Wondering how many others are in the same situation....

So far only two oil changes, I'd say thats a good thing about this car, and other hondas for that matter; very minor maintenance necessary.

Unless I am not aware of a service that I need to get done.

 

Have you been rotating your tires?

 

I guy I work with checks his oil every 4k miles and changes it every 15K. He uses regular oil and changes it annually in april. I find that a bit extreme even with synthetic oil... but... he says it is fine.

Another person changes it during daylight savings... spring forward change the oil... fall back change the oil.

oil change interval is not unique to acura... I have seen 7500 mile intervals for just about any car made in the last 10 years.

I wonder about the extended life oils. I wouldn't mind getting it done once a year...

 

well, haven't had the need to since I got a new set at 8k (dealer replaced with new EL42's).

I will be rotating my tires this weekend, just rented a torque wrench and bought all the supplies to raise the car (jack, two stands).

One concern is the torque wrench almost rubs the wheel and fender when I have it positioned on a lug....maybe I'll have to get an extention.

 

I'm at 14150 right now and won't be changing my oil (my third) until probably about 15500 - 16000.

 

Your third following the MID ? I had my first @ 7000 and I am at 13,5xx with 20% planning to change to Mobil 1 this weekend or so...

curious what kind of driving lead to 3 changes of yours to only 2 of mine...

 

I'm close to my third and I'm at 16,500.

Joe

 

I am on my second oil change (following the mid) the first of which was a synthetic switch over (Mobil1) and only have 7400 miles on the car!!

This car freebases fossil fuels like there is no tomorrow!

Although it may be my right foot....

 

I'm at 18,000 and my MID indicates oil life at <20%. So my third oil change is coming up. Running on Amsoil synthetic.

 

according to my MID, i average about 9-9500 miles every oil change. now at 29K miles, i've only had 4. the first one came early though, around 6,500 miles. i rotate the tires every 5K miles, so for me that's every 6 weeks or so. my alignment, balance and rotation are free after i replaced my crappy EL42s. that's a money saver considering how much the dealer charges for such service

 

Wow, I wet my pants. (j/k)

Thats too long.

Rarely do conventionals last more than 6,000 miles, but it sounds like you do strictly freeway driving. From now on, stay with 6,000 miles and do an oil analysis to extend intervals. The MID should not be trusted when it tells you to run conventional oils past 6,000 miles. The only safe way of extending intervals is to use oil analysis.

Michael

 

I understand you know a lot about oil, but do you really think that 6000 mile interval will make that much difference than a 7500 mile interval. Especially when many manufactures recommend 7500mi. I mean come on.

My daughter hardly ever changes the oil in her Corolla, I fuss at her all the time, but sometimes she just waits until it burns out of her car and fills it back up with what ever is the cheapest. No her car is not in great shape, but at 160,000 miles still runs fine.

Personally I believe a good dino oil at 7k to 8k or a good synthetic at 10k to 12k and the car will last fine. If you are racing, even just occasionally at the drag strip, that is different. Extended WOT puts a lot more stress on an engine.

Over the pond many cars have a recommend interval of 15k to 20k if you use synth oil, and it is the same cars that have a recommended 7k interval no matter what oil you use in the US.

there are two reasons why the interval is so low in the US. Manufactures are scared of frivolious law suits, and they are helping the oil companies.

 

i know you guys obey your mids for oil changes but i just don't believe that these "new" oils can last that long. i change it when the mid tells me to or just about every 5K. if the mid is extending my drain interval i will not obey it. oil cost me 22 bucks for a case of 6 and another 20 bucks for the dealer to change it. for 42 bucks i can have a piece of mind and not worry about if the oil is still able to protect my engine. also since i am not commuting to work by car anymore the oil will sit in the car for months before the mid has a chance count down. i'll change the oil out every 3-4 months if the car does not get driven as much. its just me being anal, i know i am probably going overboard but i don't mind going a little out of my way to protect my car.

 

Infrequent oil changes = more engine wear

Most of you won't see that unless you keep the car to 150,000 miles.

I will change every 4-5k, it only costs $26.

 

I'm confused... If your MID is telling you to change your oil at an average of 9-9500 miles (after your first oil change), then you should have no more than 3 oil changes (1 @ 6500 miles, 2 @ 15500 to 16000 miles, 3 @ 24500 to 25500 miles). Your 4th oil change won't be due until 33500 to 35000 miles.

If you HAVE had 4 oil changes, then your MID is telling you to replace your oil at MOST every 7500 miles. This would work out to be 1 @ 6500 miles, 2 @ 14000 miles, 3 @ 21500 miles, 4 @ 29000 miles.

 

the MID is another useless F'in idiot light in the TL. i see everyone doing BlackStone lab tests and not even going by what MID says. so far the engineers seemed to have cost you money in the wrong places

1. brembo brakes no better than 5at's
2. MID is useless
3. engine oil additive does nothing
4. goofed on early 5at tranny's

 

I drive mostly freeway miles, but the dealer changed my oil at 4,500 without my asking for it. My next one was done at 10,500.

 

i have changed my oil every 3k...coming up on my 8th synthetic oil change. ive always done it every three, its easy and makes me feel better about myself.

 

Oh, I should mention that I changed it at 10,500 and will continue to change my own oil.

