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Does everyone follow the oil life indicator light?

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Old 04-28-2011, 12:50 PM
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Does everyone follow the oil life indicator light?

Hey everyone,

I have been wondering if anyone here does oil changes differently then when the oil indicator light comes on? I know they have oils out there for up to 10k miles before a change with the correct filter.

Can anyone shed some light on this for me?

I'm switching from regular oil to synthetic next oil change and would like to know if the oil indicator will know for extended oil changes. I read some lights come on at around mid 3k miles and with the new oils out now most are rated at 5k miles.


thanks
Old 04-28-2011, 01:07 PM
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lol i always do my oil change at 3k to 4k no matter what. When my car is at 4k miles after an oil change my board reads that my oil is at 30%. So im not sure how accurate this thing is. Good question.
Old 04-28-2011, 01:10 PM
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the MID is very accurate.
it bases oil life off of start ups, revs, and other conditions that can be found in the owners manual.

it does not take in account for what type of oil, just driving conditions.
follow the MID.
if you're changing it out early like TOnes, then you're throwing away money.

if you love vtec and rev past 4k daily and do a lot of city driving, the oil life will decrease faster than if you drive all highway without ever touching vtec.

my last oil change was some where close to 6to7k miles.
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Old 04-28-2011, 01:15 PM
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Originally Posted by justnspace
the MID is very accurate.
it bases oil life off of start ups, revs, and other conditions that can be found in the owners manual.

it does not take in account for what type of oil, just driving conditions.
follow the MID.
if you're changing it out early like TOnes, then you're throwing away money.

if you love vtec and rev past 4k daily and do a lot of city driving, the oil life will decrease faster than if you drive all highway without ever touching vtec.

my last oil change was some where close to 6to7k miles.
I've put about 2.5k miles since last change and my MID says I have about 70% left. The 6-7k miles range should be about right but of course it depends on how the car is driven.
Old 04-28-2011, 01:45 PM
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Originally Posted by cmoy1122
Hey everyone,

I have been wondering if anyone here does oil changes differently then when the oil indicator light comes on? I know they have oils out there for up to 10k miles before a change with the correct filter.

Can anyone shed some light on this for me?

I'm switching from regular oil to synthetic next oil change and would like to know if the oil indicator will know for extended oil changes. I read some lights come on at around mid 3k miles and with the new oils out now most are rated at 5k miles.


thanks
chris!

you could've asked me in person, lol. follow the MID, its pretty accurate and calculates the revolutions etc.. like how justnspace said.
Old 04-28-2011, 01:49 PM
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Originally Posted by xtcxjigga
chris!

you could've asked me in person
or looked in the 3G Service Department.....
Old 04-28-2011, 02:28 PM
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I perform the service when it hits "<20%". On average that's every 5,000 mi.
Old 04-28-2011, 02:35 PM
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I follow the MID
Old 04-28-2011, 02:38 PM
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I don't. Been at <5% now and I expect another 2,500 miles from that oil.
Old 04-28-2011, 03:16 PM
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Not to throw a wrench in this, but has anyone done Amsoil and gone a 2x MID? I'm on Mobil1 now going by the MID, but looking at Amsoil and they have reports out to 25K and even more...not that I'd do that, but wondered about 15K with a filter replace mid-way.
Old 04-28-2011, 03:36 PM
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^Without doing a proper oil analysis hard to tell, every motor and the environment they are run in are different.

I'd say its safe to run a quality synthetic such as Pennzoil Platinum/Ultra, Mobil 1, Valvoline Synpower and follow the MID.
Old 04-28-2011, 04:24 PM
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Originally Posted by SpiderX1016
I don't. Been at <5% now and I expect another 2,500 miles from that oil.
what kind of oil are you running through ur motor?
Old 04-28-2011, 04:42 PM
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Originally Posted by SpiderX1016
I don't. Been at <5% now and I expect another 2,500 miles from that oil.
im at <5% right now too, but only driven about 5000k miles on my mobil1 ep. i'm also waiting another 2,500 miles to hit 40k so i can knock out oil change, type f trans fluid, 3rd n 4th pressure switches
Old 04-28-2011, 05:08 PM
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I usually change mine when I'm at 10%.
Old 04-28-2011, 07:05 PM
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Originally Posted by VQPower37
what kind of oil are you running through ur motor?
Just regular old Mobil 1 Synthetic. It's been in there for 3,000 miles now.
Old 04-28-2011, 08:27 PM
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Mobile1; MID < 15%; around 6K miles and always a filter
Old 04-28-2011, 08:29 PM
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I follow it-seems to be pretty true to form....


