[DreaminAccord]

Hey y'all,

I'm coming up on my first oil change in the new (to me) Honda and have been reading a lot of threads on the subject matter. According to Honda's oil guide, 0w-20 is "acceptable" but 5w-20 is recommended for the Accord i4 & V6. As I ran 0W-30 Mobil 1 Fully Syn in my Audi A6 2.7L Bi-turbo, I would also like to switch the Accord over the Fully Syn. It is suggested that with a lower weight, thinner oil that MPG may show a slight increase, as well as the oil being able to run smoother in colder temperatures (winter time is coming!)

However, I had read a few threads where folks claimed to burn through as much as 1.5qts using 0W-20 and after switching back to 5W they showed hardly any evidence of burning oil.

Can I hear some inputs/suggestions/opinions on this matter, please? Should I go with 5W-20 Fully Syn or run the 0W-20? The car currently has 24,702 miles. Also, any recommended oil filters? I was thinking of staying with Mobil 1 as I've always had great experiences with the brand.

If I can find a good deal, I will go with Royal Purple.

Thanks

 

[NvrDwn]

Hey y'all,

I'm coming up on my first oil change in the new (to me) Honda and have been reading a lot of threads on the subject matter. According to Honda's oil guide, 0w-20 is "acceptable" but 5w-20 is recommended for the Accord i4 & V6. As I ran 0W-30 Mobil 1 Fully Syn in my Audi A6 2.7L Bi-turbo, I would also like to switch the Accord over the Fully Syn. It is suggested that with a lower weight, thinner oil that MPG may show a slight increase, as well as the oil being able to run smoother in colder temperatures (winter time is coming!)

However, I had read a few threads where folks claimed to burn through as much as 1.5qts using 0W-20 and after switching back to 5W they showed hardly any evidence of burning oil.

Can I hear some inputs/suggestions/opinions on this matter, please? Should I go with 5W-20 Fully Syn or run the 0W-20? The car currently has 24,702 miles. Also, any recommended oil filters? I was thinking of staying with Mobil 1 as I've always had great experiences with the brand.

If I can find a good deal, I will go with Royal Purple.

Thanks

Summer 0-20 winter 5-20.

 

[DreaminAccord]

No explanations behind your recommendation? lol As far as everything I've read, 0W performs better in colder temperatures than 5W as it is in fact thinner and will warm up to operating temp faster than 5W. Both oils will operate at around the same viscosity once at operating temp - that is why they are both graded "20".

The users over at BITOG (Bob Is The Oil Guy) are very knowledgeable and informative regarding different oils and they explain the major difference between 0W vs 5W vs 10W etc.

My question is not so much "is 0W-20 good?" - I think any fully synthetic along the lines of RP, M1, Honda Syn, Toyota Syn, etc. are all excellent oils - but more so "who specifically from the 7.5G V6's has run/is running 0W-20 and have you had any issues, or just the opposite saw better outputs, using the 0W-20 over the recommended 5W-20?" I also noticed that on older models, ('99 for instance) switching would not do them any good, but then on the new models the 0W is the recommended - my guess is most likely because of the fuel efficiency

 

[NvrDwn]

No explanations behind your recommendation? lol As far as everything I've read, 0W performs better in colder temperatures than 5W.

The users over at BITOG (Bob Is The Oil Guy) are very knowledgeable and informative regarding different oils and they explain the major difference between 0W vs 5W vs 10W etc.

My question is not so much "is 0W-20 good?" - I think any fully synthetic along the lines of RP, M1, Honda Syn, Toyota Syn, etc. are all excellent oils - but more so "who specifically from the 7.5G V6's has run/is running 0W-20 and have you had any issues, or just the opposite saw better outputs, using the 0W-20 over the recommended 5W-20?"

That's correct I had it backwards lol. 0w is slightly thinnerand can give better mpg .

 

[DreaminAccord]

Okay, was just making sure I wasn't missing something... :thmsup:

I think I decided after researching a lot of material over the past 2.5 hours that I'm going to go with the 0W-20. I just found on Bernardi's website their Oil Change Kit - I can get 5 qts OEM Honda Fully Syn 0W-20, 1 OEM Honda oil filter and 1 OEM drain plug washer for $37.70 before S/H...not too shabby. You're going to pay that much just for 5 qts of M1 or even more w/ RP. Plus it's specifically made/designed by Honda for our vehicles, so how can I go wrong? Worth a shot... lol

I'd still love to hear comments/concerns on the 0W vs 5W though if y'all have 'em!

