Service Pro 5W20 - 5100 Miles - 2002 Honda Civic

[barlowc]

This is the first UOA I've had done for my mother-in-law's 2002 Honda Civic EX Sedan. It has the 1.7 liter D17A2 engine and a 4-speed automatic transmission. 90% of the miles are city miles. I’ve been changing the oil for her since the odometer read 17,000 miles. I’ve generally used Mobile, Valvoline, or Quaker State 5W-20 conventional for 4,500 mile intervals. This sample of Service Pro 5W-20 Synthetic Blend was the second consecutive fill of Service Pro run for that interval, so there shouldn’t be any cross-contamination. Other than copper and silicon both being a little high, things seem to be doing pretty good. Insolubles were higher than what I've seen in my other vehicles where I run full synthetic for longer intervals. During this OCI, I used a Bosch Premium 3323 filter. Maybe it doesn't filter as well as the same-sized PureONE and DENSO filters that I use in the other vehicles? Other than less good oil filtration, what's the main cause of increased insolubles? I'm now running Green Earth Technologies G-OIL 5W-30 in her car, despite the vehicle's spec being 5W-20. (I have a pretty good stash of the stuff that I got free-after-rebate.)

 

[daves87rs]

Proof that I should have bought a case of it while it was on sale...

 

[HTSS_TR]

TBN is only 1.4 at 5100 miles and they actually recommended go up 7000-8000 miles OCI next time with the same oil ? I wouldn't go beyond 5k miles OCI for the same driving conditions with the same oil.

 

[daves87rs]

Originally Posted By: HTSS_TR

TBN is only 1.4 at 5100 miles and they actually recommended go up 7000-8000 miles OCI next time with the same oil ? I wouldn't go beyond 5k miles OCI for the same driving conditions with the same oil.

7 might be a bit high, but I could see 6k here...

 

[Artem]

How long was it on use for?

 

[chubbs1]

Originally Posted By: HTSS_TR

TBN is only 1.4 at 5100 miles and they actually recommended go up 7000-8000 miles OCI next time with the same oil ? I wouldn't go beyond 5k miles OCI for the same driving conditions with the same oil.

+1 TBN is 1.4 I would say it is pretty spent. Otherwise great, just check the air filter/intake and maybe try a different oil filter. I would say that vehicle is a good candidate for premium oil and a longer OCI. Thanks for posting Barlow!

 

[daves87rs]

Actually, for mostly city driving around here, the TBN is pretty good...

 

[addyguy]

Silicon and insols are really high for 5k. Check the air filter, and the ducting to the air filter to see if all is sealing well, and check if the AF is dirty.

 

[barlowc]

I just finishing digging through my records on this car. It looks like the last time I changed her air filter was 3 1/2 years and 27,600 miles ago. I put in a Fram CA8911. I'll have to pull it and check things out. I'm not nearly as diligent with her car as I am my own.

 

[barlowc]

I cut open the Bosch Premium 3323 that was used during this OCI earlier today. You can find the pictures here. I found the filter's bypass stuck open and imagine it could have led to the higher percentage of insolubles in the UOA.

 

[ltslimjim]

^Fail, Bosch! The media looks okay in the other thread, so it doesn't appear loaded and then in bypass. You did say it was 'stuck' open.

 

[barlowc]

Yep, stuck open. Seems as if there was enough pressure that the squiggly flat spring (whatever they call that type of spring) bent and thus the bypass stayed open.

 

[ltslimjim]

Momma IL been racing to redline and beyond much?

 

[johnachak]

Originally Posted By: HTSS_TR

TBN is only 1.4 at 5100 miles and they actually recommended go up 7000-8000 miles OCI next time with the same oil ? I wouldn't go beyond 5k miles OCI for the same driving conditions with the same oil.

Yeah, that didn't make sense to me either. 0.6 TBN left to low and they're recommending over 2000 more miles! Seems odd.

 

[barlowc]

I just posted an update in the thread about the filter that I cut open. My update said... You know... I may give Bosch the benefit of the doubt here. A thought dawned on me earlier. I will usually drill a 1/8" hole in the dome-end of filters when I remove them so as to drain as much oil as possible. Looking things over, it looks like the drill bit may have made contact with the spring and had enough pressure from me pushing down that it bent the spring. That's a more likely explanation of what I found than for there to have been a manufacturing defect or filter failure. So a failed/defective filter is unlikely the cause for the higher insolubles.

 

[ltslimjim]

Originally Posted By: barlowc

I just posted an update in the thread about the filter that I cut open. My update said... You know... I may give Bosch the benefit of the doubt here. A thought dawned on me earlier. I will usually drill a 1/8" hole in the dome-end of filters when I remove them so as to drain as much oil as possible. Looking things over, it looks like the drill bit may have made contact with the spring and had enough pressure from me pushing down that it bent the spring. That's a more likely explanation of what I found than for there to have been a manufacturing defect or filter failure. So a failed/defective filter is unlikely the cause for the higher insolubles.

^Thanks for the update. I'd still hope oil filtration and cleanup that's going on(sounds like it could be carbon deposits moving around or the like?) would eventually calm down and the insols would track down. Do you use an fuel system cleaners in this app? Have you ever tried a top-end foam cleaner for the combustion chamber?

 

[barlowc]

I do use a fuel-system cleaner at every oil change. In the past, it was usually Chevron Pro-Gard with Techron. The most recent times I used Advance Auto Parts Fuel Injector Cleaner or Shell V-Power because I had free bottles that I'd gotten along the way. I've been saving my stash of Gumout Regane for use in my own vehicles. I've never tried a top-end cleaner. Generally, I just change the oil around 4,500 miles using Mobil, Quaker State, or Valvoline conventional (whatever I happen to pick up on sale) and send her on her way. I used the Service Pro blend a couple times when I was able to get it for $1.50/quart. And there was one time when I made a mix using some partial quarts of Pennzoil Platinum and Valvoline SynPower and then completed it with a couple quarts of Meijer brand conventional. Filters were generally Fram Orange Can and Purolator Classic. I tapped into my DENSO and PureONE stash a couple of time and then picked up a handful of Bosch Premium filters when I could get them cheap. It's my mother-in-law's car, so I'm not nearly as picky and obsessive about what I use as I am with my own vehicles.

 

[ltslimjim]

Sounds like the current COA is working fine. Who knows, get another check in a year or two, then call it quits depending.

 

[barlowc]

Yeah, this was really just a "health check" of sorts. I wanted to make sure there wasn't any high wear or anything else indicative of a real problem. I also thought folks might be interested in the UOA of Service Pro oil since I hadn't seen one before.

 

[ltslimjim]

^Kinda had that feel. Thanks for posting it up either way. Props to you for getting that health check done for a relative.