2019 Honda Pilot OCI and Oil Choice

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Apr 8, 2009
Messages
508
Location
VA
Wife and I bought a 2019 Honda Pilot EX-L and it now has 3,400 miles on it. The maintenance minder is still at 70% oil life left. I'm guessing with the driving she does, the maintenance minder will show 15% just short of 10k miles....this is what our CR-V did.

I'm contemplating dumping the factory fill oil and filter around 5k miles. If my memory is correct, this is what I did on her CR-V. Any opinions on whether or not to run the factory fill until the maintenance minder drops to 15% or change it half way through?

Finally, the local dealer gave me my first 2 oil changes free and they use Castrol 0w20. I'm sure it is a bulk oil but any thoughts on it?
 
You will typically hear two opinions on this subject. Run factory fill to 15% as Honda uses a special break in oil, or dump early to remove break in material. Maybe 7500 miles would be a good compromise?
 
Originally Posted by gregk24
You will typically hear two opinions on this subject. Run factory fill to 15% as Honda uses a special break in oil, or dump early to remove break in material. Maybe 7500 miles would be a good compromise?


Not a bad idea running to 7500 miles. I was actually hoping the MM would be about 40-50% at the current mileage but it is almost identical to what her CR-V was.
 
On my wife's 2016 Exl i chnaged FF at around 4K. After that 4-5K OCI with different 0w20 - good UOA on all of them with really no difference. Not using any oil and piston slap on cold is still there
 
What does the Honda owner's manual say on this subject? Any particular info w/r to break-in and the factory fill? I would just do what it calls for. 7500 is such a good number to go with b/c it works with tire rotations.
 
Honda says leave it for full OCI or down to 15% on the MM.

More importantly is to check it periodically for oil consumption during first OCI. Then head over to Piloteers and read about disabling the VCM
grin.gif
 
Honda does use a "break in" oil and recommends the factory-fill oil remain in the engine until the first scheduled maintenance interval to ensure proper break in. Now there will be a lot of opinions about changing the "break in" oil early but I say follow what Honda recommends. I have owned several Hondas and currently have the Accord with the same 3.5 V6. I kept the break in oil until the MM told me it was time to change and use the MM to let me know when an oil change is due. I have done oil analysis and the oil still shows good and could have went past what the MM recommends. There were VCM issues in the past with the 3.5 but that has been resolved with current V6s. I say use the free oil changes but make sure they use 0W20 synthetic like the Castrol and they don't try to sneak in a 5W20 dino or blend. Also, make sure you use top tier gas. When I say top tier gas, I do not mean octane rating. Top tier gas is gas that has additional detergents that exceeds EPA recommendations. There is a website that you can find certified gas stations that sell top tier gas. Exxon and Shell are two popular gas stations that sell top tier gas. Using top tier gas really helps keeping the engine clean, especially with Honda's VCM.
 
Our '06 Ody had the VCM and it was the cause of multiple very expensive replacement motor mounts and lots of vibration - terrible design (assume current is much better) to save a tiny bit of gas.
 
Originally Posted by klt1986
Wife and I bought a 2019 Honda Pilot EX-L and it now has 3,400 miles on it. The maintenance minder is still at 70% oil life left. I'm guessing with the driving she does, the maintenance minder will show 15% just short of 10k miles....this is what our CR-V did.

I'm contemplating dumping the factory fill oil and filter around 5k miles. If my memory is correct, this is what I did on her CR-V. Any opinions on whether or not to run the factory fill until the maintenance minder drops to 15% or change it half way through?

Finally, the local dealer gave me my first 2 oil changes free and they use Castrol 0w20. I'm sure it is a bulk oil but any thoughts on it?

What was the age & miles on the former CRV? Why did you trade it-in?
 
I follow the MM on my Pilot and use Mobil 1 0w20 AFE. Have since new. Don't know if the VCM issues have really been resolved or not, so I use the VCM Muzzler.
 
Originally Posted by parshisa
On my wife's 2016 Exl i chnaged FF at around 4K. After that 4-5K OCI with different 0w20 - good UOA on all of them with really no difference. Not using any oil and piston slap on cold is still there


Did you encounter piston slap from the start? I have not noticed any with ours.

Originally Posted by TiGeo
What does the Honda owner's manual say on this subject? Any particular info w/r to break-in and the factory fill? I would just do what it calls for. 7500 is such a good number to go with b/c it works with tire rotations.


Good question. I will check tonight as I have really not thought about it too much since it is new.

Originally Posted by WagonWheel
Honda says leave it for full OCI or down to 15% on the MM.

More importantly is to check it periodically for oil consumption during first OCI. Then head over to Piloteers and read about disabling the VCM
grin.gif



So far the oil level has remained at the full mark.

