Remember the only fluids that should go into your engine are the ones which are specified in the vehicle's owners manual. My owner's manual states they prefer the fluid to be 0w-20. I know, in the past, you could get away with putting just about any oil in your car, but times have changed and engines have changed. Engines have much tighter main bearing clearances. If you put a different oil in your car then whats specified in the owner's manual, then you risk shortening the life of your engine.

As for oil filters the only filter that goes on that engine is the one purchased from the dealership parts department.


Oil Change price considerations-

- The price of just changing the oil and tire rotation at my local Honda dealership is $70 which includes the semi-synthetic Honda 0w-20 oil which goes for $5 per quart. All of the service done at the Honda dealership goes on the Carfax history. So if you plan on selling the vehicle at a later date then the next person who buys it will look right at that Carfax and see what you did. Also, if the dealer does something dumb like not tighten the oil plug properly then they have insurance and there is a greater chance they will make the situation right.

- The price of changing the oil and rotating the tires at my independent mechanic is $30. If we threw in the semi-synthetic oil then it would probably go to $50. The independent mechanic may or may not be insured or may not easily accept the responsibility of an accident in their own shop. Ive seen it firsthand in the past where independent shops do everything in their power to push the blame on the owner rather then accept responsibility. Dealerships tend to accept responsibility more then others. There are other cheaper shops that I know which do an oil change for as low as $15, but I would not drive my car into their shop unless its a 100k+ Corolla beater. Most of those cheap oil change shops are not places you want to have your car serviced at. I wouldnt trust a low mileage car in those shops.

- The price of changing the oil may seem like the cheapest way to do it, but if you purchased the required oil from the then it would be at least $30. So you would not be saving a lot of money. You would also be getting dirty, taking time out of your day to do it and then the hardest part of it all is the oil disposal. Then what if that oil goes on your clothes, your driveway or the vehicle's interior? What if you do something dumb like not tighten the oil plug and the engine becomes damaged? Changing it yourself IMHO is not worth it. Ive done it before and it results in hazardous waste and just a big mess...a royal waste of time. Then again if you enjoy cars and doing that kind of work then be my guest. I wouldnt do it.

The best place to get the oil changed and tires rotated is the Honda dealer IMHO. They call that type of service "A1". As for other services such as brake changes and tires then you can get away with that at the independent. IMHO, there are some aftermarket brake pads like the Autozone Duralast or the NAPA Ultra-Premium which are better then Honda brand, but as for fluids in the engine then I would go with Honda all the way. When you go to the dealer, you can have any service done to your car...not the service the Maintenance Minder specifies. So if it says B2, you can just tell them A1 and get the light reset.

Now you might ask, synthetic or semi-synthetic? If you plan on using your car past 100K miles, then I would use full synthetic, but if you are going to sell it sooner then go with semi-synthetic. Using a fully synthetic oil will probably make the engine last longer. I say "probably" because we don't know if there will be any difference. However, I would go with the full synthetic if I knew I would be keeping the car for beyond 100k+ miles.

 

Oil specs are established for a reason. Honda doesn't own ultra special refineries or anything.

 

On all previous cars I owned, I did my own oil changes. Seemed cheaper and I knew it was being done right. With my Fit, I am rethinking this. First of all, oil changes are done less frequently on this car. Secondly, the dealer charges $20 for the oil change with tire rotation. AND, after the 4th oil change, the 5th is free...

The cost of the oil and filter is not much less than that and my time is more valuable.

IMO.

 

This is true. There are other oils which might meet the established specifications and Honda does not own refineries. However, there was a specific reason why Honda chose to put their name on a bottle of oil. That reason could have been monetary where as they got a good deal from Mobil or Quaker State or whoever makes the oil. However, I think Honda's engineers looked at it and put their seal of approval on it.

Honda is a company that brags about having million mile cars on the road. Why would they put their name on a bottle of oil if they did not believe it wasnt the best for their cars? Besides, the Honda oil is priced in the same range as other brands. So if you have one bottle of oil that says Honda and the other non-Honda oil which are the same price, then what would you put in your engine. Here is a link showing how much non-Honda brand oil costs:

Amazon.com: 0w-20 Motor Oils

In reality, I acknowledge that whats in the Honda bottle might be exactly the same as whats in the Mobil bottle, but we were not in those meetings with engineers who decided which oil to put in the Honda bottle. We dont know if there is in fact special formulation in the Honda bottle. So I would rather just buy the Honda branded oil.