 

[NvrDwn]

Okay, was just making sure I wasn't missing something... :thmsup:

I think I decided after researching a lot of material over the past 2.5 hours that I'm going to go with the 0W-20. I just found on Bernardi's website their Oil Change Kit - I can get 5 qts OEM Honda Fully Syn 0W-20, 1 OEM Honda oil filter and 1 OEM drain plug washer for $37.70 before S/H...not too shabby. You're going to pay that much just for 5 qts of M1 or even more w/ RP. Plus it's specifically made/designed by Honda for our vehicles, so how can I go wrong? Worth a shot... lol

I'd still love to hear comments/concerns on the 0W vs 5W though if y'all have 'em!

I bought everything for my last oilchange full synthetic for under 35 . How much is shipping?

 

[DreaminAccord]

lol well I'm also deciding to do a 3x drain/fill ATF change (12 qts) so s/h will be a little more than just the oil kit. The car only has 24k miles on her, but she is going to be 6 years old. So, I think it's time to do the ATF now. Better safe than sorry when it comes to transmissions

For:

5 QTS Honda 0W-20 Full Syn Motor Oil
1 Honda Filter
1 Drain plug washer
12 QTS Honda ATF DW1
1 ATF Drain Plug Washer

S/H quote is around $22. Tomorrow's Sunday, so I'm going to wait & call the local dealer on Monday to see what kind of deals they can give me - regardless, I'd save over $20 on shipping

 

[Arkainzeye]

i run 5w20 and 0w20 in my v accord with NO oil consumption at all. but that doesnt really mean anything as this is my car and they are not all the same. also the thickness or the oil is the # AFTER the (W) not before. example 5w20 vs 5W30, the visocity is the number after the W.. in my accord i have run 0w20, 5w20 & 0w30 all with no issues and NO oil consumption at all..

 

[Toshbar]

put the 0 weight in it and monitor. If it doesn't lose any, run it. If it is losing some, put thicker oil int it.

FWIW, I run 5-20 and lose about 1qt every 2k miles. I have run conventional and synthetic Napa brand(same as valvoline) and had same results.

 

[DreaminAccord]

i run 5w20 and 0w20 in my v accord with NO oil consumption at all. but that doesnt really mean anything as this is my car and they are not all the same. also the thickness or the oil is the # AFTER the (W) not before. example 5w20 vs 5W30, the visocity is the number after the W.. in my accord i have run 0w20, 5w20 & 0w30 all with no issues and NO oil consumption at all..

Thanks for letting me know that you can run both w/o any loss :thmsup:
Also, I never claimed that the beginning number was the viscosity, I said that in fact a 0w is thinner than a 5w and can reach operating temperature quicker. It can all be explained here (link in text):

put the 0 weight in it and monitor. If it doesn't lose any, run it. If it is losing some, put thicker oil int it.

FWIW, I run 5-20 and lose about 1qt every 2k miles. I have run conventional and synthetic Napa brand(same as valvoline) and had same results.

Wow, that seems like a LOT of oil loss, man...have you looked over everything? It sounds like you may have a minor leak somewhere (oil pressure sending unit, bad oil drain plug washer, etc)? How often do you do a full oil change, every 3-4k tops? I'd hope so with that amount of loss...

 

[drozzin]

Okay, was just making sure I wasn't missing something... :thmsup:

I think I decided after researching a lot of material over the past 2.5 hours that I'm going to go with the 0W-20. I just found on Bernardi's website their Oil Change Kit - I can get 5 qts OEM Honda Fully Syn 0W-20, 1 OEM Honda oil filter and 1 OEM drain plug washer for $37.70 before S/H...not too shabby. You're going to pay that much just for 5 qts of M1 or even more w/ RP. Plus it's specifically made/designed by Honda for our vehicles, so how can I go wrong? Worth a shot... lol

I'd still love to hear comments/concerns on the 0W vs 5W though if y'all have 'em!

Honda does not make engine oil AFAIK. They resale other brand.
I never tried 0W20 in my car but I used 5W20 full synt since the first oil change. Initially I used M1 but recently I switched to Kendall GT-1 with liquid titanium (I buy 12 bottles in a box from PSC). It is more then two times cheaper than M1 and works as good as M1.
So far I have 177k miles with not noticeable oil consumption between oil changes.

