2004 Honda CR-V Recommendations

[Dave Sherman]

I have a 2004 CR-V, and it's the first car I've had that calls for 5W-20. I've always used Castrol GTX, and my last car was a Saturn that had 128,000 and was still running fine. I read some blurb on some other site (okay, it was Synlube) saying that 5W-20 is bad stuff and it's only to improve gas mileage at the expense of 30% of the engine life. Well, I'm pretty sure Honda is a reputable manufacturer, so I'm not reading too much into that, especially since there was a noticeable lack of any supporting data. Would Mobil 1 be a better way to go? I'm not interested in extended oil change intervals (I'm doing 5,000 mile intervals on the Honda, and did 3,000 on the Saturn). I do want it to last a while though, especially if I do any towing. I never gave much though to synthetics since my family has usually put well over 100,000 miles on our cars (250,000 on my dad's 1947 Lincoln - same engine) and always used dino oil, but if synthetic is as great as it's made out to be, I might consider it. Oh, and I'm using filters from Honda. Any improvement in using the Mobil 1 filter?
-Dave

 

[olefam]

First, I'll preface this by saying that we have a 2005 CR-V EX with Auto trans. Next, my PERSONAL preferance is to use synthetics whenever possible. I know others will disagree, but there it is.
I would not use any fluid other than Honda for anything except engine oil. Honda has made their vehicles very dependent on Honda formulations lately.
As for engine oil and filter, if cost is not an issue, use a full syn such as Mobil 1 for better high and low temp protection. If you can verify that the OEM Honda filter you're using is a Filtech, it should be fine. If it is a "Honeywell/fram" it is as poor a filter as currently manufactured anywhere in the world (I know - I'm being extreme). At any rate, it is not a good filter compared to what you can buy for $6.00 at your local auto parts store. Look for Wix or Purolator. If you want an even better (according to many on this forum) filter, consider a K&N or Amsoil filter. Both are about as good as any you may find anywhere in the world (being extreme again

). Anyway, they're very good.
Hope this is somewhat helpful.
Glen

 

[Pablo]

I know what 5W-20 I'll be using in the Honda 2006 Odyssey. Kind of expensive but killer UOA's!

I'll stick with Honda filters for a bit.

 

[glennc]

Honda engines seem to be very forgiving of engine oil - they seem to put out great UOAs regardless of whether the oil is dino or synth, expensive or cheap.

I would either run a good dino like Havoline and 4-5k oci's, or go all the way to Redline and run 10k oci's. Either way I'd do an occasional UOA to check the health of the engine and verify the performance of the oil. The money saved by using either of these oil regimens compared to Mobil 1 at 5k would pay for an occasional analysis, and you'd be better off having the UOA data.

Though M1 is a very good oil, and I'd have no problem using it - just an expensive routine, especially if you're changing at 5k.

I'd have no qualms about 5W-20 oil, by the way. It will be BETTER than 5W-30 half the time (the half when your engine oil has not fully warmed up), and probably just as good the other half.

- Glenn

 

[z917990]

I'm using Mobil 1 5w-20 in my 2003 Accord (same engine: 2.4 litre I-4 VTEC) and it runs very smoothly. It also gets better than advertised highway mileage (sometimes up to 37 MPG). I don't know whether this is caused by my driving style or the oil, but I'll stick with a proven formula. And, unfortunately, I'm using Honeywell made Honda OEM filters (A02) because that is all they carry at the dealership. However, I only go 5000 mile OCIs (I know; this is too conservative for Mobil 1) so the filter shouldn't be huge issue. Having said that, I have many friends who have Hondas of various years and models who have used the "el-cheapo" oil and filters, have gotten many, many years of good use and have never suffered an oil related failure. Think about it: when was the last time you saw a 15 year old Honda burning oil?

 

[Axe Man]

Similar discussion..

http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=012721;p=1

 

[Audi Junkie]

I use Havoline Synth 5w-30 and a shot of Delo. Also I use Mobil 1 0w-30 with a quart of 0w-40 to keep er quiet.

 

[martyi]

I have a 2006 Honda with the VTEC V6 engine and run 5w20. When the OLM says to change the factory oil I will and it will be Havoline 5w20 with LC20 (I also use FP60 for gas). This is a truck that cost over $30,000 so a few extra dollars for synthetic oil once or twice a year does not bother me. I just don't need it for my kind of driving.

I drive mostly country roads(but not dusty)and I seldom have stop and go traffic. I don't haul or even have a trailer hitch. I put less than 10,000 miles on my truck per year and trade after 5 years for a new truck. Yes, I do have a lot of short trips but it is never really cold here in Texas and I always take a 40 mile trip to town once a week or so which helps. My LC20 and FP60 give me all the extra protection I need regarding oxidation problems from short trip driving and help extend my dino oil out to the 6000 or so miles when the service notice comes on my OLM.

I don't think my situation is like most people but I am very comfortable with the 5w20 formula in my Honda.

 

[yooper]

We also have a 05 CRV and but I am running 5w30 synthetic in it. On the CRV forums many are running 5w30. I have read that this same engine in other parts of the world is spec'd for different weights oil other than 5w20. I just couldn't warm up to the idea of 5w20 but after finding this site I guess I'm learning it's not so bad.

Either way, the car runs excellent on the Amsoil ASL 5w30 and I'm going to shoot for a 7500 oci this time. Next time who knows. I don't think we lost any mileage with the 5w30 but I think I'll do a run of 5w20 to compare.

 

[georgeyew]

I have a 03 Element with the same engine as the CRV. I am running a mix of M1 5W30 and T&SUV at 10K OCI. I just posted my test result in the analysis section of the forum. Feel free to check it out. The wear levels were fairly low. I am happy with the mix.

 

[bkrell]

Yeah, I guess it's what, the K20A engine? I got the first year of the new body style (2002) CR-V and the iVTEC was pretty new then as well. I've used mostly 5W20 M1 though for the first few OC's I did after the dealer freebies, I used M1 5W30 since the 0W20 was not yet widely available. I was one of the few at first to argue w/ people on the HondaSUV.com site that 5W30 wasn't going to ruin the engine. Many believed Honda tolerances were so tight that 5W30 would cause the engine to seize. Many wouldn't accept the whole CAFE issue. That being said, I've run mostly 5W20 synth even though now, of all things, I have 5W30 Castrol GTX in it due to the recent sale.

Word of warning, and I don't know how you other V owners compare, but I never got spectacular gas economy even with 5W20 oil. I do a lot of interstate commuting and w/ the Honda tried to stay right at 70 mph. The best I ever got at that speed w/ no a/c was around 25 mpg. My wife has it as her daily driver now and she seems to get the same economy w/ mixed city highway driving.

 

[yooper]

We get 25 in mixed driving and 30 in the highway, but that's at speeds of 60-65. That's with 5w30 in it.