New, and need oil advice

[Bulli]

My dad has a 2007 honda civic lx, auto. We bought it on march 12 2007 and we still have the break in oil from the factory because the car wasnt driven alot during this time since my dad didnt work the first 2 months of that time. Currently the car has like 3800 miles and i plan on getting an oil change when it gets to 4,000. Going to go with what ever the dealer has becuase we are goign to be storing the car for the winter. So Synthetic is kind of a waste in this situation since i will have to switch the oil out anyway after winter.

Um so my question is this i guess you can say i am a noob when it comes to oil but i have been very interested in them and want something good for this car. Yes , we also want a full synthetic.
After reviewing all the top brands of synthetic i have come to the conclusion that Mobil 1 5w-20 extended performance is the best.
This oil had the highest vis @100, Vis. index, flash, and pour. I did the research off of their data sheets so i know its not that accurate but its a start right.

the oils i compared were
amsoil xl 5-20
mobil 1 ep 5-20
mobil 1 5-20
Valvoline 5-20
RP5-20
Quaker state 5-20
Redline 5-20
Kendell 5-20

ALL these are fully synthetic oil.
If tjhere are any other good oil that you guys recommend feel free to add them on.

I have been readin these oil analasis and how you guys can tell whats wrong with the engine ie. coolant leak and i think its awsome. My brother , in his older model civic uses mobil 1 and after only a couple thousand miles the oil smells burn and like fuel. Any ideas what that can be? and he changes oil around 3,000-3,500.

Alright well i am looking forward to all the replies.

 

[Titan]

Like you so eloquently stated: "...it is kind of a waste." So, use the cheapest, they're all fine, and your engine will last longer than the car.

Lots of car oils smell burnt and like fuel. That could mean that it's burnt and has fuel in it, OR, it could just be the way it smells. Pennzoil Platinum smells that way to me in my Subaru, but the used oil analysis shows the oil is going great. Noses aren't as accurate as an analysis.

Welcome, by the way!

 

[tsmay51]

Like Titan said. Your motor will more than likely outlast your car on just about any oil out there. I would just go with a mane brand conventional oil and use the recommended intervals by the manual. I just don't see a reason to use syn. in your application.

 

[Bulli]

well money isn't a big issue here and i want to use synthetic in my car. What brands of oil do people here prefer?

 

[SargeGTO]

3000 Mile OCI...I would run either Castrol GTX 5-20 or Valvoline 5-20.

 

[Titan]

Again, I like synthetic oil...when I can find it for 1.99 a quart, like I did with Pennzoil Platinum...there's not any reason NOT to use it...but, I use it with extended oil change intervals. PP also seems to stand up to fuel dilution well, but, Civics aren't especially known for this problem. You're choosing to build a 10 foot fence to keep a Yorkie Terrier in it's yard. "It's kind of a waste."

 

[06VtecV6]

Quote:

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Noses aren't as accurate as an analysis.

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Is that hat *your* Arnold version of "Come with me if you want to live" from Terminator II?!!

(My all-time favorite movie that is tied with Predator for first place)

 

[06VtecV6]

Quote:

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My dad has a 2007 honda civic lx, auto. We bought it on march 12 2007 and we still have the break in oil from the factory because the car wasnt driven alot during this time since my dad didnt work the first 2 months of that time. Currently the car has like 3800 miles and i plan on getting an oil change when it gets to 4,000. Going to go with what ever the dealer has becuase we are goign to be storing the car for the winter. So Synthetic is kind of a waste in this situation since i will have to switch the oil out anyway after winter.

Um so my question is this i guess you can say i am a noob when it comes to oil but i have been very interested in them and want something good for this car. Yes , we also want a full synthetic.
After reviewing all the top brands of synthetic i have come to the conclusion that Mobil 1 5w-20 extended performance is the best.
This oil had the highest vis @100, Vis. index, flash, and pour. I did the research off of their data sheets so i know its not that accurate but its a start right.

the oils i compared were
amsoil xl 5-20
mobil 1 ep 5-20
mobil 1 5-20
Valvoline 5-20
RP5-20
Quaker state 5-20
Redline 5-20
Kendell 5-20

ALL these are fully synthetic oil.
If tjhere are any other good oil that you guys recommend feel free to add them on.

I have been readin these oil analasis and how you guys can tell whats wrong with the engine ie. coolant leak and i think its awsome. My brother , in his older model civic uses mobil 1 and after only a couple thousand miles the oil smells burn and like fuel. Any ideas what that can be? and he changes oil around 3,000-3,500.

Alright well i am looking forward to all the replies.

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You're missing out on the synthetic blends which, IMO, are the best of both worlds... I would use a good blend in your little Civic, I know I do in my little Accord..

Full synthetics, IMO (excluding boutiques minus RP) are no longer the cat's meow...you've seen it yourself with the lackluster M1 results (over time) that you documented in your original post.

If your friend wants to fight fuel dilution issues, first make sure you have fuel dilution issues as someone else so eloquently stated, "noses are as accurate as analysis", get a UOA done on your car ASAP or just try PP and see if it improves. What "it" is is unknown because you have no UOA to tell you more..

