I'm too scared to do an oil change.
 

I have a 4 cylinder vtec honda accord and I want to put Mobil 1 5w30 4Q + Lucas oil stabilizer 1Q; total 5 quarts into the engine. Total engine oil capacity according the the manual says 4.5 US quarts. How should I go about putting this oil in?

I am kind of a noob with oil changes. I have done it before on this car but I feel like I know nothing. What I think I can do is put in 3 quarts mobil1 then 1 quart Lucas then .5 quart mobil1 then check the levels, add a little more then check? Any advice would be nice. I was also thinking of saving a little Lucas for use in my lawnmower engine.

Second question is since I am using synthetic, I want to prepare for likely leaks. I heard that most often synthetic leaks come from one spot, but I cant remember what part (head gasket?) and I cant find where I read it. Anyways, I want to know how to check for oil leaks and what to do once I find them.

So ya, I dont know why but I keep procrastinating cause I dont want to mess up an oil change.

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (chrisdab)
 

dude its no prob, my last 3 oil changes have been 4.95 quarts ( i spilt some and put the rest on some tools) no problems here, Mobil 1 synthetic

it took me a while my first time cuz the filter was stuck so i had to stab a screwdriver thru it lol, made a mess haha


its not really gonna be hot enough to burn either

btw i have 92K on the motor F23A1

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (361 accord)
 

mainly I wouldn't recomend the lucas oil stabalizer. It's not necessary, and is the oil stabilizer usually for conventional oil, not the synthetic?
Also, buy any honda accord manual that teaches you how to work on your car and read about an oil change. Then you'll be confident.

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (chrisdab)
 

ur oil drain plug takes a 17mm wrench and a small band wrench will pull off ur filter. how many miles do u have on ur car? that will depend on what weight of oil to put in ur car. if u only have 30 or 40 thousand miles, u can continue to use 5W30. if ur over 100,000 u should use at least a 10W30 or even a 10W40, but only the 10W40 during warm weather time. i can tell u a lot of things about these issues with ur car, and i have a haynes manual that tells u how to do anything to ur car that u want to. if u want, i'll ship it to u. lemme know what's up. adam

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (jolitaly)
 

Do not put Lucas 8n your engine, it's crap and will not be good for it

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (chrisdab)
 

put 4 quarts of 5w30 in the car and half of the lucas oil... then if your lawnmower is a Honda... put the rest in there https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (JDM_Acccord)
 

I would never put lucas in a motor. ( its completely not necessary and some would argue a bad product to use in general) and don't be scared. put 4 quarts in and start the motor then check oil. add more if necessary. easy

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (Blamm!!)
 

Don't use additives.
Although I have used restore and liked it.
lol

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (Bruce Banner)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Bruce Banner &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Don't use additives.
Although I have used restore and liked it.
lol</TD></TR></TABLE>

you know i was gonna post about restor on here if anyones actually tested it to work, also seafoam, hell i might do that too https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (jolitaly)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jolitaly &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">ur oil drain plug takes a 17mm wrench and a small band wrench will pull off ur filter. how many miles do u have on ur car? that will depend on what weight of oil to put in ur car. if u only have 30 or 40 thousand miles, u can continue to use 5W30. if ur over 100,000 u should use at least a 10W30 or even a 10W40, but only the 10W40 during warm weather time. i can tell u a lot of things about these issues with ur car, and i have a haynes manual that tells u how to do anything to ur car that u want to. if u want, i'll ship it to u. lemme know what's up. adam</TD></TR></TABLE>

I have 130k miles on it. I heard 5w30 is good but I never heard of using 10w30 in my car. I should have said in my original post that I have a 95 Accord, so that may change some people's opinions on my oil change. Does your haynes manual go back to 5th generation?

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (361 accord)
 

seafoam works great... but thats not something you add to the oil when changing the oil its something you add to your last tank of gas BEFORE changing the oil. Just making that clear.

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (sonicxtacy02)
 

no, seafoam can be added to the oil, just before you do a oil change.

http://www.seafoamsales.com/motorTuneUpTechGas.htm

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (chrisdab)
 

manufacturers base the type of oil to use on the gaps between the cams, lifters, valves, etc. once ur engine components have become worn, those gaps are bigger and require a thicker oil to fill those gaps or else u will begin to consume oil. my haynes manual is for 5th gen b/c i have a 95 accord coupe EX. lemme know if i can help.

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (361 accord)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 361 accord &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

you know i was gonna post about restor on here if anyones actually tested it to work, also seafoam, hell i might do that too https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif </TD></TR></TABLE>
Restore was good stuff, but I didn't see much a reason to do it again.

i swore the drain plug was a 14mm...

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (chrisdab)
 

Relax. This is an easy job to do. If the engine is not an extreme mileage engine, you should probably go with 10W-30 in the summer (hot months) and 5W-30 in the cold months (winter), if you live in an area with cold winters. If you live in a hot climate, stay with 10W-30. Check the owner's manual- it probably recommends these weights.

If the oil is high-quality, stay away from any/all oil-additives. One thing you might consider, if changing oil in an engine that has not been regularly maintained and shows sludge, you might consider using an oil-flush additive before changing the oil ("Gunk"). This stuff DOES work if the engine is sludgy. After the first use, and removal of the sludge, you will not have to use it again.

There still is some debate whether or not to switch an engine with higher mileage that has not run synthetic to synthetic. I run with the tech-crowd that knows synthetics are more "slippery", and so more prone to get by the oil-rings on the pistons if the rings show much wear. There is some research that seems to point to this argument, which is why high mileage engines may burn more synthetic oil.