 

[DreaminAccord]

Honda does not make engine oil AFAIK. They resale other brand.
I never tried 0W20 in my car but I used 5W20 full synt since the first oil change. Initially I used M1 but recently I switched to Kendall GT-1 with liquid titanium (I buy 12 bottles in a box from PSC). It is more then two times cheaper than M1 and works as good as M1.
So far I have 177k miles with not noticeable oil consumption between oil changes.

You are actually the 2nd person I came across tonight that uses Kendall...interesting! btw awesome mileage on the honda My buddy's 06 EX-L V6 Auto just hit 295k no problems. He said the major thing in making Honda's last is to always keep clean oil and ATF fluid and you should be golden


...thanks for the link, I see that you can get a case of the Kendall GT-1 w/ Tit 0W-20 for $49.xx hmmm :scratch: Definitely something to consider.

I read over on the HondaSUV forum that a lot of them were getting their dealerships to match the $6.03/qt price for DW-1 as long as they bought by the case. So, I am still going to wait until Monday to call and see what kind of deal I can work out on ATF + Full Syn oil with them

 

[2005 6mt]

I use 5w-30 M1 EP M1 filter. It shears down to a 20 in a couple thousand miles anyway. The 20 weight was just Honda eaking out slightly better EPA numbers as a fleet. I don't use a drop in 7.5k intervals, engaging VTEC regularly.

 

[Drew03Accord]

I wouldn't run 0w-20. As you rack up miles, engine tolerances are increasing with wear. You should be going UP in viscosity instead of down. I usually run 5w-30 in the warm months and 5w-20 in the winter. (I live in Atlanta). Last winter was a pretty warm one and with almost 140k on the clock, I think I'll be sticking with 5w-30 now. Any mileage increase is so negligible as to not be noticed.

 

[BLCKFLSH]

I buy my filters by the six-pack, from HandAaccessories.com, and Mobil 1 from WallyWorld. Comes out to just over $30 per oil change. I also get my ATF from HandA, they seem to be the only online dealership that will ship fluids. The local dealership can't match the HandA prices, even with shipping added. I've been using Mobil 1 5w-20, and don't lose a drop over the 5000 mile intervals.

 

[DreaminAccord]

Thanks BLCKFLSH, compared to Bernardi, H&A did come in cheaper esp. on their DW-1 ($68 vs $77 12-pk). My order for a case of DW-1, 6-pk oil filters, A/T Drain Plug washer, A/T Fill Plug washer, and 6-pk Oil Drain Plug washers shipped is only coming to $139.xx - I think I'm going to go this route and then just run to the store and pick up oil. I've always had great success with M1 in the Audi, I think I'll stick with it

 

[Toshbar]

Wow, that seems like a LOT of oil loss, man...have you looked over everything? It sounds like you may have a minor leak somewhere (oil pressure sending unit, bad oil drain plug washer, etc)? How often do you do a full oil change, every 3-4k tops? I'd hope so with that amount of loss...

Just noticed that this thread was about the v6.

I have a 4 cyl and this isn't out of the ordinary oil consumption for the k24a4. I'm not worried about mine. I check it often and top off when needed.

 

[2005 6mt]

I wouldn't run 0w-20. As you rack up miles, engine tolerances are increasing with wear. You should be going UP in viscosity instead of down. I usually run 5w-30 in the warm months and 5w-20 in the winter. (I live in Atlanta). Last winter was a pretty warm one and with almost 140k on the clock, I think I'll be sticking with 5w-30 now. Any mileage increase is so negligible as to not be noticed.

+1... That's my thinking as well.

 

[bigballer]

I bought a 06 v6 with 138k back in june. I did an oil change with mobil 1 0w20 when I bought it. I did another oil change last month and from that 5k, i didnt burn a drop of oil. I personally dont think 0w makes any sense in southern states, but in northern states it helps. This week chicago had some hectic weather with mornings in the 40's and afternoons in the 70's, but I really think 0w helps with the warmup a lot in the cold morning startups.

 

[DreaminAccord]

I wouldn't run 0w-20. As you rack up miles, engine tolerances are increasing with wear. You should be going UP in viscosity instead of down. I usually run 5w-30 in the warm months and 5w-20 in the winter. (I live in Atlanta). Last winter was a pretty warm one and with almost 140k on the clock, I think I'll be sticking with 5w-30 now. Any mileage increase is so negligible as to not be noticed.