 

[02zx9r]

Quote:

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3000 Mile OCI...I would run either Castrol GTX 5-20 or Valvoline 5-20.

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i agree.

also penzoil

 

[02zx9r]

Quote:

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You're missing out on the synthetic blends which, IMO, are the best of both worlds... I would use a good blend in your little Civic, I know I do in my little Accord..

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I am running 3 quarts pen 5W30 and 1.5 quarts penzoil platinum 5w30 in my corolla

 

[tsmay51]

Well, if I was convinced that synthetic is worth the money and money wasn't an issue I would probably go with pennzoil platinum. Unless I could extend my oci I still think synthetic is a waste. Use the search feature and read up a bit here. There is tons of info that may change your mind about synthetics.

 

[Bulli]

hmmm. why do soo many people on here like PP so much?>?
also i think synthetics make the inside of your engine look alot cleaner. My brothers civic used mobil 1 and its fresh , other cars i have looked at are dirty and dark colored inside.

 

[SargeGTO]

Quote:

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hmmm. why do soo many people on here like PP so much?>?
also i think synthetics make the inside of your engine look alot cleaner. My brothers civic used mobil 1 and its fresh , other cars i have looked at are dirty and dark colored inside.

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Because so many people on here have had excellent results with PP. That and PP is a outstanding value with the various promotional pricing available. Fairly simple formula...cheap and a excellent motor oil..... hard to beat.

 

[Gary Allan]

I see your brother's OCI ..but I don't see what annual mileage your father sees. The fact that the car can be stored for the winter suggests that any driving is optional.

..btw.. you only have to change out the winter oil if you actually drive it during the winter. A car in storage with new oil doesn't need an oil change when you bring it out of mothballs.

I'm sorta chuckling (in a nice way

) at the 2 month hiatus from work as the reason why the mileage is so low. Even if you doubled the current mileage, it would still be low. How much could 1/6 more have rung up on the register? Would it have 5k on it yet??

You can do an annual OCI from what I read here.

 

[Bulli]

Whats OIC?
my father makes 32 miles a day sso you can do the math - sundays.

 

[Gary Allan]

Quote:

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my father makes 32 miles a day sso you can do the math

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Do I leave out the winter months

Can I take it that this vehicle only drives 32x5/week 9 months a year? Or is it just 32 miles on Sundays 9 months a year ..and that driving in any other activity (shopping, vacations, day trips, visiting friends, etc.) is just not done?


Oil Change Interval.

 

[jackkpts]

If money isn't an issue, you may also want to consider Amsoil 0w20, which I run in my 06 Accord and 05 Pilot. However, if you will be doing short OCI, like 4K or 5K, I also agree with others on the Penz Platinum. On sale for less than $3 a quart from time to time (buy one get one free). I had a very good 6,700 mile oil analysis on my Accord with PP. Could have gone 10K. Welcome!

 

[Lonnie]

Have you considered MotorCraft 5w-20 at one end of the cost range and BioSyn 0w-20 at the other end?

 

[Forest]

well money isn't a big issue here and i want to use synthetic in my car. What brands of oil do people here prefer?

Son and I both use AMSOIL 5w-30 ASL in my 07 Honda Si and his 03 Type S Acura. Synthetic I was told will stick to the cylinder walls better then conventional. The specs on the 5w-30 ASL are from their web page:

TYPICAL TECHNICAL PROPERTIES (revised 7/07)
AMSOIL 100% Synthetic 5W-30 Motor Oil (ASL)
Kinematic Viscosity @ 100°C, cSt (ASTM D-445) 10.7
Kinematic Viscosity @ 40°C, cSt (ASTM D-445) 59
Viscosity Index (ASTM D-2270) 174
CCS Viscosity @ -30°C, cP (ASTM D-5293) 5322
Pour Point °C (°F) (ASTM D-97) -50 (-58)
Flash Point °C (°F) (ASTM D-92) 228 (442)
Fire Point °C (°F) (ASTM D-92) 244 (471)
Four Ball Wear Test
(ASTM D-4172B: 40 kgf, 75°C, 1200 rpm, 1 hr), Scar, mm 0.35
Noack Volatility, % weight loss (g/100g) (ASTM D-5800) 7.1
High Temperature/High Shear Viscosity
(ASTM D 4683 @ 150°C, 1.0 X 106 s.-1), cP 3.2
Total Base Number 12.2

 

[07MKX]

I find so many funny statements in this post. First, do you think Oil will mold sitting all winter, and should be drained? I just drained the break-in oil (LOL) from an engine that was 2.5 years old. Mileage? 3550. That is just about 105 miles/month. Money is no problem? Then you were looking at the wrong oil's. What did I put in? AMSoil ASM 0W-20. I could have used the SSO, 5W-30. NEXT year when the oil has about 5K miles on it, will be time for an analyst on it. Will I keep the oil for the full 25K miles? Probably not, because I don't mind changing the oil, and the cost of it, means NOTHING in the cost of owning a vehicle. But then again, I waste my money on GOOD vehicle's and fine Women.