What Oil Are You Running In Your Honda 1.5T?

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john_pifer

john_pifer

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My girlfriend bought a new 2018 Honda Civic (LX, hatchback, 6-speed manual) recently and asked me what I'd run for oil. She lives in northern Indiana in a smaller town, and lives less than 2 miles from work, so, the car will be short-tripped a lot. However, she attends one of her classes in a town about an hour away, so, at least, for right now, the car will have at least a couple of hours of continuous driving per week, that will allow the oil to reach operating temp and stay there for a while.

I know there have been some documented cases of fuel dilution with these cars, so, my tendency is to tell her to run a 0W-30.

I run PPPP 10W-30 in my 2016 WRX, which is also TGDI and suffers from fuel dilution of the oil. But I live in Tennessee where the temps are warmer and my car is also kept in an attached garage, so, most of my cold starts aren't very cold. It's also not my daily driver.

In contrast, hers is her daily and is kept outside.

If cost was no object, I'd tell her to run the PPPP 0W-30 Euro LX. But I was going to advise her to adopt a 5000-mi. OCI due to the fuel dilution problem, her short trips, the cold temps and cold starts, and that seems like a pretty big waste of money.

I figure the 2 most common and affordable choices would be M1 AFE and Castrol. And doesn't Pennzoil also make another 0W-30 as well?

She probably will do at least 1 or 2 UOAs at some point.

I did drive the car while I was up there, and I'm impressed. Feels more powerful than the 174 HP rating would suggest, and it's got a nice, linear powerband. Felt like it pulled all the way to redline. And the engine is very flexible; You could shift to 6th by 30 mph and it would just cruise along without lugging, as long as you were just driving easy around town.
 
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I am running Amsoil 5w30 in my 1.5T Civic. Significantly cheaper option would be PPPP5w30 with very low for 30 weight viscosity. Or valvoline 5w30 which is also quite low on vis. I'm not very familiar with the climate in your area therefore 0w30 may be beneficial in M1 AFE flavor. But wait, you are about to witness another thin vs thick and OEM recommended vs custom oil weight fight
 
You're going to get someone telling you that edge 0w40 is the only way to go. Wait for it.

I have an Accord 2.0t. While not the same car it does have a bit of a fuel dilution problem as well. I'll be running pp 5w30 or the Valvoline syn 5w30. I have both and will likely do one run of each and see if I have a preference.

AFE 0w30 might be a good choice as well. You mention euro lx. Agree it's a good oil but expensive. Another option would be pennzoil euro l. Stout oil with euro specs, dexos 2, and cheap.
 
If I understand correctly, the owners manual recommends 0W20. Is there a reason to use something other than 0w20 (or 5w20, of it's on sale or you have a few extra quarts lying around)? I'm sure Honda wouldn't recommend something that will cause problems, at least during the warranty period.

IMO, the brand of 0w20 doesn't really matter if it meets spec. However, I have found that Castrol Magnatec, Pennzoil Platinum, and Maxlife run quietest in my Honda, if quietness means anything; Mobil1 syn was loud, as was whatever-the-dealer-used oil.
 
My 2016 Civic Coupe 1.5 is driven by my daughter who during the first two years went to college 3 hours away so the fuel dilution was kept at bay by the large differential of highway vs city driving as she came home about every other weekend and rarely drove it when on campus. During this time i put Castrol Edge 0w-20 in it. She graduated this May and a month or so ago i checked the oil and the oil level had climbed over a half inch above the orange level indicator. This no doubt was brought on by her now constant city driving and the weather cooling down. I quickly dumped the old oil and threw in a Frankenbrew that even included a quart of Ravenol 5w-40 and i left the oil level right at half way btwn full and add marks to give room for additional fuel dilution.
Once the Frankenbrew is needing to be replaced ill probably just go with 5w-30 Castrol Edge or Mobil1 EP and just keep an eye on the level

What i dont understand is Honda seems to be full scale dealing with the CR-V or what ever it is that has this same set up but i havent seen anything to address the Civics.
 
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I think the belief is that because fuel dilution really seems to thin the oil, a slightly thicker oil will help mitigate this risk. I also forgot to add that I'd go no longer than 5k between changes and use 89 octane fuel, at a minimum.

Forgot about magnatec. Lots of people have had good luck using this in diluting tgdi engines. It's priced right as well. Don't forget that pennzoil has a rebate through the end of the year and Valvoline has a rebate through the end of the month.
 
OP:

Given her northern Indiana location and the fact that it's a brand new car, I'd run the recommended oil in the winter (0W-20?). I'd review the PDS for all your 0W-20 candidates and use the thickest one. Then, in the summer, you could try a xW-30, but this time I'd choose the thinnest one. Also, given the short tripping I think a 5k OCI might be on the long side. Those motors have small sumps.

