Good morning!!

I have a 2018 Accord EX sedan that I bought back in early March. I just turned 2,500 miles on it. My "oil life monitor" says that I still have 80 percent remaining. Mathematically, that means I should go more than 10,000 miles before my first oil change. That seems extremely long to me and I have always changed my motor oil between 3,500 and 5,000 miles (Mobil-1) in every vehicle I have owned. (Yes, I know I could go longer - but it is a 'peace of mind' thing to me.)

I originally intended to do the "break in" oil change at 3,500 miles (perhaps sooner) before I take a very long trip with the car this summer. I would then - using Mobil-1 full synthetic oil - change it about every 5,000 miles thereafter. My driving is about 60 percent highway and 40 percent local and I do not drive the car extremely hard or anything like that. My car has the 1.5L turbocharged 4-cyl engine with the CVT automatic.

Any thoughts or opinions on this? Does Honda use full-synthetic oil from the factory? I almost always do my own oil changes, but am considering having the dealership do the first one - and give the car a "once over" to ensure everything is A-OK with it.

Thanks very much for any replies or comments!!

P.S. Does this car have a timing belt that needs to be changed at 60k or does it have a chain (like NIssan) that doesn't need to be changed?

 

Your engine has a chain. There's some history of chain problems associated with oil LEVEL getting low (back around 2003-ish model years). Some people think the oil monitor means they never have to look at the dipstick. Oil life and oil inventory are completely different things...

I think you might struggle to convince your dealer to do the first oil change that early. They like to keep the assembly lubes & greases in there for the full interval.

It may not call for "synthetic" but your car probably calls for 0w-20 oil which doesn't seem to exist in anything but full-synthetic.

I've had a couple Hondas with their oil life monitors, and I've had oil analyzed to convince myself that Honda does a pretty good job with calculating the oil life. Those cars weren't turbos, but I'm inclined to go with their oil-life monitor.

 

Wow! That just seems crazy. I have 3,600 miles on it now (no trouble with the car at all) and the oil life monitor still shows over 60 percent.. Mathematically, that puts my first oil change at close to 10,000 miles. I looked at the dipstick this afternoon (engine cold) and it was completely full - as I would expect. It was a slight shade of brown that is not out of line for this number of miles on the car. If I waited until 10,000 miles, there would be black tar I might have to scrape off the dipstick. LOL!

Glad to know it has a chain rather than a belt. Nissan went to timing chains back in the 1990s and it seems as though Toyota & Honda were more apt to keep using belts rather than chains. That saves a few hundred bucks every 60k to 90k, depending upon the vehicle. Also, a timing belt breaking on an "interference" engine is nothing short of a disaster. All I need to worry about is the serpentine belt, eh?

Thanks very much for the reply!

 

P.S. The higher temperatures associated with a turbocharged engine (especially a smaller one) make me think that oil changes should be more frequent than with a "normal" car - instead of less frequently.

P.P.S. The Accord does take 0-20 oil, which I think ONLY comes in full synthetic. I am not sure what the dealer uses, but I always use Mobil-1 in every vehicle I own.

 

How big is the sump in Hondas turbo engines?

Its pretty common for my Saabs to go 10k miles. I use Mobil-1 and I've had the oil analyzed and it came back good. But it has 6 liters of oil (6.3 US quarts).

I haven't had a Honda turbo engine, so I won't claim personal experience that's an exact match. Take a look at www(dot)bobistheoilguy(dot)com because those guys are really hardcore about their oil and you might find some experience with Honda turbo engines.

 

I ended up going to the Honda dealership last week to have my first oil & filter change done at just over 3,700 miles. I also got a tire rotation (a bit early, I know) for an extra $20. The oil capacity was four quarts - according to the mechanic who worked on my car. He said that the owner guide calls for 3.7, but that they all take four quarts - and he checked it twice on the dipstick. He also said the "old" oil was starting to get a bit dirty, so I am glad that I went ahead and did it.

They used full-synthetic Mobil-1 0w20 oil and Honda OEM filters. The Honda filter actually comes with a 'crush washer' - which is kind of cool. I used to drive Nissans and bought crush washers separately.

The mechanic recommended a 5,000-mile oil change interval, even though he said the car might be okay to go longer. I always went 4.5 to 5k miles in my Nissans with Mobil-1, so I think I will keep the same schedule with the Honda.

I saw a lot of YouTube videos about the Honda lately - never knew there was such a following for a basic car like the Accord. There sure are a lot of enthusiasts who seem to enjoy hopping up the older models into street machines. Not me, though. Mine is just a clean, comfortable sedan that is dependable and gets great gas mileage.

When I feel the need for speed, I will take my Corvette Stingray out of the garage. The 460 bhp V8 and 7-speed manual transmission will put a smile on your face. Totally different car with a totally different mission, though.

Have a great day!!

 

They take 3.7 quarts of oil for an oil change and they take 4.0 quarts of oil for an oil and filter change. A few decades ago I'd have been on the 3-3.5k miles oil change committee. No longer. With the advancements in engine technology, oil technology etc. that's just throwing money out the window to me. I'm driving a brand new HAH. I only drive about 7.5k miles a year so I expect to get oil/filter changes on the anniversary of buying the car even though I suspect it could/would go 2-3k farther. If I had one of the 1.5T engines I'd probably do changes about 7.5k also even though the minder might suggest longer. That's just my take on it. YMMV

 

I guess old habits sometimes die hard. I've always erred on the side of caution when it comes to oil & filter changes. The vast majority of the time, I do my own oil changes. I can use full-synthetic and still do it cheaper than a dealer would charge to use dino oil. I also know it is done right and I let the oil have plenty of time to drain completely.

As much as vehicles cost nowadays, we need to do everything possible to make them last as long as possible. Tolerances are so tight and modern cars run so darn hot, so it sometimes causes me a bit of grief knowing that the oil used is so darn thin (0w20) compared to the tried and true 5w30 (which is what my Corvette takes) that I have used for many years. Oh well, it is what it is.

My oil life monitor is "moving" more quickly now than it did for the first 3,000 miles. Not sure if it is because of the hotter weather, but I have gone not quite 1,000 miles and it is already showing just 80 percent oil life remaining. That would mean 5,000 miles of oil life (putting my next service at 8,700 miles) if it continues on the present trajectory. As of yesterday, I am just over 4,200 miles and my Accord is proving to be a great vehicle.

My only major gripe is that you cannot deactivate the "adaptive" cruise control. It slows down the car far too soon in comparison to where I would let off the throttle. This is irritating on Interstate highways where it sometimes detects a car in another lane & "thinks" it is directly in front of me.

I hope that I get many years of good service from this car.

 

I don't have that adaptive cruise-control; but I always wondered whether it would react to cars in the next lane. Especially on a curve? I agree that would be annoying.

 

It is usually pretty good - but will "react" to vehicles in adjacent lanes if you are going around a curve. The worst part about the feature is that you cannot turn it off if you have the cruise control engaged. There is a way to adjust the sensitivity......but even on the minimum setting, it still slows you down a tad too early. It is really good, though, if you are traveling in heavy traffic closely behind another car. It can even bring you to a stop at a traffic signal and will get you going again when the vehicle in front of you moves.
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Overall, Honda did a pretty good job with it.