The oil rep also said that the companies that say 10k, 12k, 15k that the oil is good for before changing oil again. He says it is a marketing ploy and you should go that long before an oil change. He said max should maybe be 7500, but it doesn't hurt at 3000 or 5000.

 

Normal
The "normal" schedule is fine for most drivers, even if they occasionally drive in severe conditions.

10,000 mi/16,000 km Scheduled Maintenance
Recommended service for your 2005 Honda Civic Hybrid:

Rotate tires (follow pattern on page 171 of your owner's manual)


Check oil and coolant at each fuel stop

Check tire inflation and condition once a month



10,000 mi/16,000 km/1 yr Scheduled Maintenance
Recommended service for your 2005 Honda Civic Hybrid:

Replace engine oil


Check oil and coolant at each fuel stop

Check tire inflation and condition once a month







Severe
Follow the "severe" schedule only if you drive in one or more of these conditions most of the time:

Trips of less than 5 miles (less than 10 in freezing weather)
Extremely hot weather (over 90 degrees F)
Extensive idling or stop-and-go driving
Trailer towing, car-top carrier, or mountain driving
Muddy, dusty, or de-iced roads



5,000 mi/8,000 km/6 mos Scheduled Maintenance
Recommended service for your 2005 Honda Civic Hybrid:



Replace engine oil


Check oil and coolant at each fuel stop

Check tire inflation and condition once a month




10,000 mi/16,000 km Scheduled Maintenance
Recommended service for your 2005 Honda Civic Hybrid:

Rotate tires (follow pattern on page 171 of your owner's manual)


Check oil and coolant at each fuel stop

Check tire inflation and condition once a month




10,000 mi/16,000 km/1 yr Scheduled Maintenance
Recommended service for your 2005 Honda Civic Hybrid:

Replace engine oil

Replace engine oil filter

Check front and rear brake wear

Lubricate all hinges, locks and latches

Inspect the tie rod ends, steering gear box, and boots

Inspect the suspension components

Inspect the driveshaft boots


Check oil and coolant at each fuel stop

Check tire inflation and condition once a month







That is the Honda Service Manual suggestions (copied from the Honda Owner's Link Website) Maintenance suggestions for the first 10,000 miles, 1 yr.

10,000 miles under NORMAL conditions, 5,000 under severe. Apparently either condition they suggest replacing the filter every second oil change, it is under 20,000 miles/32,000 km/1 yr. for normal conditions. I definately don't think it hurts to change it every oil change. BTW, I will say my own disclaimer for this info ... when checking coolant ... check the overflow at each fillup NOT taking off the radiator cap while the engine is hot!!! That would sting quite a bit, it will not feel good by any means.

The oil rep at your dealer needs to read the manual and refresh his/her knowledge.

You are suppose to keep the first one for the intended schedule moreso than the rest. The original oil has special additives to help the engine break-in. I will follow scheduled maintenance, it will save me money and not void the warranty. My car was used (8800 miles) and already had the Penzoil 0W-20 in it. I don't know if it was changed before that, so I hope everything was properly seated/broken in. I will change it more often in the summer, and less in the winter, unless I have a lot of stop and go. It makes no sense to me to change it uneccessarily. On another note, I changed my oil every 2000 miles in my RX-7.

Do what is going to make you feel comfortable unless it is exceeding the manufacturer's suggested intervals. They are going to tell you what will keep them from doing warranty repairs. So keeping you on the safe side of things is in thier best interest. I am sure engines are not cheap.

 

Opinions about which oil to use and the change intervals makes more sense if folks also reported the lab results for their used oil and a baseline sample and driving conditions. For example, all power flows throught the transaxle and minimizing losses here pays dividends at the pump along with longer service life. We changed the transaxle oil at 53 k miles and had the old and the replacement oils tested. This lab charges $15 for a basic test and $35 for an extended wear particle test. This 03 Prius came from Texas.

The original transaxle oil had significant amounts of silicon (aka., dust) so we are treating this first change as a flush. With the next change, we are planning to supply filtered air to the transaxle breather plug and add a transaxle oil temperature probe. In a year, we will draw a sample and then re-test the transaxle oil with the next tire change. The power that wore off the rubber had to pass through the transaxle.

A vehicle in an area with temperature extremes, high dust levels and large power demands (aka., midwest and western mountains) probably needs the most frequent oil changes. A vehicle in a temperate, low dust area with less stressful driving could probably go more than twice that distance or longer. It is oil that testing replaces speculation and 'salesmanship' with facts and data.

Bob Wilson

.

 

He is an oil rep, of course he is going to say that you should change it more often. He profits from it's sale. I'm sure the oil reps are far more knowledgable than the engineers who design the cars.

 

i'll get it when it arrives in my local wal mart.

 

NAPA in Colorado had Mobil 1 0w-20 for $4.79 a qt.

I considered that good for 10,000 miles.
I'm at 9,000 miles and 4 months right now.
When I wiped the dipstick on a white tissue... the oil was still tan and transparent.
I've never seen oil with this many miles this clean.
9,000 road miles probably means 8,000 ICE miles... with near ZERO idle time.

I think 15k on Mobil 1 or equivalent is not out of the question for Hybrids.
If I see it on sale and stock up.... what's the shelf-life for syn oil?

-John

 

I don't know who these "experts" are, but here's an answer:

http://experts.about.com/q/Energy-In...l-2441/Oil.htm

 

Yes. Yet another oil brand - ENEOS.

Only this fully-synthetic oil is likely manufactured by the same supplier of the OE fluid as well - Nippon Oil.

See excerpt from their web-site: www.eneos.us

"We are proud to supply leading car manufacturers on a factory fill basis. NOC develops oils for Japanese automobile and motorcycle manufacturers: Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Yamaha, Hyundai. NOC is the major supplier of lubricants in Japan, USA and other countries."