Re: Re: for those who use 5w-30

I changed mine yesterday and switched to 5W30. I'll monitor my mileage and report back.



YMMV

Did you ever post a follow-up on this? I might have missed it...

Never mind. found it.

 

Honda Recommends 5W30 !

In light of all of the discussion on oil viscosity...

Look what I found on the Ownerlink site tonight:

DID YOU KNOW...
Honda recommends using a 5W30 motor oil year-round. Heavy oils make an engine harder to start, which can strain the electrical system. Lighter oils flow easier once the cold engine starts, bringing vital lubrication to moving parts.

I guess 5W30 isn't so bad after all...

 

Re: Honda Recommends 5W30 !

In light of all of the discussion on oil viscosity...

Look what I found on the Ownerlink site tonight:

DID YOU KNOW...
Honda recommends using a 5W30 motor oil year-round. Heavy oils make an engine harder to start, which can strain the electrical system. Lighter oils flow easier once the cold engine starts, bringing vital lubrication to moving parts.

I guess 5W30 isn't so bad after all...

Interesting! I don't remember that on the site the last time I looked. I used 5W30 at my change at 5K and will use it again at 10K shortly. The price is right and is available virtually everywhere.

Thanks for the update!

 

Re: Honda Recommends 5W30 !

In light of all of the discussion on oil viscosity...

Look what I found on the Ownerlink site tonight:

DID YOU KNOW...
Honda recommends using a 5W30 motor oil year-round. Heavy oils make an engine harder to start, which can strain the electrical system. Lighter oils flow easier once the cold engine starts, bringing vital lubrication to moving parts.

I guess 5W30 isn't so bad after all...

Where did you see that?
Was it a general recommendation or Pilot specific?

As for as I know Honda recommends 5W20 for the Pilot all year round.

 

Where I found 5W30

Pilot specific

After you sign in (to the Ownerlink site), chose "My Pilot."

The opening screen starts off with "DID YOU KNOW..."

I can email you a screen capture in Word format if you'd like, just PM me if you would like it.

Has anyone else successfully found what I did?

rtrypilot

 

Yes, I just saw the 5W30 recommendation for honda cars under the "Did You Know?" I get a different "did you know" each time I log in. I would still go with what's in the owner's manual. That way, there can be no warranty dispute over whether or not the oil you used caused the problem.

 

5W30 & Warranty

You can bet that most Honda dealers don't adhere to their own recommendations. The ones I called, all use 5W30.

Regarding possible warranty issues, if the dealer is changing oil in Pilots and replacing it with 5W30 (printed on the work order), I doubt the warranty would be affected. If it is affected, the dealer that changes the oil can step up to the plate and take care of the warranty for servicing the vehicle outside of Honda's "recommendations." To keep confusion to a minimum, it would be nice if the owner's manual and the Ownerlink website contained the same content. All said, I believe Honda "recommends" 5W20 in the owner's manual to ensure the EPA that they are promoting LEV/ULEV standards after the sale. The minimal difference between 5W20 and 5W30 must not be that significant if Honda is going to recommend it to the masses on their Ownerlink site.

 

Re: Honda Recommends 5W30 !

DID YOU KNOW...
Honda recommends using a 5W30 motor oil year-round. Heavy oils make an engine harder to start, which can strain the electrical system. Lighter oils flow easier once the cold engine starts, bringing vital lubrication to moving parts.

I guess 5W30 isn't so bad after all...

I'm wondering if that would apply to my 92 Accord as well or if the engines are so different that it would not.

 

Let me get this straight. Florida Guy has posted over 1100 times, but he doesn't own a Pilot. What's wrong with this picture?

 

Re: Re: Honda Recommends 5W30 !

I'm wondering if that would apply to my 92 Accord as well or if the engines are so different that it would not.

I'm guessing at 198K miles, it won't make a lot of difference - 'cept maybe start using (more) oil.

 

Re: Where I found 5W30

Pilot specific

After you sign in (to the Ownerlink site), chose "My Pilot."

The opening screen starts off with "DID YOU KNOW..."

I can email you a screen capture in Word format if you'd like, just PM me if you would like it.

Has anyone else successfully found what I did?

rtrypilot

I am betting the "did you know?" stuff on teh web site is generic.
I went through this whoile discussion with people in a forum, my dealer, and finally Honda (Torance) to get a clear answer when I got my '02 CR-V.

The final answer from Honda agreed with the manual; Recommended 5W20, alternate if unavailable 5W30, under no conditions 10W anything.

From OwnerLink:
Choosing a Motor Oil
Lighter oils flow easier once the cold engine starts, bringing vital lubrication to moving parts. Please consult your owner's manual for the recommended motor oil for your model

 

When I went to my dealer for the 7500 mile service they were going to use Castrol 10w30 until I asked them to use 5w20. This means I probably got 10w30 at 3750 mile oil change because I didn't ask.

If Honda strictly recommends 5w20 or 5w30 why are their dealers not falling in line?

 

. . .
If Honda strictly recommends 5w20 or 5w30 why are their dealers not falling in line?

