It's been roughly 3000 miles since my last oil change, but the readout on the oil indicator says the car is at 70%. Can this possibly be accurate? 70% seems like way too much to be in need of an oil change, but then again I'm not sure if I should go by the indicator or not.

And if you DO go by the indicator, when DO you go for the oil change? 50%? 25% Zero?

Any thoughts anyone might have on this would be appreciated.

 

Have they been mostly highway miles? If so, 3000 miles at 70% oil life seems accurate by Honda's new standards. Cars are made go much longer than the standard 3000 miles between changes now.

I like to change my oil between 30% and 50% most of the time.

A good example is my car went a year in between oil changes last time but the minder was still at 50%. If I would have waited until it got to 15% I would have probably put two years on my car between changes but only because I don't drive it very much.

Each person's situation is different.

 

Absolutely change it if it doesn't call for it within 12 months. (this is in the manual).

Otherwise 10K miles are normal for many owners, per oil change, going by the MM. I normally change it when it's at 15% as this is when the maintenance required light starts to illuminate. If you let it go to 0% it gets an attitude.

The MM is smart; it tracks time at operating temperature and revolutions (among other variables). There are those where it's called for an oil change in less than 2,000 miles.

3,000 mile oil changes are a marketing ploy by jiffy lube and your dealer's service dept. Go by the MM or 12 months, whichever occurs first. Read the manual.

 

i change oil once a year or whenever the reminder tells me to do so..whichever is faster.


i use mobil1 silver cap.

 

Yes, it's definitely been freeway miles mostly, to and from work.

Wow, I can't believe I don't have to get the oil changed every 3000 miles. That notion has just been pounded into my head for so long that it didn't even occur to me that you might not have to do it as frequently on newer cars.

I guess I'll just wait until I hit 40 or so and go for the oil change then.

Thanks very much for the info, I really appreciate it.

 

As has been stated in this thread, the factory-recommended/required oil-change interval is once a year or when the Maintenance Minder in the dash calls for the change, whichever comes first. The little "wrench" light at the bottom-left of the speedometer will remain on after starting, and codes will be displayed in the center readout telling you what needs to be done. The owners manual has a chart in the Maintenance section which interprets those codes. The wrench & the codes will start to display when the Oil Life reading gets down to 15%.

Last year, I put over 10,000 miles on the 2009 before the MM called for the oil change. Changing at 40% would be way premature.

 

Wait until it is 15% and it will notify you then to go get it changed. Do not waste your money and the oil by doing it early. If you do hit the one year point then change it no matter what mileage you have accumulated. I have seen as high as 10k miles before an oil change is needed.

 

It seems I get my oil changed about twice a year--I put 8-10K miles per year, mostly in-town driving. I usually change it at the 10% reminder-- although when I needed to have the 30K service done-- my dealer told me to combine with an oil change so I ended up bringing in at 5% ....

 

Huh, okay, I'm convinced.

But just to be safe I think I'll wait til 20 percent and then if that takes more than a year- I'll go anyway.

Thanks again!

 

When you do get around to changing it, if you want to "be safe" then you can also consider splurging and get a top of the line full-synthetic oil (but still shop around and buy on sale).

Remember now that oil is going to be in use for a year, so that extra $10 for synthetic oil (only 4quarts) is amortized over a much longer interval now, versus paying the upcharge 4times a year.

Not here to bring up what oil is best or will be the same; but since you brought up "to be safe" that's an additional measure if I can put myself in your shoes.

 

You could always check the dipstick manually and check the condition of the oil, that way you can be sure that the MM is not giving a false reading =)

 

to check oil level, yes, but color is not a very accurate way to tell the condition of the oil.

 

I have been changing mine at at least 0% usually around -300 to -500 which is around 12K miles. I have sent in my used oil for analysis to Blackstone Labs and they have confirmed that my 12K oil changes are okay for me.

 

The thing about the MM is that there are no longer any fixed-interval servicing requirements. Officially, there's no such thing as a "30K service" for the Fit. Any mileage-specific maintenance (other than the 100,000-mile spark plug change) is a dealer-only invention to get you in to the service dept. more frequently than the MM will trigger such visits.

 

Damn, I have to admire your dedication to finding out everything you can about your oil. That's rather impressive.

 

Oh wow, I never knew this, I always thought gold=good, black=bad lol. Thanks for clarifying

 

When the maintenance minder trips to display you a message, it will also give you a 2 digit code. (A1, A2, B1, B3, etc.) Look up that code and it will tell what needs to be done. I believe the codes are in your owners manual. If they are not, then they are available on line.

Look here pages 16 to 19 . Page 19 has the codes.

http://techinfo.honda.com/rjanisis/p...707G00016A.pdf

If you change oil at 20% and reset the MM you will never see the codes telling you the recommended service.

Maintenance Minder | Maintenance Schedule | Honda Owners Site

 

The quick lube places love to come at you with a paper towel that looks like an painter's palette, saying "This is your X fluid, and this is what new looks like. Wouldn't you feel safer if yours looked new, too? This is your Y fluid, and this is what new looks like. Wouldn't you feel safer if yours looked new, too?" and on and on.

 

np... yah only very old people and uneducated folks think that way based on old timer stories. this day and age, we need to rely on technology and science.

 

If you change your oil before 15% shows and then reset your MM what effect does it have on the pending maintenance codes? Or whether you change at 15% or 50% it assumes you performed those services and doesn't repeat the codes until next interval?

If you think the Honda MM stretches oil change intervals you should research some other newer vehicles. I'm currently researching a heavy duty truck for work and hauling and oil changes are specified at 15,000 miles.

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