General Fit TalkGeneral Discussion on the Honda Fit/Jazz.
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Changing gas at 3,000 miles is ridiculous. Change when the oil minder says to. The 3,000 mile thing is so dealers can make money on service. It was started in the 80's and "myth" has kept it alive today. I have never changed oil at 3,000 miles. Usually wait 7,500 miles to 10,000 miles. Just check the oil and add if needed. I have kept a toyota tercel to 203,423 miles doing this with no engine repairs, so don't tell me it is to keep the engine in good condition.
I don't think it's due to any myth but more dependant on how you drive. If mostly freeway miles, it is much easier on your oil. If mostly city, I wouldn't go beyond 5k miles. But the initial oil change has nothing to do with needing new oil but to get rid of the shavings as well as the silicone that is used during the construction and delivery of the engine.
BMW recommends 15k miles on their intervals and this has angered many people. A large amount of people ended up sludge and BMW refused to fix it. I personally feel that some restraint should be used when considering when to change an oil. Making sure that we don't do it unnecessarily yet in being careful not to try to stretch the limits of the oil. I'd rather be safe than sorry, but not rediculously so.
As for the 'myth' of changing your oil at 3000 miles.... I'd have to go Mythbusters on it and say it's 'plausible'.
Oilchanging is a subjective issue. The 'correct' change interval will vary from car to car, and even from owner to owner, as driving conditions and environments vary.
One thing CAN be said about it:
It DOES NOT HURT your engine to change your oil and filter more frequently!
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My other TWO cars are PORSCHES
2001 Porsche Boxster
1969 911T Targa - "Stinky"
Fray: a usually disorderly or protracted fight, struggle, or dispute
Adjacent: not distant, immediately preceding or following
just took Sadie in for her first oil change @ 5700 miles. =) My next appointment isn't unil 10,700.
the oil change was done at the dealers and they told me that with these new cars that come out, there is no need for the archaic method of doing an oil change every 3000 miles. Honda engines now are running more efficiently than ever.
As a technician for Honda, they say 10,000 miles to ensure proper break in, there are additives in the original oil to aid the engine in this process. Past that, as often as your heart desires. Honda does not promote the use of any additive in their oil or cars, trans fuel etc... If failure of a part (engine, trans, etc...) is found to be caused by an additive Honda will not warranty the claim and you will have to be charged for the part and labor. Trust me I have seen a transmission charged back to the customer because Honda blamed the failure on an additive the customer used in their car. I know dealerships sell additives, the one I work for is guilty of it, but they are not suppose to by Honda.
Service News Oct 2000
"Say “No” to Additives
Honda owner’s manuals typically state: “Your Honda
does not require any oil additives. Additives may
adversely affect your engine’s or transmission’s
performance and durability.” These are not just idle
words. American Honda did extensive testing, and
found some popular ATF additives quickly degrade
the shift quality of Honda transmissions. To help
ensure your customers get the best performance
possible from their Honda vehicles, urge them to take
these words seriously, and say “no” to additives."
There is alo one stating about "if failure is found by use of an additive" I am trying to find.
Honda has 3 types of u.s. filters, Honeywell, Filtec, and A third I don't remember right now. They all three look the same on the outside, but the springs, filter webbing and inner housings are different. I guess they just go to the lowest bidder for production specs. Honda genuine uses mobil exxon as seen above, but your local dealer uses the "on sale" barrel like gtx, penzoil, or whatever they get for cheap. They also put 3k to 3.5k oil change intervals on the stickers.
So... you're recomending "do it yourself"
And... I'm all in favor of that...
But... I'm not really :P
I was about to post asking if taking it to the dealership for the first one would be a good idea, but apparently it doesn't matter - and I think that answers my question.
I'm planning on hitting up Firestone or Bridgestone...
Firestone has a lifetime alignment thing for about $260... and it's started to pull slightly to the right... so I can see that coming in handy...
Bridgestone had an ad on the radio mentioning a lifetime oil change....
Try to stay away from shops offering an alignment at a "killer deal" their alignment machines are not set up for acurate precise measurements. The reason is their machines are not calibrated for as much as their used. They just try to bang out as many cars as possible, so the measurements are very broad. If you can make sure they use half tolerances and tell them you want a print out of it.
Im still waiting for my oil change but its at 40% at 4300mi now.. Damn and ive only had the car for 32 days
My 90 Nissan PU 4cyl has 330,000 miles on it on the original engine and all I've ever run has been Mobile 1..I go 10,000 on my oil changes for all my cars. I actually forgot one time and went a whole year on my truck..to busy... was 30,000 and just fine. Also, it has NEVER needed to have the oil topped off.
4600+ miles still at 40%. I don't like it but I will do as the manual says. Our 04 accord says 10000 mile oil change interval but I cant go that long I do it at 5k.
Their testing showed that changing the vehicles oil and filter at 3000 miles gave the best results in terms of other engine repairs needed with the lowest amount of money spent on oil changes.
Let me guess, the fleet was 100% domestics.
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Vivid Blue Pearl 2007 Honda Fit Sport MT
My list of Goodies... JDM Honda stuff: LED tail lights, armrest, leather shift knob, coin tray, roof console, steering mounted radio controls. Honda Canada stuff: rubber floor mats, trunk liner, cargo cover, cargo net, re-keyed locking gas cap, exhaust tip finisher, lock nuts. ICE: JVC KD-AVX33 headunit, PAC SWI-JACK. Other items: Eibach Pro springs, CL map lights with Homelink, LED 3rd brake light, tint.
A Few years ago a study was done on New York City taxicabs, with engines disassembled after the study to measure parts for wear. There was no measurable difference in engine wear on the 3K oil change taxis and the 6K taxis.
What difference does the make of car have on oil changes?
Not all engines are created equally or driven in similar conditions. Saying all vehicles wear out their oil at X mileage is equivalent to saying all vehicles need 10 gallons of gas for every 250 miles travelled.
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Vivid Blue Pearl 2007 Honda Fit Sport MT
My list of Goodies... JDM Honda stuff: LED tail lights, armrest, leather shift knob, coin tray, roof console, steering mounted radio controls. Honda Canada stuff: rubber floor mats, trunk liner, cargo cover, cargo net, re-keyed locking gas cap, exhaust tip finisher, lock nuts. ICE: JVC KD-AVX33 headunit, PAC SWI-JACK. Other items: Eibach Pro springs, CL map lights with Homelink, LED 3rd brake light, tint.