Because they are not controlled by Honda.
I would bet that more are using 5W20 or at worst 5W30 now that all the new cars recommend it.

 

Let me get this straight. Florida Guy has posted over 1100 times, but he doesn't own a Pilot. What's wrong with this picture?

You haven't been reading my signature line? At first it was research which caused me to decide to wait for the 2004's but by then I had made friends I wanted to keep in touch with and I also wanted to keep up to date on any changes and also practice writing run on sentences.

 

You haven't been reading my signature line? At first it was research which caused me to decide to wait for the 2004's but by then I had made friends I wanted to keep in touch with and I also wanted to keep up to date on any changes and also practice writing run on sentences.

Your practice has paid off.

 

Your practice has paid off.

Why thank you.

 

Because they are not controlled by Honda.
I would bet that more are using 5W20 or at worst 5W30 now that all the new cars recommend it.

Just out of curiosity, why is 5W20 so much "worse" than 5W30? I'm not an expert in any respect, but I don't think the performance of the 20wt is substantially different than the 30wt.

Though the dealers are independent, they still hold a fair amount of liability for having that big blue and white sign out in front of the dealership. There are guidelines within the franchise, and it's the responsibility of each dealer to adhere to them. If they work outside of the guidelines, they pay the consequence.

As with anything, if you do your research before you commit to something (including the service departments practices/procedures), you'll usually end up satisfied. Something I try to do when making a big purchase, is to get the mgr/owner involved in my transactions. I've found that everything runs smoother.

It's not the only way, but it's worked well for me.

rtrypilot

 

Let me get this straight. Florida Guy has posted over 1100 times, but he doesn't own a Pilot. What's wrong with this picture?

Nothing. Why is it wrong to you?

 

Just out of curiosity, why is 5W20 so much "worse" than 5W30? I'm not an expert in any respect, but I don't think the performance of the 20wt is substantially different than the 30wt.

I I said dealers would be using 5W20 or "AT WORST" 5W30 as more newer cars require it.

SO the statement was the 5W30 was worse (READ: not as good) as 5W20.

I only say worse, because I doubt Honda would go to the trouble of recommending 5W20 if it were not better in some regard.

 

I suppose if he wants to spend time in a forum geared towards helping owners or owners to be of a vehicle he doesn't own, then that's his perogative. He's averaging around 180 posts per month. Quite a bit for someone who can't share his Piloting experience with anyone.

 

20 vs. 30 wt

Quote: N_Jay
____________________________________________________
I only say worse, because I doubt Honda would go to the trouble of recommending 5W20 if it were not better in some regard.
____________________________________________________

Point taken. I think Honda recommends the 20wt because that's what was used when they reported the fuel efficiency (LEV/ULEV) to the EPA. Now that the vehicle qualifies as such, they're becoming more lax in thier recommendations (such as the recommendation to use 5W30 year-round). So, as far as protection goes, I think both the 20wt and 30wt will work nearly the same with the only difference being a slight reduction in fuel economy with the 30wt.

I look forward to finding out what my local dealer(s) use. I'll post my findings as the answers become available.

Regards,

rtrypilot

 

Re: 20 vs. 30 wt

...... I think Honda recommends the 20wt because that's what was used when they reported the fuel efficiency (LEV/ULEV) to the EPA. Now that the vehicle qualifies as such, they're becoming more lax in thier recommendations (such as the recommendation to use 5W30 year-round). . . . .

I bet the 5W30 was tossed in by the web designers gathered from the stack of information that was tossed at them to start the Owners Link site.
My guess is that HONDA does not realize that they are recommending any grade other than what is in the owners manual.

 

Re: Re: 20 vs. 30 wt

I bet the 5W30 was tossed in by the web designers gathered from the stack of information that was tossed at them to start the Owners Link site.
My guess is that HONDA does not realize that they are recommending any grade other than what is in the owners manual.

Yep, I can certainly picture that happening. I've seen many times when the information presented on a website being inaccurate due to many things, one of which is a miscommunication between the website developers and the actual policy/technical authors within a corporation.

But what I still don't understand is when the engine of the Pilot is virtually identical to the MDX, as well as the Pilot having identical horsepower/torque numbers, save for the '03 MDX which has 260HP, why Honda is recommending the Pilot to use 5W-20 when the MDX up until now has been recommended to use 5W-30.

Sure, the '03 MDX is recommended to use the 5W-20 and IF the Pilot has the same engine spec and the same output numbers as it, then, sure, the Pilot being required to use 5W-20 makes sense. However, the Pilot's numbers and the specs are closer to the pre '03 MDX engines which are required to use 5W-30 oil.

 

Let me get this straight. Florida Guy has posted over 1100 times, but he doesn't own a Pilot. What's wrong with this picture?

Nothing...

This web site has a wealth of info that florida_guy is absorbing -- besides, our two Adminstrators (admin and TheWorm don't own Pilots, either, AFAIK )!

 

I'm sorry, but what does AFAIK mean???