 

Personally I'm a 5k interval man, for example my Ody has 4500k and it reads 30% life, we have had it since the begining of Nov.04, almost 5 months and this weekend I'm changing the oil and switching to Mobil 1 ( Wallmart $18.99 5QT container , $2.99 Fram filter..$$$$ ), so I can feel more comfortable going over the 5k marker.
The dealer I bought the TL from said ( and marked with one of those little stickers on the left top portion of the windshield, 3500 service) "it's crazy to think you will wait until you have 5k miles to do an oil change..it's unheard of"...
I just looked at her and said sure, but I'm of the opinion from personal experience that the vehicle runs much smoother with "clean" oil, but it doesn't mean that it will not "run" with dirtier oil...so it's a matter of how you like to have your car perform or how you "baby" your cars.
I hope that if I ever buy a beater, the person who maintained the car is more like me than those people who choose to do the minimun maintenance just because it's a HONDA...

 

there's nothing personal about changing oil. just use comman sense. if you're easy on the car and not in real dusty areas and drive more than 7k miles in 6 months, then a good full synth can go 7k miles or more.

if you driving TL hard everyday and is a dusty environment, then consider a 4-5k change.

if you dont drive miles at all i would not let the oil sit for more than 6 months.

i manage 6 month changes regardless of my miles. so 2x per year i get new synth. if i own the car for 20 years i only do oil change 40x, just 40x over the ownership of my TL! if i elect to do 4x changes per year, once every 3 months, then i'll change it only 80x over 20 years !!

forget about worrying about the oil, just chnage it using common sense and you'll be just fine.

 

HEK,
The last time I was at Wallyworld, M1 5w-20 was not avaliable in 5 quart jugs, but feel free to use 5w-30, it'd only benefit the big oil companies more.

Also, please don't use a Fram Filter. I used to highly endorse the Supertech filters for their quality for the price and their metal endcaps, but not anymore, ever since they switched the "Made In China" Champion Labs Ecore design a month or two ago. The only filters I recommend now is the Purolator PureOne ($5-$6 at Advanced Auto or Pep Boys).

Hmmm...I'm sure that you'd be interested in buying my fleet of cars. They're well maintained...with 10K drains of dino and Lube Control (LC)/Fuel Power (FP). Results have been excellent.

Yeah, and I also check the PCV valve and intake system daily to ensure that they're working properly and leak-free(intake system).

Michael

 

I'm at about 7800 miles with 80% left on my first change. I don't drive the car much anymore, considering I got it in the beginning of August. Just sits quietly in garage next to the NSX. Gas is killing me.
Just continue to drive my GS-R and save some $$ in the process.

 

I just bought my Acura TL 01 and was wondering what kind of oil you guys use. I don't know when the last time it was changed so i will just change it this weekend. 2 questions, what's wrong with Fram filter? and what's the MID that you guys are talking about? Thanks for any input.

 

No MID in the 2G TL, its a feature only in the 3G. I personally think its only good for determining intervals when using synthetic, its not a good idea to use it to determine your intervals while using dino.

Fram filters are just lousy. That simple. They're poorly constructed, with less filter media and terrible workmanship, not to mention the cardboard end caps. The better filters such as the Purolator PureOne feature metal endcaps, which are less prone to failure.

Michael

 

First off, is there a great difference between 7500 and 6000? IMHO, possible, depending on the conditions. Dinos last 5,000 miles without any problems most of the time, and they probably have enough reserve TBN left for it to last another 1,000 or so. So, 6,000 is probably the limit for dinos in 90% of all driving conditions. But when you extend the interval to say, 7500 miles, the additive package has been depleted, and a lot of deposits are not being cleaned by the oil. For that 1500 miles or so, will there be excessive wear? Probably not. But overtime, when an oil is continually being run past its limit, the cumulative buildup leads to excessive sludge, which is bad for the overall health of the engine. Although you probably won’t experience any engine problems or an engine failure unless the sludge becomes so bad that the oil has flow problems, it still isn’t good for the overall health of the engine.

Manufacturers have many reasons for recommending the intervals that they recommend for their cars. A lot of it has to do with how long they plan for the car to last, the ability to advertise lower maintenance costs, and to make it convenient for the average Joe. The 7500 mile interval has been tested by manufacturers before they printed that in the owner's manual, but look how they define 7500 miles (Normal Schedule). Only under very ideal conditions, without stop-n-go traffic, can your driving conditions be considered "normal."

I’m not going to say that dinos aren’t capable of doing 7-8K drains (some blends are such as Schaeffer’s), but they typically last 5-6K. An analysis is necessary to determine whether the oil is capable of that interval under the type of driving that you do.

Lastly, there are many reasons why the drain intervals in Euro are much longer than they are in US; its not because they don't support "big oil." In Euro, I think that they use low sulphur fuel. That has a lot to do with extending oil life. In addition, its very possible that most cars in Euro see more long distance driving, which is a lot easier on the oil since the oil can warm up to its normal temperature. Lastly, most oils are syns in Euro, and Euros tend to make a compromise between wear and the length of the intervals, since oil is much more expensive in Euro.

Michael

 

I agree the MID is useless(almost), but you're just plain crazy if you think the Brembo brakes are no better than the 5AT!! Get real!!

 

perhaps you missued the tests in Motor Trend. 5at stops better than 6mt.

 

Ahh, Motor Trend,, a really fine source of automotive intel. Is this the same Motor Trend that in the past has named the Renault/AMC Encore car of the year???


1 I have driven both, the Brembo's have a much better feel. and 2 the stopping distance with out VSA is dependent on three key factors.. Tires, suspension, and driver ability. If you have read any reviews on the A-spec TL (including, GAWD, Motor Trends) you will find that the Brembo brakes work much better with better tires and suspension..

 

anything works "better" when you buy "better" stuff. i was talking about a OEM (OEM), OEM 5at vs. 6mt. no where did i ever mention a-spec.