properly. oil hot, car level, (my wife thinks I'm crazy but I use a level on the chassis to check this) and at least 1-2 minutes after shutting engine off.

Every vehicle I have, I put in more oil than the service manual specs. my 92 legend calls for, I think, 4.7L and I put in about 5.3-5.4L comfortably, not overfilled. right on the full line of the dipstick.
when I first started doing my own oil changes, I could barely put in 4.5L in this car, mostly because I didn't understand how to use the jack to get all the oil out.(drain plug is on drivers side halfway down the pan and my driveway is on an incline)
good luck. it's fun when you do it right.


I will try this in about 1200 miles when I have to replace the oil and Auto-RX in my engine oil. I will place the car on a incline, keep off the filler cap, drive if hard for 15 minutes, let oil drain for 15 minutes (don’t like waiting, plus car will be in an incline already), and then will measure oil when done after driving car again for about 15 minutes.

Additionally, thanks to all who replied.

Oren
 
quote:

Originally posted by Storm897:
I use castrol 5w20 and a fram filter. My OCI is 5k. That is from a civic website and the car pictured is not mine.

I know. Since you've came to an oil-addicts site though, I must suggest trying a different lube...M1 0w-20.

Oh...please use a different filter!
nono.gif


[ July 24, 2004, 12:25 AM: Message edited by: Jelly ]
 
I was reading on another site where they said that Honda basically re-baggage Frams oil filter for the civic.

Also, I saw a UOA on Castrol GTX 5W20 with what I think was a fram air filter and after 5k the oil held up pretty good.
 
quote:

Originally posted by Jelly:

quote:

Originally posted by Storm897:
I use castrol 5w20 and a fram filter. My OCI is 5k. That is from a civic website and the car pictured is not mine.

I know. Since you've came to an oil-addicts site though, I must suggest trying a different lube...M1 0w-20.

Oh...use a different filter!
nono.gif


Just for the Auto-RX cleaning phase I used a Purolator pureone filter
 
please do not follow that diy. i complained about it in the past, i cant believe he removes the gasket from the oil filter.

on my civic i jack up the driver side, pull the drain plug, let the car back down, and the jack it back up to put the plug back on.
 
quote:

Originally posted by sxg6:
please do not follow that diy. i complained about it in the past, i cant believe he removes the gasket from the oil filter.

on my civic i jack up the driver side, pull the drain plug, let the car back down, and the jack it back up to put the plug back on.


I dont take the rubber seal off the new filter. I just put oil on it.
 
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