I have about 4300 miles on mine and the oil life is at 10%. My dealer told me it would usually need an oil change between 4000 and 5000 miles. He also said that I should have it done around 10%.

 

MM isn't going to analyze the oil itself. It has no way of knowing how fresh the oil is, if it's synthetic or not, or even if it's the right viscosity. It wouldn't even care if there was no oil in the engine at all. It only calculates how much "abuse" it thinks the oil in the system is experiencing based on what the engine is doing to it...that is, unless it's all lies and it really is hard coded. I don't think that's the case.

 

I would say "all lies and it really is hard coded" is much more believable.

 

The idea is that the TSX MM program passively monitors your driving habits, temps, engine on times etc and decides roughly when your "regular oil" (not synthetic as Acura does not require it) is close to the end of its life. Anyone who puts in synthetic, good for you, but that is not OEM requirement, and so does not enter into the equations. Caddy and Benz actively monitor (sensor) oil quality among others, Honda/Acura does not. Honda/Acura monitors other stuff (much cheaper than checking oil directly) People's driving habits don't change that much over the course of time and if you fall in a 5,000 mile interval, most likely that is where you will stay due to your habits. If you find out the questions to the following questions then you will understand what is going on:

1) What variables do the MM monitor?
2) Do my driving habits stay the same or change?
3) How do my driving habits affect the variables the MM monitors?

You may find that it is not the MM that is hardwired, but your driving style. And it is much more than highway or city. That is just an easy basic variable that the manual can talk about. Much more than that and you will lose the average driver. It would drive the average driver crazy if he had to remember all of the stuff the MM monitors like:

1) How many times did I start my car?
2) What was the temp of my engine before I shut it down? Start it up?
3) How many times did I drive to get chips at the corner store, 1000 ft down from my house in the dead of winter?

I doubt any manufacturer would risk putting out bogus information about what their cars do, not worth the bad press if someone found out and made it public....

 

I don't doubt my driving style is hardwired, but that still doesn't explain why after putting on 1,500 highway miles (with a lot fewer starts/stops, more driving at relatively constant speeds, etc.) my MM still has me on track for a 5K oil change. Keep in mind I had my oil changed just two days before I left for this trip. I cannot help but think one the variables that MM is using is not registering correctly (like maybe from a bad sensor) and that my MM might therefore falling back on some default 5K interval. Unless my Acura service department can find something wrong (I know, fat chance) I'll just start ignoring the MM suggestions and start following the guidelines from the '04/'05 owners manual.

 

That brings up another gripe, why on earth did Acura/Honda limit both the trip odometers to just 999 miles? Seems extremely silly since it would cost them bascially nothing to have them top out at 9,999 miles instead (like the ones in my older Toyota pickup do). It would have been nice to use one of them to keep track of milage for maintenance -- not to mention I take trips longer than 999 miles!

 

 

Now thats legit, I hate that as well. Maybe roadtrips in Japan are very dishonorable?

 

I changed my oil at 4800, when the MM was at %5

 

it would have been nice to keep track of miles between oil changes on the TRIPometer

 

I too have wondered just how this maintenance minder system works.

For instance, you have people in this thread claiming they drive 8,000 city miles before the minder tells them it's time for an oil change.


Then you have people like me who drive 70% highway, and i'm lucky if I get 6,000 miles before it hits 0% oil life. There just seems to be no consistancy to this thing. It makes no sense.

 

I am wondering since the maitenance minder is measuring a few parameters, how can I tell if the measurments are correct? What happen if one of sensor is mulfunctioning? Will I see any warning light?

 

Well then I call BS on this post then:

https://acurazine.com/forums/showpos...9&postcount=40

 

How Do You Reset That Damned Flashing Maintinence Light?

 

See page 269 of the owner's manual.

 

Mine hit 0 at a hair until 6k.

 

I haven't had my first oil change yet. I babied the car for the first 1000 miles, but since then, I've been pushing her pretty hard most of the time. I spend more time above 4k and 5k than I probably should. My mileage is about 70/30 between highway/stop & go and twisty backroads. I just got my 15% warning at 3400 miles, which puts me on target to reach 0% at 4000 miles even.

 

Depends on several things. Driving habits mainly.

Now I have 5100 miles on my TL with 30% left. Got the car 4 months ago. I drove about 3500 miles of that for work around town driving, lots of highway. The last amount has been 5 miles to work and home with my new job. So obviously I drive better than you because I got 5100 miles and still 30% left.

 

Recommend Change oil every 5,000....oil is cheap.....sooner if MM calls for it.....look at oil at 5000 it will be dirty....MM is mainly for the people that go 15,000 and say "it just got away from me...or Gee has it been that long?"

 

EDIT:

 

That's what I am saying. I have suspected it all along, but this last trip has made it glaring obvious that MM (at least on my car) is about worthless. It's too bad because it could've been a nice feature.

 

I just had my first oil change at just over 5,500 miles, at the MM's insistence. Probably 80-90% of those were highway miles. Not sure if that is another example of how it is working or how it isn't. It may not just be number of miles and highway/city that the MM considers; for all I know, it monitors oil temperature and oil cleanliness, too. If I get more than 5,500 miles this time around, I'd buy that the MM is working.

 

I got a reminder only once, when the dealer forgot to reset the vehicle's computer during service. Mine is an '04 though.

 

I change the oil on my 1994 Civic @ 5000 miles and it doesn't even know what a MM is...

 

wow some really mixed emotions on the sub....My tsx told me 15% @ 3727 miles 50/50 city highway. I brang it to acura and had them do the change and use mob 1 syn.....
the way i see it
i ask nav how to go somewhere it tells me, if it says a door is open i close it, that my lights are on or key is still in ign i close them or take it out, that fuel is low , i put gas in it---> its just that simple....
$30,000 dollar cars that modifications cost
$200.00 -400.0 for intake
$7-1500 for exhaust
$3-600 for headers
$700 or better for body kits
$4000.00 for superchargers
is there anything mugen that doesnt cost 1500.00 or better???
a $40-$70 dollar oil change which can average to about 22 bucks a month doesnt seem so terrible....

 

for a lot of us it isn't just about the price, it's about wasting time and oil on a change that's too early. or risking that the MM is not correct and we change it too late.

I listen to the MM, because i think it does a pretty fair job.