So i bought a 99 accord lx 4cyl with almost 140k miles. The engine seems strong and the a/c is cold when it works(another thread). I changed the oil today. The guy said it was due when I bought it.

Turns out, if the writing on the filter is correct, that he did not change it for the past year. the date on the filter was october of 2010. what a chump, considering he said he was religious about the oil.

Now I need to know if I should drop the pan, clean and put on a new seal. I am also considering changing the oil monthly for a while to try and get out anything that is gunky and such.

Would this be ok? Would it do any good or should I do something more aggressive(if there is anything). I am going to keep it with traditional oil, not synthetic. Im worried about the detergents breaking anything up and causing leaks.

Any help or ideas would be great, thanks.

 

Pull the valve cover off and examine the valve train. If it has a nice tan color w/ minimum coked oil build-up, you should be fine. If covered w/ coked oil everywhere, then you may have some problems.

good luck

 

I typically go by mileage an not by time for my oil changes. The previous owner may have bought the oil filters as a group as well.

Follow TexasHonda's suggestion to see if you have any potential problems.

 

I think you are overreacting. Dropping the pan will give you a nice, clean pan, but won't do anything about sludge in the top end, if there even is any. If he got the oil up to normal operating temps with a decent filter then 10 months is no big deal. I would just run your current fill for 3 months, and send in a sample for a UOA.

 

94 -140k if it was run the same amount of miles every year I figure you have about 10k on the oil. some new engines have gone to 10k oil changes. not because the engines are better but because the oil is better. look at the filter if it's a quality filter he probably had good oil in it .

 

Take a wire coathanger & bend into a loop or hook or something like that. After draining the oil, stick it into the drain hole & scrape it around in the pan. Look for any "chunks".

Remove the valve cover, but be prepared to get a new gasket. You don't know whether the old gasket will be hardened from age & heat - then it won't always re-seal.

Couple quick oil changes would be a good idea, like maybe 1,000 miles or so.

If you want to get techie, send an oil sample for analysis. Then you'll know if that year-old oil was really as bad as you think.

 

I wouldnt worry about it, I change mine about every 4-5k but I know my wife drove it for some periods up to 8-10k and 8-10 months between oil changes. I dont think you can go by the date on the filter. Like someone else said they may have bought several at a time, and the store could have had a old one in the back they bought.