Scott
 
Originally Posted by john_pifer
My girlfriend bought a new 2018 Honda Civic (LX, hatchback, 6-speed manual) recently and asked me what I'd run for oil. She lives in northern Indiana in a smaller town, and lives less than 2 miles from work, so, the car will be short-tripped a lot. However, she attends one of her classes in a town about an hour away, so, at least, for right now, the car will have at least a couple of hours of continuous driving per week, that will allow the oil to reach operating temp and stay there for a while.

I know there have been some documented cases of fuel dilution with these cars, so, my tendency is to tell her to run a 0W-30.

I run PPPP 10W-30 in my 2016 WRX, which is also TGDI and suffers from fuel dilution of the oil. But I live in Tennessee where the temps are warmer and my car is also kept in an attached garage, so, most of my cold starts aren't very cold. It's also not my daily driver.

In contrast, hers is her daily and is kept outside.

If cost was no object, I'd tell her to run the PPPP 0W-30 Euro LX. But I was going to advise her to adopt a 5000-mi. OCI due to the fuel dilution problem, her short trips, the cold temps and cold starts, and that seems like a pretty big waste of money.

I figure the 2 most common and affordable choices would be M1 AFE and Castrol. And doesn't Pennzoil also make another 0W-30 as well?

She probably will do at least 1 or 2 UOAs at some point.

I did drive the car while I was up there, and I'm impressed. Feels more powerful than the 174 HP rating would suggest, and it's got a nice, linear powerband. Felt like it pulled all the way to redline. And the engine is very flexible; You could shift to 6th by 30 mph and it would just cruise along without lugging, as long as you were just driving easy around town.


btw that model would have the 2.0l......NOT the 1.5t
 
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That Honda 1.5T only holds 3.7 quarts with filter...... wow!
Change often and I would use 5w30, even during the warranty period.

A girlfriend that discusses oil change products and wants UOAs done..... another wow!
 
Originally Posted by dbias
My 2016 Civic Coupe 1.5 is driven by my daughter who during the first two years went to college 3 hours away so the fuel dilution was kept at bay by the large differential of highway vs city driving as she came home about every other weekend and rarely drove it when on campus. During this time i put Castrol Edge 0w-20 in it. She graduated this May and a month or so ago i checked the oil and the oil level had climbed over a half inch above the orange level indicator. This no doubt was brought on by her now constant city driving and the weather cooling down. I quickly dumped the old oil and threw in a Frankenbrew that even included a quart of Ravenol 5w-40 and i left the oil level right at half way btwn full and add marks to give room for additional fuel dilution.
Once the Frankenbrew is needing to be replaced ill probably just go with 5w-30 Castrol Edge or Mobil1 EP and just keep an eye on the level

What i dont understand is Honda seems to be full scale dealing with the CR-V or what ever it is that has this same set up but i havent seen anything to address the Civics.


Fwiw, it seems Honda isn't really "full scale dealing" with the dilution issue in CRVs. Initial reports seem to indicate the primary emphasis is to correct a lack of cabin heat and even the dealers are saying it isn't a cure for fuel dilution. It seems either the dilution problem truly isn't harmful or the solution is so difficult it can't happen until a more significant engine design change. Or Honda kinda doesn't care.
 
Originally Posted by SLO_Town
OP:Given her northern Indiana location and the fact that it's a brand new car, I'd run the recommended oil in the winter (0W-20?). I'd review the PDS for all your 0W-20 candidates and use the thickest one. Then, in the summer, you could try a xW-30, but this time I'd choose the thinnest one.
Good advice. Winter is plenty cold enough for thinner oil if fuel thinning happens to some extent. Another alternative is to add in a good oil thickener in the spring, as in Schaeffer Moly EP 132 which has a KV100=200 cSt, so about a cup of it this summer to counter fuel presence. Get the oil level to half way on the dipstick & watch it for any rising.
Originally Posted by SLO_Town
Also, given the short tripping I think a 5k OCI might be on the long side. Those motors have small sumpst
Not too small for only 1.5L, a tiny engine. (A Hond GoldWing motorcycle has 1.8L for comparison.). ... 3.7 quarts in the Civic, which is like putting in 7 quarts in a BMW 3.0L.
 
Wondering out loud if maybe this engines fuel dilution issues will subside as the engine matures via better ring sealing. If this engine has a sump that's less than 4qts and you're seeing the oil level climb on the dipstick, I'm thinking short OCIs with a robust oil and by that I mean if the manufacturer says 20 weight oil look for an oil that has a cst that almost breaks into the 30 wt range. This engine sounds like it should be broken in with an eye toward getting the rings to seat asap. Makes me puzzle why Honda felt it so necessary to run such high fuel rates.
 
The only time I've noticed increase on the dipstick (thus far) was with factory fill. I ran UOA and it was severely diluted/sheared. Never since I had the oil level change during OCI. I've ran several UOA with FD measured by GC and it varied from over 5% (first OCI after factory fill) to 2-3% during consequent OCI. Granted, I've been running premium gasoline after I saw 5% FD on the report. So far for my car FD issues doesn't seem to be an issue (knock on wood).
 
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