Originally Posted by Eddddd
Honda does use a "break in" oil and recommends the factory-fill oil remain in the engine until the first scheduled maintenance interval to ensure proper break in. Now there will be a lot of opinions about changing the "break in" oil early but I say follow what Honda recommends. I have owned several Hondas and currently have the Accord with the same 3.5 V6. I kept the break in oil until the MM told me it was time to change and use the MM to let me know when an oil change is due. I have done oil analysis and the oil still shows good and could have went past what the MM recommends. There were VCM issues in the past with the 3.5 but that has been resolved with current V6s. I say use the free oil changes but make sure they use 0W20 synthetic like the Castrol and they don't try to sneak in a 5W20 dino or blend. Also, make sure you use top tier gas. When I say top tier gas, I do not mean octane rating. Top tier gas is gas that has additional detergents that exceeds EPA recommendations. There is a website that you can find certified gas stations that sell top tier gas. Exxon and Shell are two popular gas stations that sell top tier gas. Using top tier gas really helps keeping the engine clean, especially with Honda's VCM.


Do you recall the mileage when the MM got to 15%? I have instructed the wife to use Exxon/Mobil, Shell, or BP as they are all top tier gas stations in our area. We have run a couple tanks of Kroger gas through it. That was due to having fuel points worth $1 off per gallon. Getting 35 gallons of gas at $1.32 or so per gallon is worth it once a month. I have read that some Kroger gas is top tier and others stations it is not....depends on who the supplier is.
 
yeah, just on cold engine. it is unaudible at idle rpm but very noticeable at 1000-1200 rpm range. I checked another brand new pilot dealership had on the lot and it sounded the same. check your and see if it does the same lol
 
Originally Posted by Triple_Se7en
Originally Posted by klt1986
Wife and I bought a 2019 Honda Pilot EX-L and it now has 3,400 miles on it. The maintenance minder is still at 70% oil life left. I'm guessing with the driving she does, the maintenance minder will show 15% just short of 10k miles....this is what our CR-V did.

I'm contemplating dumping the factory fill oil and filter around 5k miles. If my memory is correct, this is what I did on her CR-V. Any opinions on whether or not to run the factory fill until the maintenance minder drops to 15% or change it half way through?

Finally, the local dealer gave me my first 2 oil changes free and they use Castrol 0w20. I'm sure it is a bulk oil but any thoughts on it?


What was the age & miles on the former CRV? Why did you trade it-in?


2008 Honda CR-V EX with just under 200k miles. Thought about keeping it but that would have been 5 vehicles plus a work vehicle in our driveway. Dealer offered a very fair trade in price after we had agreed upon a price for the Pilot. They were close enough that it was not worth the headache of dealing with the tire kickers.
 
Honda does not use special "break in" oil. The break in oil is moly rich from the assembly lube and they recommend it stay in the full OCI.

I kept my Ridgeline break in oil in to about 7500 and changed the filter as well even though honda calls for it to stay in another OCI.

I slapped a filter mag on at about 500 miles and when I removed it I cut the filter open open - it was filled with all kinds of detritus Im happy to have gotten out of the system.


UD
 
Last edited:
I know the feeling. We used to keep three vehicles - then both daughters had their own vehicle. That made (5) also. This went-on for 3-4 years.
It was a pain sometimes, because our driveway is narrow and no turnaround in it. So at least (2) were always on the street..... sometimes 4.....lol
 
Bought our 2019 Pilot at the end of February this year. It had been on the new car lot since it's build date of August 2018. Used it for a 3800 mile driving vacation end of March into early April. Last week with 4900 miles it was still showing 60 percent on the MM.

Went ahead and changed the factory fill because it was coming up to almost a year time wise on the oil. I didn't reset the MM for this early oil change but will be following the MM from now on. I used Mobil 1 AFE 0W20 and I figure the AFE will be in for around 5000 miles or so when the MM final gets down to indicating the "first" oil change. May switch over to Mobil 1 EP 0W20 for the longer intervals which I anticipate will be 8000-10000 as indicated by my MM so far.

I purchased 6 of the Honda A-01 oil filters on line. These filters are getting harder to find but some dealers still sell them for around $10.00 plus shipping. I got mine for about $5.00 each including shipping. Once these are gone, I will more than likely switch to the Mobil oil filter or the Fram Ultra Synthetic filters.

I had also read that this generation of the Pilot uses a different type VCM and will not be installing any type of limiter at this time. I also leave the ECO switch active and leave the Auto Idle Stop functioning. Every fill up since the dealer unknown complimentary fill up at purchase has been a Top Tier product, even on our 9 state driving vacation. Perhaps contrary to what the vast majority of Pilot owners are doing, but the car runs fine, has a 25 MPG lifetime average, and in mixed city/highway driving (70% city-30% highway) still getting between 21MPG and 22 MPG. We are retired so the car isn't driven every day but it is our only vehicle.


