2008 1st oil change

[twarp6]

I have a 2008 Pilot EXL with 9256 miles and the MM still says 50% this seems a little long for an oil change. can anyone verify. Thanks

[Shindig78]

I agree that it seems a little long. What type of driving do you do in the Pilot? Your driving style has a lot to do with how the Maintenance Minder works. If you're easy on the throttle and drive a lot of highway miles, you could end up with a fairly long maintenance interval.

If I remember correctly, the owner's manual recommends taking your Pilot in for service if the Maintenance Minder light has not come on after one year. When you take it into the dealer, you may want to mention this to the service writer and ask them to look into it.

[twarp6]

It's my wife's and she's pretty easy on it. But still I'm concerned that at the rate it's going it'll be 17 to 19k before oil change on break-in oil! I look up on a 2005 pilot they suggest 1 year or 15k for first oil change so maybe it's o-k. When did you do you 1st oil change on your 2008

[bigdadi]

I had about 5,000 mile on My 2008, then the MM asked for oil change.

[wazubian]

I have had cars that have similar or more advanced maintenance minders, and my BMW 3 and 5 series will BOTH recommend their first oil changes at 12k+ miles, and many have reported seeing upwards of 17-19k miles. I know BMW comes with mobil syn from the factory and recommends it, but oils are much better than you think. We have no way of knowing if oil needs to be changed simply based on its color. With all that said on cars with MM's, I stil make the first oil change at 5k miles or 6 months. Then I follow what the car tells me.

[ctobio]

If it makes you feel better, for $20 you can get your oil tested at Blackstone Labs. That's the only way to tell for sure if oil is still good.

[Shindig78]

Originally posted by bigdadi
I had about 5,000 mile on My 2008, then the MM asked for oil change.

Same here, and I have what I consider to be pretty average driving conditions. My commute to work is 20 miles each way, about half in city stop-and-go, and half on the highway.

[whizmo]

My bet is that something is off with the MM. Honda is pretty conservative with their oil change intervals. and I'd estimate that 90% of owners find the system calling for an oil change between 5K and 8K miles. (My 2006 is typically calling for changes ever 5K.) Perhaps if the majority of your miles are long trips at steady highway speeds, then it could be explained, but that's still way higher than any of us here have experienced. Perhaps something is amiss.

Many Euro brand cars do routinely call for 20K oil changes, but they typically require synthetic oil whereas Honda bases their recommendations on the assumption the conventional oil is used. And I also think the free maintenance programs that come with many new Euro cars also influences their tradeoff on maintenance intervals.

- Mark

[whizmo]

Originally posted by twarp6
I look up on a 2005 pilot they suggest 1 year or 15k for first oil change so maybe it's o-k.

My understanding is that pre-MM cars (2005 and before) recommended oil changes at 7.5K intervals in normal service and 5K intervals for severe service.

- Mark

[Happydady]

My first 08 oil change was about 5k and MM was at 5%. I commute is 4 miles each way to work, locally.

[bigdadi]

I commute to work M-F 10 miles each way. Driving condition is local highway, with rotaries and traffic lights.

[Shindig78]

Originally posted by bigdadi
I commute to work M-F 10 miles each way. Driving condition is local highway, with rotaries and traffic lights.

Rotaries? I don't think the drivers down here could handle rotaries. We can barely manage traffic lights and four-way stop signs... ;-)