01 Honda Civic 1.7/4cyl oil advice

[Jaymus]

My sister just traded her previous car for an 01 Honda Civic with the 1.7 liter in it. It calls for 5w-20, I believe.

What oil shows up good in these cars. I was thinking of two oils in particular. One is going with Motorcraft 5w-20. Anyone object?

The other is Pennzoil Platinum 5w-20. That oil, also, seems to always show great UOA's.

I just need a few opinions before I go pick the oil up, today. Thanks.

 

[VK56VD]

how many miles on the civic?

 

[Jaymus]

91,000 miles. Should I step up to a 30 weight?

 

[peking]

I use PP in my 01 and love it. I can tell it runs quieter with PP than other synthetics.

 

[Jaymus]

I don't see an edit, sorry, but here's my thinking on this. If it was new or near new (up to 50k miles) I wouldn't hesitate to use 5W-20. But, I don't think it can be argued that a 5W-30, or xW-30 in general, will be able to put more mileage on them than a 5W-20 oil. She is an oil abuser, lol. By that, I mean, she will run the car a little hard and also probably 7k miles. This is why I question if a 5W-20 will really be up to some abuse like an xW-30 would be. I worry too much about this stuff, I guess.

EDIT: Which PP do you use?

EDIT: And how many miles do you have on your car? How many miles do you put on the oil? Do you have any UOA's by any chance?

 

[02zx9r]

either one of the ones you listed will get you 7K. A 5W20 will be just as good if not better than 5W30

maxlife would be a good option as well

 

[peking]

Actually, I do oil changes for two Civics. Mine and the niece's. My has 85K and her car has 98K. BTW, she has a 02. I try to use 5W-20 when I can but sometimes use 5W-30. I have no problems using a thicker oil (no thicker than 5W-30) in the summer but for sure, I only use 5W-20 for the Minnesota Winters. Have no worries, the PP 5W-20 should be able to take the abuse. haha Also, I change my oil at 5K and the niece's at 7.5K b/c she gets lazy to bring it in. At both intervals, the oil still looks good but haven't done a UOA. Sorry, I don't believe in paying the money for it b/c that can buy me a lot of $0.99 synthetic oil on sale. Hope this helps you.

Peace,
Paul

 

[Mr Nice]

The least expensive 5w20 oil you can find for all season (sub zero to 100 degrees +)

Does this 2001 Civic still have the factory struts ??

This is a known problem and quite expensive repair....

 

[Jaymus]

I think I'll give PP 5W-20 a try.

BTW, what's up with struts? I'd say they are factory?

 

[asiancivicmaniac]

Honda only requires 10k oil changes so any 5w-20 you want and your sister should be OK even if she changes the oil at 7k ocis. I have an 04 and I change mine every 5k.

Originally Posted By: LT4 Vette
The least expensive 5w20 oil you can find for all season (sub zero to 100 degrees +)

Does this 2001 Civic still have the factory struts ??

This is a known problem and quite expensive repair....



Do you know if this problem affects the whole 7th gen years of Civics or only the earlier ones?

 

[Mr Nice]

2001 and 2002 are known for bad struts.

2003 - 2005 Civics do NOT have the bad struts.

My mom also has a 2001 Civic, but she only drives 5K miles per year, but at around 60-70K miles they will start to leak.

 

[peking]

Originally Posted By: Jaymus
BTW, what's up with struts? I'd say they are factory?


They cr*pped out on the niece's car before 80K. She just had them replaced and they ride is MUCH better now. Still no problems with mine.

 

[addyguy]

Personally, I'd use either Pennzoil YB 5W-20, OR Castrol GTX 5W-20. Both are very strong oils that have shown good results...just my $0.02!

 

[Jaymus]

I wasn't aware that Castrol GTX came in 5w-20. It's just that she will be going 6-7k miles on her oil, and I only trust a synthetic to do that in this viscosity range.

Thanks for all the tips, guys. Going to go with some Pennzoil Platinum and see how it goes.

 

[addyguy]

The GTX would survive 6-7k miles in a Honda, easy. It's a solid oil. But PP is obviously a great oil as well.

 

[KBK]

hmm, I have 04 Civic and I always use the M1 5w-20 or 5w-30 so they work great for me. I saw the deal on Valvoline Synthetic so I would like to try it.