I'm soon due for my 1st oil change, 2022 2.0 T. touring. A1 is displayed in the IC. I read in the manual that honda only calls for changing the filter with every other oil change. Why is that? Seems to me a filter is relatively cheap to not change out every oil change. Knowledge, thoughts, comments are welcome.
Rationale for oil filter change every other oil change
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It might have something to do with modern engines not producing as much sludge to clog up the filters. If without solids, oil filters basically can last forever, definitely longer than 2 oil change intervals.
I've watched plenty of videos of oil filter cutting-ups, rarely saw a clogged up filter even on neglected & high mileage engines.
Yeah, they are cheap and easy to replace, just that there might be little difference in terms of filtering performance between changing every time vs changing every other time.
If you are changing the oil.... you're already there, filters are cheap.
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You can hold onto your oil filter and stop unnecessary waste plus you'll benefit by shaving years/miles off of your car.
I'll continue to carry on with my life by replacing the oil filter at every oil change. I do my part by not changing my oil every 3000 miles. Instead, the MM has me at about 7-8k miles each time.
It's already too late to save the planet. Even knowing this, I do my part in other ways. I recycle, I limit one use plastics, I wear most clothes until they get big holes in them, I carpool when I can, etc...
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This is my thought process. Sure, you won't see any ill effects right now. It takes time to see damage. Look at the human body for example. You can eat like crap or be exposed to toxic materials when younger and seem fine. When you get older, the ill effects of what you did when you were younger start showing up in full force. Yes, some people get lucky because of really good genetics, but that's not the norm.
It's the same situation with your car. Yes, some neglected (not necessarily saying this is you because you change filters every other interval) cars will make it, but that isn't the norm. When you don't change the oil filter, that oil filter still has old, contaminated oil in it. This old oil mixes with fresh oil and contaminates the fresh oil faster than if it were just fresh oil. Luckily, Honda oil filters are small and because of this, there isn't a whole lot of old oil to mix with the fresh stuff. On the other hand, oil filters efficiency goes up with usage (to an extent). An oil analysis is a good start, but there's a better test here. Cut open an oil filter and see how much crud the filter has in it. Make sure the filter hasn't broken down enough to warrant a fresh filter. The reason I'm torn on this topic and decide just to change it every oil change isn't because I don't believe Honda, but it's solely because of oil filter quality these days. Most oil filters aren't built well enough to stand up to something like this. Even some of the ones rated for extended intervals don't look well built when they are cut open.
I'm doing 5000 mile OCI (regardless of what MM shows for oil % left) with a quality full synthetic oil. I have been using Fram Ultra filters which are claimed for 20,000 miles of protection. I change the filter every other oil change without reservation considering I'm still changing out the filter at half of it's claimed protection interval. I'm not sure I would do the the same with a Honda filter though.
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Fram used to make Honda filters. The problem with Fram is they make a low quality filter line and a high quality filter line. Not sure where Honda lined up here. Not sure who makes them now though.
10k miles on a Fram Ultra is nothing. I'm a fan of the Fram Ultra as well! That's barely over one oil change on a car where a person uses the MM for oil change intervals. I'm talking about people who go more towards the 20k mile mark. That's a little too long in my opinion.
Is that your professional opinion? You are an engineer? A chemist?
You aren’t sure, but you certainly have an opinion.
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I always swap the filter at every oil change. Probably fine to do the "every other change" that is recommended and I would think the Honda engineers know their parts etc. I really think it comes down to personal preference and I couldn't see myself leaving an "old" filter on when I put in fresh oil, it would be like not putting the manual back in glove box after using it....I just can't do it...
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My professional opinion depends on whether you want to be treated like a human being or an a-hole? Let me know.
For your information, take an oil filter and cut it open (reciprocating saw, angle grinder, whatever you got) and judge the quality for yourself. I've done it before, people on YouTube have done it before... It isn't hard. That way, instead of trying to call someone out, you can look for yourself and tell how easy it is to judge the quality of the oil filter. So easy any idiot can do it as long as that idiot has a means to open it.
Honda doesn't know what oil filter you choose to use. They aren't all made equal. But you seem like the person who pays the dealership to get your oil changed so you probably don't know that.
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Filter changes at every other oil change are nothing new - this is from my the owner's manual that came with a 1976 Monte Carlo that my grandmother owned.
It's common practice to change the oil filter with each oil change even though it's not necessary for a couple of reasons including: 1) Selling more oil filters and 2) uncertainty about whether the filter had been changed during the last oil change.
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It's common practice to change the oil filter with each oil change even though it's not necessary for a couple of reasons including: 1) Selling more oil filters and 2) uncertainty about whether the filter had been changed during the last oil change.
I cannot dispute the waste in landfills but if you use the computer in the car, the calculator when your oil should be changed changing, your filter is a wise move. I also suggest you use a good filter such as Wickes or Napa as it has a better pressure. Relief valve in it.
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A lot of us have hardly used our cars during the pandemic. The minder likely won’t go off for years… I imagine changing the oil once a year for 3,000 miles/year is plenty… and definitely the oil filter every other year at this rate.
You can go years without changing oil if it’s rarely driven. Oil doesn’t go bad at a year or two.
Pair of 8th Gen Sedans - V6 & I4
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I would not have believed that until I read about a guy who changed the oil, then parked his additional car during the pandemic. He did not drive it for a couple years, and he made use of his daily driver vehicle on a "weekly driver" basis.
After just over two years, he started driving it again, put a year of motoring on it, and performed a UOA (used oil analysis).
To my surprise, his extended performance oil had TBN numbers similar to oil that had not sat in the crankcase for two years before a year of driving. The additives package in oil these days amazes me.
OF
well they say the additives in the oil are what degrades over time, so the oil might still be lubricating but not cleaning as well which is not what you want when its a DI engine. i mean you can either create a little bit of extra waste or potentially junk an engine, which would be a much bigger waste. its just easier to be safe and keep an engine healthy than to maintain waste output. which is nothing anyways compared to the waste output of entire industries.
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