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Old 04-28-2011, 08:30 PM
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I change it every 3K or slightly before. What is your mileage? I'm debating the switch to Full Synthetic (Mobil1), but not sure when I should.
Old 04-28-2011, 08:32 PM
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No.
Old 04-28-2011, 08:37 PM
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ran it all the way down to -6. I didnt even know that it could go negative. lol that was about 7500ish. I was on redline 5w30
Old 04-29-2011, 10:46 PM
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Using Valvoline Max-life (synthetic blend), I change it around at around 4500-5000 miles. It's a bit overkill vs the MID, but as a DIY it's cheap and gives me peace-of-mind. 108,000 miles and counting....
Old 04-29-2011, 11:09 PM
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I change based on my indicator usually last like 7-8K miles
Old 04-30-2011, 12:44 AM
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I've changed mine at 15% the last three oil changes and the mileage was 5100, 5200, and 4500 miles. I use Pennzoil Platinum Synthetic 5W20.
Old 04-30-2011, 06:28 AM
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I usually change at 7.5-8K or if the MID indicates <20% oil life (the MID indicator on the dash with each startup becomes annoying after a while).
For the way I drive, 7.5-8K miles takes me to near 0% oil life. I use Mobil 1 5W-20 EP.
Old 04-30-2011, 06:50 AM
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Oil doesn't wear out, it gets contaminated. If you do a lot of stop and go driving over short distances it gets contaminated much faster than sustained highway driving.

Doesn't matter if you use synthetic or conventional oil, it's the contaminates that cause engine wear problems.
Old 04-30-2011, 09:11 AM
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always follow MID. <15% (or when the car alert annoys me enough to finally get it changed at the latest <10%), regular oil, and i only get about 4000 or so miles per oil change. i've been forced to take the scenic route more often to work b/c of construction on the hwy routes (which would be no different than sitting in a parking lot, i'd rather be actually moving than crawl and stop).
Old 05-02-2011, 06:33 AM
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I just follow the MID down to 15% then get it changed with regular 5w20 oil. My next one coming up soon since I am down to 20% oil life. on my next one I will probably try out the Valvoline Maxlife NextGen 5w20 or 5w30 it seems to have good additives in there
Old 05-02-2011, 10:08 AM
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I sure dont. I changed my oil right when I bought the car while it said over 50% cause I didnt trust the previous owner. So it's inaccurate until I reset it for my next change. Got 6k on the oil right now. Plan to do around 8k using Valvoline Synthetic.

Got Pennzoil Synthetic ready to go at around 60k (bought at high 51k)
Old 05-02-2011, 10:31 AM
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I go by the MID, except this one time when i was too busy to do it.. i was over like 1.5 with the reminder going off each time :P.
I use Mobil 1 Synthetic, i normally run about 4500-5k before it asks for an oil change. NYC driving.
Old 05-02-2011, 11:01 AM
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I've never paid attention to the mileage but I'll start. Just got the oil changed Saturday.
Old 05-02-2011, 05:47 PM
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Great, i should've had asked this question a long time ago seriously lol. I've been wasting lots of money then. I've been using the regular Honda 5w20 oil since day one and im at 28k miles in my car. I wanna change to a different oil, what do you guys suggest best?
Old 05-02-2011, 07:54 PM
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I too have been using whatever Honda/Acura puts in which is usually 5w20 or maybe 5w30 depending on the dealership. Anyways, today I have bought some Valvoline Next Gen High Mileage 5w30 oil and will try that out here soon since I am sitting at 20% oil life. From what I am reading it seams to have good additives
Old 05-02-2011, 08:16 PM
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Originally Posted by mb1976
I too have been using whatever Honda/Acura puts in which is usually 5w20 or maybe 5w30 depending on the dealership. Anyways, today I have bought some Valvoline Next Gen High Mileage 5w30 oil and will try that out here soon since I am sitting at 20% oil life. From what I am reading it seams to have good additives
Perfect, mind sharing any changes you may experience once you swap out your oil dude? Appreciate it!
Old 05-03-2011, 02:06 PM
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I change at 30%.
Old 05-03-2011, 06:35 PM
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Originally Posted by mb1976
I too have been using whatever Honda/Acura puts in which is usually 5w20 or maybe 5w30 depending on the dealership. Anyways, today I have bought some Valvoline Next Gen High Mileage 5w30 oil and will try that out here soon since I am sitting at 20% oil life. From what I am reading it seams to have good additives
any feedback man?
Old 05-03-2011, 07:03 PM
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Nope.
I only do 8K miles a year so I'd rather change out the oil every 6 months since I'm in the camp that thinks time also matters. It's pretty much always been @ 40% or 50% when 6 months rolls around.
Old 05-03-2011, 07:19 PM
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Originally Posted by Adobeman
Nope.
I only do 8K miles a year so I'd rather change out the oil every 6 months since I'm in the camp that thinks time also matters. It's pretty much always been @ 40% or 50% when 6 months rolls around.
oh my gosh lool, how often do you drive? That's how much miles i put in my car in 2 months.
Old 05-03-2011, 10:37 PM
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Originally Posted by tones160
any feedback man?


I haven't done it yet but i am going to take this oil ( Valvoline Next Gen HM 5w30) back due to the fact that I had gotten some other resources about the oil being medicore. I am actually going get either Mobil 1 5w30 Dexo approved or Honda HTO-06 approved or just save some money and go with Motorcraft semisynthetic since this particular oil seems to have good ratings on Honda's engine
Old 05-04-2011, 03:44 AM
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Originally Posted by tones160
oh my gosh lool, how often do you drive? That's how much miles i put in my car in 2 months.
so you put 48,000 miles per year ?
Old 05-04-2011, 06:57 AM
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So what do you guys think I should do in my case? I bought the car in July of last year. I changed the oil last November and my oil life is at 60%. I put on about 1500 miles since then. Oh yeah, I only drive the car on weekends. What should I do? What until the MID tells me to service it or do it now after such a harsh winter? I'm in NYC.


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