Oil, 5w-30

[carld]

Hi all,

i serviced my ep3 yesterday as it was the first time i had done it since owning the car for a month and a half, however i went to honda and asked them what spec oil was required. I was informed it was 5w-30, so i purchased the oil and done the service.

But now after looking at the threads on here regarding oil compatibility, have i been ill advised, or am i ok with what im running, as i dont want anything that is going to cause problems with the car.

 

[Loxy]

It won't cause a problem, it's just not ideal.

It's one of the only things I don't agree with Honda dealers servicing when they recommend this oil. The cynic in me thinks they recommend it because it burns off in use quicker and so they can sell more top-ups. :roll:

5w-40 fully synthetic is the only oil I'll put in my car, it only ever uses oil when on track and virtually never with normal road use.

 

[carld]

Cheers Loxy, is it worth draining and replacing with 5w-40, or just run it for the time being.

 

[Loxy]

It's completely up to you. You shouldn't really have any issues, some people have said it makes the engine noisier etc., but it won't cause any damage.

Just keep an eye on the oil level, check it every 2nd fuel fill up and if you find yourself having to top it up often, swap it out.

It's 5w-30 that most people are using when they post up threads like, "My car has used 1l in 1000 miles," or "VTEC has stopped working." Latter being that the oil level that has dropped.

Don't ever, ever leave it until the oil light comes on. Check it regularly!

 

[carld]

Thanks mate,

i only do on average 150 miles per week. So i will keep an eye on it for the next couple of weeks, but then i will change it with the castrol edge.

Even though the oil filter is new will it be a requirement for that to be changed if it has only been on for a couple of weeks.

 

[Stoo.]

Yes filter too.

 

[carld]

Thanks again gents, i will get that done, lucky i only put the filter back on hand tight.

 

[Bonito]

I use Millers 5w30 and my engine barely ever uses a dribble of it and very rarely I'd need to top up. This goes for on track aswell.

 

[Diles]

Thanks again gents, i will get that done, lucky i only put the filter back on hand tight.

I asked a very similar question last week and like yourself I initially thought I had to change it but like the guys say it won't do any harm, just burn off a bit quicker. I topped up a litre after 1k, so the rumours are true, however I had used 0w30 Castrol Edge, so even thinner but that's what the Castrol website recommended. I've decided to leave it in and do an oil change at the 6k (half interval) mark, which i'm almost one third of the way towards anyway now. Eurocarparts have 25% discount on at the moment if you use PARTS25 which helped a lot toward another 4ltrs to keep me going til then.

 

[carld]

Ive noticed that my engine seems abit tappety, is this due to the oil i put in the 5w30 or is there another reason for this, the car has not used any oil since i serviced it, and its now on 70125.

 

[Bonito]

Any idea of where it sounds tappety from?

 

[moltenice]

Ive noticed that my engine seems abit tappety, is this due to the oil i put in the 5w30 or is there another reason for this, the car has not used any oil since i serviced it, and its now on 70125.

Unless you are running your engine to extreme temps on track or crawling along in hot traffic with no cooling fan , then you shouldn’t really have to worry about 5w30 instead of 5w40 , as long as it is good quality oil and the filter was changed at the same time.

The valve clearances might need adjusted/ tappets to quieten it down.