 

Honda Oil has come from the major manufacturers in the past. Honda used to use valvoline for many years as their stock oil, now I believe they use mobil. The break-in oils have additives to help with engine break-in but besides that, it's regular oil.

Honda recommends oil be used in the engine that meets certain specs, (Hence the reason specs are designed) not that the Honda logo is slapped on the bottle.

I'm running Mobil1 Synthetic and it is a service offered by my dealer. Since I have one oil change done every 8 months, I pay the dealer $38 for the change. It's worth the extra.

~SB

 

Thank goodness my Fit has lifetime free oil changes at the dealership.

 

Ah.. I'll call BS on this one. Unless you can prove that Honda has put specific additives into that oil bottle stamped "Honda" any oil or synthetic meeting the SAE spec for that weight is acceptable. This even came up during my dealer check out the day I picked up my new Fit and the sales rep was explaining the oil life meter. I commented I'll probably be putting synthetic in and he concurred, that is what he uses in his Honda.

 

It would actually be kinda weird if honda engines were so delicate that no one could make a safe enough oil for it other than honda. Yeah, it needs to meet the manufacture's specs for oil (either 5w-20 or 0w-20 depending on year), but those aren't weird, wild, or hard to meet specs. Unless there's something special about the specific honda oil, there's no particular reason to only use it. Obviously, its not wrong to use it either.

 

If I use the same oil that whoever makes Hondas oil, maybe it's Mobil Super or something else why would they know any different. As long as the recommended weight is used and you're not using some junk oil then I think it won't hurt a thing. I plan on using whatever the dealership has because their oil change specials are cheap but I don't think the DIYer is going to have any problems whatsoever putting in something fully synthetic as long as it's the weight that the manual specifies.

 

Honda states that, for my 2010, "premium grade 5W-20 detergent oil displaying the API Certification Seal." They then go on to say that Honda Motor Oil is the preferred 5W-20 lubricant for the vehicle and highly recommend using it.

I think that having a 'branded' oil is in their interests in getting owners to have the oil changed at their dealers [marketing ploy]. As far as Honda Oil being anything special - I doubt it.

The quality of today's motor oil and filters is at such a level that any named brand is perfectly fine for use in our Fit.

I've researched the formula for the factory fill oil and have found a slight conflict. Most will state there is nothing special about it. My local Honda service told me the same.

The reason it's recommended 'not changing it out early' is to promote better engine break-in.
A product of the fine tolerances Honda engines are built to.

Honda also stresses following the MM religiously for all service intervals.

Following an All Honda service/repair regime will most certainly guarantee warranty issues, but proper documentation of all service work will end with the same results.

Interesting enough, I would be more concerned when it's time to replace the coolant to be sure to use their Type 2 than the brand of oil I'm using.

 

Or even more so, the ATF.

 

One thing I noticed is that Honda is going to exclusively 0w-20 weight oil. The only oil out there at Walmart and other such stores is fully synthetic which goes for about $7 or more per quart. Honda is the only one that sells a semi-synthetic blend 0w-20 weight oil at about 3-5 per quart. Honda does also sell a fully synthetic 0w-20 as well.

In the past, I have put different weight and brand oils in my cars, but this time I am sticking with what it says to do in the owner's manual. My last car was a 1999 Toyota Solara which developed rod knock at 200k miles. I didnt always follow the suggestions in the owners manual and who knows...maybe thats why it developed rod knock at 200k. 200k is still a lot of miles, but I expected to put another 100k on it. I plan on putting a lot of miles on my Honda Fit so I am sticking religiously with what it says in the owners manual.

I think when you go to the dealership, they probably fill it with the semi-synthetic variety of oil. I've had my car filled twice now at the dealership. Next time I go Im going to ask about the fully synthetic type of oil. If I were to go to an independent mechanic one day, then I would probably request they use the Honda oil filter and probably like a Mobil 1 0w-20. In reality, the Honda oil is probably the Mobil 1 oil. However, I cant be sure what the Honda semi-synthetic 0w-20 is. No one out there besides Honda sells a 0w-20 semi-synthetic.