I had read that if a brand of gasoline doe not sell Top Tier at all of their stations nationwide, they can not advertise it as being Top Tier even at stations that may be selling a Top Tier gasoline. I think a few years ago there were some Costco stations selling Top Tier, but not all of them so they could not use the Top Tier advertising. They did finally get all of their stations as Top Tier sellers, so now they are on the list as Top Tier stations.

What is Top Tier gasoline?
Top Tier is a trademarked name. It refers to gasolines (and diesel fuels) that meet specific detergent additive specifications way beyond what the EPA requires. To get the Top Tier designation, a brand of gasoline must clean engines better using deposit control additives; it can't contain metallic additives that can harm both the engine and the environment' and it must be available across all octane levels at that brand's stations. Benefits of Top Tier gasoline include:



Top Tier Gasoline
 
At first OCI I went right to an Xg7317 Ultra.

Considering the 20K it could be asked to stay in and better performance and construction - its an easy decision for me.

My Titan, my Polaris RZR and a few gensets I own use the same filter size so its super convenient for me to either pick them up at wal mart or order 6 packs from amazon.


UD
 
Originally Posted by klt1986
Wife and I bought a 2019 Honda Pilot EX-L and it now has 3,400 miles on it. The maintenance minder is still at 70% oil life left. I'm guessing with the driving she does, the maintenance minder will show 15% just short of 10k miles....this is what our CR-V did.

I'm contemplating dumping the factory fill oil and filter around 5k miles. If my memory is correct, this is what I did on her CR-V. Any opinions on whether or not to run the factory fill until the maintenance minder drops to 15% or change it half way through? . . .

Kit1986, you're probably going to get as many different opinions as to whether you should change the factory fill ("FF") early as there are posters who respond to your question. Here's mine in a nutshell: I would change the FF earlier than Honda now recommends. My opinion, FWIW, is based on having owned a least a dozen new Hondas going back over more than 30 years. But let's start with Honda's thinking now.

First, what Honda now recommends, is simple enough: Follow the Mileage Minder ("MM"). However -- and this I think is really important -- for decades before Honda adopted the MM maintenance system, Honda owner's manual included an admonishment not to change the FF early because it was a "special oil" (Honda's term, not just mine). That same advisory also appeared verbatim in the Maintenance section of Honda's "official" website (www.owners.Honda.com) until approximately three years ago.

Let's talk about that "special oil" for a moment. As reflected here, for years Honda owners and non-owners have argued over whether the FF was indeed "special." Some argue that the molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) that shows up (to this day!) in oil samples is only assembly paste. Others -- and I'm one of them -- point to the language that appeared in the owner's manuals for decades and on the company's website for years. Let's be clear: the FF was called a "special oil." Nothing suggested otherwise. In any case, it doesn't matter who's correct as to the source of the MoS2 in the FF. What's important is that it's there, and the amount in the FF remains high -- over 800 ppm. (The oil analyses of the FF on this website confirm this and have for years.)

So, why then should you change the FF early? Well, to answer that question we have to determine what's "early." I am not recommending the FF be drained before the MoS2 in the oil has done what Honda intended with its advisory -- namely, establishing an anti-wear boundary layer on the bearing surfaces, rings, cylinder walls, camshaft lobes, etc.

How long is that going to take? Well, here again, let's look to Honda's history regarding this issue. Honda used to recommend changing the FF at 5k miles. Honda now recommends waiting until the MM indicates an oil change is due. Which advice should we follow? Well, you have to ask yourself why, for all practical purposes, Honda has doubled the mileage involved. (In this regard, as you may know, the MM will "trip" somewhere between 8k and 10k miles, depending on how the vehicles is driven.) IMHO, Honda changed the OCI for a host of reasons, including access to better oils, improved machining techniques, etc., and -- most significantly -- because the company wants to project the idea that its vehicles are environmentally friendly and inexpensive to maintain. Hence, the MM system. That's great for Honda, what about for you?

I'll leave that to you to decide. Me, I'm going with what I know works and has worked well for decades. Namely, I leave the FF in the engine for 5k miles, give or take. Maybe a bit less, 3.5k miles, if the engine's initial running-in has been mostly short trips of less than 10 miles or so. I, however, have not been persuaded that there's a significant benefit to leaving the FF in the engine for 10k miles (or whenever the MM trips). Also -- and this is just me -- I always change the initial factory oil filter early on -- 1.5k to 2k miles. Old habits die hard.