And being in ATL, that is perfectly fine for you - I've been there numerous times, both in the summer and dead of winter. Y'all may reach the 30's, sometimes even 20's, but hardly ever drop below 0 as we do in the North, so for you, you would not have a need for a 0W-XX.

+1... That's my thinking as well.

Actually with how intricate engines are nowadays, with all of the minute parts, you would not want to increase viscosity (thickness) of the oil as it will not spread as easily as a thinner oil. It is all explained in the article on BITOG Motor Oil 101. The number after the W is the grade, at operating temperature, and each oil in order to fall into a certain grade must meet certain criteria (measured in centistokes cSt). The number before the W represents the viscosity at a cold temperature. The thinner the oil is (0W is thinner than 5W) the faster it will reach operating temperature in cold weather. So in a nutshell, both 0W-20 and 5W-20 are the same viscosity at operating temp (within a few centistokes here or there) - but it is the cold temperature thinness that makes the difference. So for someone like me who lives in colder weather, 0W-20 really would be the better choice as the ideal goal is to get your oil to operating temp the fastest. I ran Mobil 1 0W-30 Full Syn in the Audi because it required a 30 grade, whereas our Honda recommends a 20 grade (of course you can always USE a 30 grade without hurting anything) - but a 20 grade oil will coat easier (the whole purpose of oil) than a 30 grade when at operating temperature - which is what you want for the best engine protection.

Here are just some quotes from Bob Is The Oil Guy to be better explained by those who work in the oil industry and have a lot of knowledge on the subject matter:

The "viscosity" of the oil decreases as the temperature increases, not the other way around.

Do not think of the first number and the second number as the same unit of measure. The first number gives you an idea of the relative ease of pumping at extremely cold temperatures. The second number gives you an idea of the viscosity of the oil at "normal" oil temperatures in an at temperature engine of 100C.

The numbers before and after the "w" simply represent viscosity ranges at temp.

A straight 30 has to be between 9.30 and 12.49 cST @ 100C to be classified as a 30 weight oil.

The same goes for a multigrade with 30 after the "W". So 0w30, 5w30, 10w30, 15w30, 20w30, 25w30 and 30w30 would all fall inside this.

However, the number in front of the W, IE, the 0 in 0w30, the 5 in 5w30, the 10 in 10w30....etc corresponds with ANOTHER range of viscosities that are measured at a low-temp point that corresponds to that rating.

0w30 has to fall within this range at -40C
5w30 has to fall within this range at -35C
10w30 has to fall within this range at -30C

This is measured through MRV

What I've posted above are how it is defined by the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers).

The MRV values I posted are pulled directly from the product data sheets for those oils provided by their manufacturers.

It is accurate data.

A 0w-oil is thinner than a 5w at startup, but it is not thin compared the viscosity either would have at 100C. Say you are comparing M1 0w30 to M1 5w30:

The 0w30 has a viscosity of 10.6 centistokes @ 100C.
The 5w30 has a viscosity of 11.3 centistokes @ 100C.

Minimum allowable viscosity of a 30-weight according to SAE specs is 9.3 cSt.

But on a start at 0C, the oil viscosities would be (according to the Widman calculator):

420 cSt for 0w30.
521 cSt for 5w30.

So the viscosity of the 0w30 is 20% lower than the 5w30 at the low startup temperature, but it is 45 times the minimum allowable viscosity for a 30-weight oil when at high temperature. The very high viscosity present on a cold start will give very high oil film thickness, but will cause a lot of viscous drag in the engine, leading to higher fuel consumption until the oil warms up and thins out.

Let's illustrate. It'll be an exaggeration, but I'm just trying to help you understand it better:

- When 5w-40 is first started at say 32F, it has consistency/thickness of light honey.
- When 20w-50 is first started at 32F, it has consistency/thickness of grease.
- When both 5w-40 and 20w-50 are at operating temp, they are similar in consistency/thickness to juice (the Xw-50 being just a slightly thicker juice, but both very fluid).

The object is to reach the juice consistency as quickly as possible. So, which of the two would you expect to get there faster? Answer: the one that's somewhat thinner to begin with (5w-40). So it is actually the 20w-50 that would need a longer warmup time in very cold weather. That is why most engine mfgs even don't suggest using a 20w-XX oil in very cold weather to begin with.