 

With the Fit the switch to 0W-20 was the 2011 year. I haven't gotten a clear picture if Honda recommends using it in pre-2011 cars though. Last oil change the shop wasn't clear on the policy, it had just been announced, and 5W-20 was used.

Some where on the forum is a post regarding the switch. Sounded like Honda is going to say for all cars, even older ones???? not clear on that.

This upcoming oil change [3rd] will be a DIY and see me switch to 5W-20 synthetic.

 

As I understand it, continuing to use 5w-20 is fine. The thinner oil relates primarily to EPA fuel economy test. If you live in a colder area or drive shorter trips, it might also be a good idea but certainly not required.

 

Don't know if I agree with this post.
I think if you are putting the right weight Oil, using a high quality Non-Honda brand is just fine.

I have no qualms using Honda's preffered oil...or a high quality independent, like Mobil One or Royal Purple.

Most manufacturers unless they have a "deal" with a company like Mobile One, are always going to highly suggest you use the "Dealership" Oil. This is to encourage you to have your service done at dealerships. Or at least buy your products from dealerships. It returns money to Honda.

But I just don't believe using Honda Oil vs. Mobil One or any of the many other high quality alternatives is going to result in shorter engine life.

Honda has to be aware that many people prefer to do Oil Changes on their own, and that many people have their own personal prefered brands.

I don't buy that Honda Oil is magically superior in a Honda than any other high quality oil.

 

Here is a Youtube video of Jeff Jetter, chief chemist at Honda, talking about Ow-20:
Jeff Jetter of Honda discusses plans to use 0W-20 and perhaps 0W-10 in the future - YouTube

Here is another link which talks about 0w-20:

http://www.pinkbird.com/news.nsf/8d7...Has%20Come.pdf

Basically, they use 0w-20 for:
- fuel economy
- less wear on the engine
- running cooler
- two cars, the Honda Insight and Civic Hybrid demand it

 

I can't use anything lighter than 5W30 or oil blow by wreaks havoc on my A/F ratios by causing a lean mixture that the ECU responds to by dumping in more fuel... Lighter oil also cause the rear hatch to be covered with droplets of oil/fuel mist. It doesn't take driving with full boost to do it either.

 

Here is pictures of the Honda Motor Oil:

New GENUINE HONDA synthetic and full synthetic oils - Honda-Tech

Look at what it says on the bottle. This is the only oil that is tested and approved by Honda Research and Development meaning they looked this oil and gave it their seal of approval.

It really might not make much of a difference in the end if you get bottles of Mobil 1 from the Walmart or Honda oil from the dealer, but there is no price difference between the two. So I would just go with the Honda oil at the dealer.

 

But that's a picture of 5w30. Moreover, the closest dealer is 10 miles away, while the nearest auto zone is closer to 4. Extra gas and time means that I'll go with whatever auto zone has in stock.
If only Honda oil were allowed, then it would say something like
or
or
oil is the one thing Honda says is ok to use any brand (well, oil and windshield washer fluid)

 

Yeah, I'm sure there is nothing wrong with Honda Oil. And "Shazam!" Honda Oil is surprise, surprise...Approved by Honda...

Where I disagree with you is in your original post where you state that in your opinion there are ONLY TWO choices for Oil, the two Honda Choices...

Honda doesn't manufacture Oil. They choose one and officially sanction it and distribute it through their dealer network. I don't know who actually manufactures it, but it's probably just one of the main stream manufacturers.

I think the contention that Honda Oil is the "only oil" you should use is false. I think you are fine with any high quality, proper weight and grade oil available.

What would you expect to read on a bottle of Honda Oil? This oil is untested and unapproved by Honda?

Most independent brands of high quality all profess to meet or exceed auto manufacturer standards as well. They have to...otherwise they are out of business.

You are quite right...that you can do what you want...but the contention that ONLY honda "approved" Oil should be used I think is patently incorrect. They recommend their own distributed Oil---no big surprise---but also say you can use any oil that meets or exceeds the standards they outline...