Now you want some real controversy? What are you going to replace the FF with? I've got a new Ridgeline with under 2k miles. This time, instead replacing the FF with just Mobil 1, which I've used for decades as well, I'm going to mix 3 quarts of Toyota's new 0W-20 weight oil (the one with 800-plus ppm of MoS2) with 2.5 quarts of Mobil 1's 0W-20 weight Extended Performance oil. (Both oils, btw, are formulated by Exxon-Mobil, so the mixing doesn't bother me in the least.) You might want to consider this too.
 
Originally Posted by Hounds
Originally Posted by klt1986
Wife and I bought a 2019 Honda Pilot EX-L and it now has 3,400 miles on it. The maintenance minder is still at 70% oil life left. I'm guessing with the driving she does, the maintenance minder will show 15% just short of 10k miles....this is what our CR-V did.

I'm contemplating dumping the factory fill oil and filter around 5k miles. If my memory is correct, this is what I did on her CR-V. Any opinions on whether or not to run the factory fill until the maintenance minder drops to 15% or change it half way through? . . .

Kit1986, you're probably going to get as many different opinions as to whether you should change the factory fill ("FF") early as there are posters who respond to your question. Here's mine in a nutshell: I would change the FF earlier than Honda now recommends. My opinion, FWIW, is based on having owned a least a dozen new Hondas going back over more than 30 years. But let's start with Honda's thinking now.

First, what Honda now recommends, is simple enough: Follow the Mileage Minder ("MM"). However -- and this I think is really important -- for decades before Honda adopted the MM maintenance system, Honda owner's manual included an admonishment not to change the FF early because it was a "special oil" (Honda's term, not just mine). That same advisory also appeared verbatim in the Maintenance section of Honda's "official" website (www.owners.Honda.com) until approximately three years ago.

Let's talk about that "special oil" for a moment. As reflected here, for years Honda owners and non-owners have argued over whether the FF was indeed "special." Some argue that the molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) that shows up (to this day!) in oil samples is only assembly paste. Others -- and I'm one of them -- point to the language that appeared in the owner's manuals for decades and on the company's website for years. Let's be clear: the FF was called a "special oil." Nothing suggested otherwise. In any case, it doesn't matter who's correct as to the source of the MoS2 in the FF. What's important is that it's there, and the amount in the FF remains high -- over 800 ppm. (The oil analyses of the FF on this website confirm this and have for years.)

So, why then should you change the FF early? Well, to answer that question we have to determine what's "early." I am not recommending the FF be drained before the MoS2 in the oil has done what Honda intended with its advisory -- namely, establishing an anti-wear boundary layer on the bearing surfaces, rings, cylinder walls, camshaft lobes, etc.

How long is that going to take? Well, here again, let's look to Honda's history regarding this issue. Honda used to recommend changing the FF at 5k miles. Honda now recommends waiting until the MM indicates an oil change is due. Which advice should we follow? Well, you have to ask yourself why, for all practical purposes, Honda has doubled the mileage involved. (In this regard, as you may know, the MM will "trip" somewhere between 8k and 10k miles, depending on how the vehicles is driven.) IMHO, Honda changed the OCI for a host of reasons, including access to better oils, improved machining techniques, etc., and -- most significantly -- because the company wants to project the idea that its vehicles are environmentally friendly and inexpensive to maintain. Hence, the MM system. That's great for Honda, what about for you?

I'll leave that to you to decide. Me, I'm going with what I know works and has worked well for decades. Namely, I leave the FF in the engine for 5k miles, give or take. Maybe a bit less, 3.5k miles, if the engine's initial running-in has been mostly short trips of less than 10 miles or so. I, however, have not been persuaded that there's a significant benefit to leaving the FF in the engine for 10k miles (or whenever the MM trips). Also -- and this is just me -- I always change the initial factory oil filter early on -- 1.5k to 2k miles. Old habits die hard.

Now you want some real controversy? What are you going to replace the FF with? I've got a new Ridgeline with under 2k miles. This time, instead replacing the FF with just Mobil 1, which I've used for decades as well, I'm going to mix 3 quarts of Toyota's new 0W-20 weight oil (the one with 800-plus ppm of MoS2) with 2.5 quarts of Mobil 1's 0W-20 weight Extended Performance oil. (Both oils, btw, are formulated by Exxon-Mobil, so the mixing doesn't bother me in the least.) You might want to consider this too.



Thanks for the excellent reply. You made a very good case to go ahead and change the FF at about 5k, IMO. I also like the idea of running another high moly oil. My idea is to change the FF at about 5k without reseting the MM. Then, I'd run the 2nd fill until the MM dropped to 15%. From that point on I'd follow the MM.
 
What's in YOUR original factory filter?

What else is in your new engine the filter wont catch?

Here's what was in my 3.5 Honda.

[Linked Image]
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top