Motor Oil

[tebow]

I have 2001 honda accord lx and i am about to change my oil, and i want to use synthetic oil, but i was wondering what kind of oil i can use, the cap says 5w-20 and i have heard many mechanics say that 5w-30 is just as good or even better and i had someone else tell me that 10w-30 is the same thing. can i have your advice on what kind of oil i should use

[sodaks2k]

Originally Posted by tebow

I have 2001 honda accord lx and i am about to change my oil, and i want to use synthetic oil, but i was wondering what kind of oil i can use, the cap says 5w-20 and i have heard many mechanics say that 5w-30 is just as good or even better and i had someone else tell me that 10w-30 is the same thing. can i have your advice on what kind of oil i should use

V6 or 4 cylinder? If it's a V6 I think they were changed to 5w-30 for some reason? My 4 cylinder uses 5w-30. Some people use 10w-30 for the winter time.

There are mixed feelings on using synthetics on "high" mileage engines. Some say it can break/bust seals, others say it's hog wash. I have 185k miles on mine and I use mobil clean 5000 every 5000ish miles.

[Mechanic]

Tebow, I recommend 5w-30. The controversy regarding 5w-20 verses 5w-30 stems from the fact that there have been a number of reports on the web about the camshafts in high-mileage k-series Honda engines showing significant wear and galling. This, IMHO, stems from the use of 5w-20 weight oil, which Honda began recommending approximately nine years ago to achieve higher fleet-wide mpg averages.

WRT the issue of conventional or synthetic, the principal advantage of synthetic oil is its ability to flow at extremely low temperatures and its exceptional resistance to shearing at high temperatures. Most also have outstanding detergent "packages." (I like Castrol's "Edge" despite its cost, and Mobil 1.) Conventional oils, on the other hand, are much cheaper, and there obviously are literally thousands of Honda engines out there giving outstanding service for tens of thousands of miles. I happen to like Castrol 5w-30 GTX conventional oil, but any of the majors -- Pennzoil, Valvoline, or Motorcraft -- are also excellent products.

[RTexasF]

How many miles are on it and what weight have you been using? How often do you plan on changing it?

In truth either 0W20, 5W20. 0W30, or 5W30 will work just fine. If you plan on extended change intervals (7500+ miles) then synthetic is called for. If you plan on changing every 5,000 miles then synthetic oil is a waste of money.

[tebow]

its 4 cyl 76k miles

[RTexasF]

If it has been running fine for eight years and 76K miles stick with whatever weight you've been using just pick a synth oil of your choice.

[tebow]

ok, i will use 5w-30 then and takn you everyone for the help