Personally, I would not change a higher mileage engine over to synthetic, but would consider using a slightly heavier oil. The bottom line is an older engine that has not had A+++ maintenance would probably not benefit from the more expensive synthetic oil. They are designed to slow engine-wear from the time the engine is new, so if it's already there, why spend the money?

Get a good (small) oil-wrench. If this won't "break" the filter loose, you might have to drive a screw-driver through the filter and use it as a "breaker". In over 30 years of changing oil I have had to do this only once. All the Hondas I know of use a non-reusable seal washer under the oil drain-plug. Be sure to change this.

Get a manual, read the procedure through a few times, make sure you have all the tools, and work slowly and carefully. After 3-4 oil-changes you will be moving through the procedure much faster and with more confidence.

When I first changed oil at 15 years or so of age it might take me 60 minutes. Now, with a top-quality floor-jack, better tools and 30 years experience, I can do an oil change in any of my vehicles in about 15 minutes. The experience pays off.

I will admit when I change the oil in a new car it takes me longer- the first time I review the shop-manual, and it takes me a few extra minutes to figure out the best ratchet/socket setups and the best "approach" to the filter for removal. After the first change I know the best tools (sockets) to use, and the fastest/best way to get the filter out. Remove the filter the wrong way and you are going to get an oil bath!

Get a manual, review the procedure, and work slowly and carefully the first few times. Pretty soon you will be changing the oil on your car very quickly. Wrenchy

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (wrenchy)
 

If what everyone here is saying is true, then I ended up getting the wrong oil. Mosts of the posts at the Gen5 honda forum spoke highly of the mobil1 oil and lucas additive. But going here though its completely opposite.

Here are the links to the threads on the Gen5 forum.
Synthetic oil
http://www.gen5alive.com/forum...=3094
oil additives
http://www.gen5alive.com/forum...=1747

This was the post that pushed me into getting mobil1 and lucas
http://www.gen5alive.com/forum...nt=15

I had bought 4 quarts of Mobil1 5w30 and 1 Lucas already a few weeks ago, so I cant return them. I might as well put them in then, just half a Q of lucas and put the rest of lucas in craftsman lawn mower.

If I go to autostore and get additional items, what should I get? An oil flush additive like Seafoam? Any better ones or just Seafoam? Get a seal washer for the oil drain-plug? Get a "good (small) oil-wrench"?

After this oil change, what's my future oil purchase going to be, Castrol High Mileage 10W-30 or another brand? I bought an easy twist oil filter (Fram suregrip), is that fine for an oil filter?

I'm sure this seems like too many questions for an oil change, but I hope it helps others who want to start doing their oil changes.

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (chrisdab)
 

Why do you want to use an additive?
Just put the synthetic in there if you want synthetic.
If you are afraid of leaks, try Castrol Syntec.
I use that old motor and it's o.k.
If you want the motor to feel like new, use restore.
Sounds like this is ur 1st time going synthetic, so ur engine will feel much smoother once the the synthetic is in anyways.
Just dump the synthetic in there and call it a day.

first off. wrenchy if its a cold climate wouldnt you want a higher winter weight. 5w-30 stands for 5winter-30. so many people think its 5weight. I'm not trying to start crap im just seriously wondering where this is coming from. Also i agree with everyone on additives.

Just want to add that people are scared to use full synthetic because they hear it causes leaks. Its not so much that it causes leaks but it uncovers leaks, Synthetic is a very good cleaning oil, unfortunatly that means cleaning out all the little band-aids too.

Also i wanted to go to what someone said earlier, if your worried about oil level just put in a little less. you could go a quart low just dont drive it that way. start the car for 15 sec, shut it off, and let the oil drain back down on a flat surface, then add more and repeat till level is good.

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (Bruce Banner)
 

whoa my accord has 92K, i use 5w30 mobil1 (its hot here too, rarely cold) and all the times that i have changed the oil, ive never replaced no damn washer

am i a bastard?

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (361 accord)
 

Syntec FTW
http://andy.hedin.googlepages.com/GC_M06152_Front.jpg

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (361 accord)
 

Hey. I have a question for ya...what kind of leaks do full synthetic oils cause. I use Amsoil and unfortunately, my oil seal leaked and it cost me $1,100 to get it fixed but the mechanic said that its normal for hondas and the seal should have been change when I first had the timing belts and water pump changed.

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (hondaspeedracer)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by hondaspeedracer &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Hey. I have a question for ya...what kind of leaks do full synthetic oils cause. I use Amsoil and unfortunately, my oil seal leaked and it cost me $1,100 to get it fixed but the mechanic said that its normal for hondas and the seal should have been change when I first had the timing belts and water pump changed.</TD></TR></TABLE>

ive heard of that before

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (hondaspeedracer)
 

What is the purpose of going to 10w30 in the winter on motors over 100,000 miles, that does make any since to me. Regular motor oil's viscosity break down isn't until about 20,000 miles and full synthetic viscosity break down isn't until about 50,000 miles. The reason your supposed to change your oil as often as needed is that the filter can't trap anymore dirt and etc. and it starts cycling back through the engine. So I'm not sure what changing to a heaver weight oil in the winter is going to do.

Re: I'm too scared to do an oil change. (R1Moon)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by R1Moon &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">What is the purpose of going to 10w30 in the winter on motors over 100,000 miles, that does make any since to me. Regular motor oil's viscosity break down isn't until about 20,000 miles and full synthetic viscosity break down isn't until about 50,000 miles. The reason your supposed to change your oil as often as needed is that the filter can't trap anymore dirt and etc. and it starts cycling back through the engine. So I'm not sure what changing to a heaver weight oil in the winter is going to do.</TD></TR></TABLE>

i think its so that the oil doesnt freeze