My wife's E will go for the 1st oil change tomorrow at the dealer....at 4k I figured it was a good number between 0 and 10k as recommended...but soon I will be installing a CAI and don't want to have it on until they do the 1st free service.....from here on I will do the maintenance...

Do you bring your car to the dealer, a quick lube center or do you do it yourself.....??....I bet is a beat down subject but i had to ask.. again...

[quote:7fe39dc715="HEK"]Do you bring your car to the dealer, a quick lube center or do you do it yourself.....??....[/quote:7fe39dc715]
Personally, I used to always like going to the dealer with the thought being that the techs there know the vehicle, and are more likely to notice anything else needing attention.

But now-a-days, the Honda dealers out here are pushing their "Express Lube" service, which while a LOT quicker (in-and-out in less than 30 minutes), uses generic "oil change" people that know nothing specific about the cars. That defeats my thought above. :(

In that scenario, I'm just as happy going to Jiffy Lube, which is a lot closer to home.

I use my local Midas shop. They do a great job for me, and they have a great attitude as well.

I go to my local Honda dealer and it only took me 50 mins. They do a great job :D

I prefer to do it myself.

I took my Wife's 2003 Odyssey and the E in at the same time both at 5500 miles to the dealer for the 1st change. After that I will be doing it myself. I watched them and they don't do anything but change the oil. Anyone who thinks that the Honda "Service techs" know what they are doing, etc., etc., are just kidding themselves. They didn't check anything else and had the gall to charge me $0.40 to add wiper fluid which I had just topped the night before.
I would say that Jiffy Lube gives superior service to what I saw at the dealership, which is less than the attention I will give to the cars, doing it myself.

[quote:3c893d4cf4="Kayakin' Dan"]I took my Wife's 2003 Odyssey and the E in at the same time both at 5500 miles to the dealer for the 1st change. After that I will be doing it myself. I watched them and they don't do anything but change the oil. Anyone who thinks that the Honda "Service techs" know what they are doing, etc., etc., are just kidding themselves. They didn't check anything else and had the gall to charge me $0.40 to add wiper fluid which I had just topped the night before.
I would say that Jiffy Lube gives superior service to what I saw at the dealership, which is less than the attention I will give to the cars, doing it myself.[/quote:3c893d4cf4]

...I hope I have better luck than you...I have brought my RSX-S to have all my oil changes since I bought it a year ago..( except for the last one)...and these guys check everything...wash and vacuum the car....I figured Honda= Acura same .....but I guess not....too bad ...well we will soon find out....this afternoon afterwork...Im off to see the Wizzard.... :roll:

An update on below message that was posted a week ago.
Checked my oil level today, and it is right at the full mark. This was after adding 5 Qts of 5W-20 Castrol, instead of the 4.4 Qts as recommended in the manual.
Thought the world would like to know.
I just finished my first oil change. Did it myself at 6K instead of the 10K recommended in owners manual.
Problem is this: Owners manual indicates 4.4 Qts US is the engine oil capacity including the filter.
I bought a 5 Qt container of Castrol 5W-20 and poured it until until I had approx 1/2 Qt left in the container, thinking this was the correct amount to fill the crankcase. After letting the oil settle in and running the engine to check for leaks, I found that the oil level on the dip stick was below the "Add" mark (lower button on dipstick). I re-parked it on a level spot, and checked it again..... same thing! I went ahead and put the remaining 1/2 qt into the engine, and it brought it up just beyond the add mark.

Some engines have a larger size oil filter which will be not be used any more after they run out. I read this on a forum.

I always used to go the dealership for oil changes, reality is if you are lucky they check the washer, the radiator reservoir and that is it, get a clean paper towel, check the transmission level, the brake level, confirm the oil and afore mentioned washer and radiator and presto you got yourself a $150 10k service!

Seriously just did my first oil change on an E, took 15 minutes, less then $30 for a synthetic oil service ($4.19 oil filter $.19 washer $23.95 on 5 qt Mobile 1 0W-20).

If you don't like the idea of crawling under your car and having hot oil pour out, spend the money and have somebody you trust do it. The $65 at the Honda garage at least guarantees they have the right parts (i.e. plug washer) in stock.

As mentioned above I brought the E for an oil change and actually got a chance to talk to the tech as he was doing it.....He recommended I use a channel (which I already have, is a V shape channel....he used a bent license plate) to protcet the front end from becoming covered with oil as he unscrewed the oil filter.....

I didn't like the idea that he put the plug back on while a bead of oil was still pouring out of the engine...so next time I will do it...overall a good job, topped off all fluids( w/w fluid ), checked the tire pressure and done deal all for $22, not bad..... :D

I forgot he mentioned ppl had brought the vehicle back for interior noise and he pointed to look at the latches and spare tire which is where he found loose nuts.... :wink: .....luckily I didn't have that problem....Nice guy...

$22 with regular oil? if that was synthetic that was a smokin' deal... i was wondering what they use to prevent the oil spill, it took me a while to wipe the oil off the rubber boot on the drive shaft and off the suspension...

[quote:0d08b037af="sspiller"]$22 with regular oil? if that was synthetic that was a smokin' deal... i was wondering what they use to prevent the oil spill, it took me a while to wipe the oil off the rubber boot on the drive shaft and off the suspension...[/quote:0d08b037af]

...the mechanic used a bent license plate....a dealer plate bent if you took it and looked at it from the edge...it looked like a V......I made one like that at work from a piece of stainless steel....used it on my RSX-S.....and after he didi the oil change he sprayed a degreasser that acoording to him...stops ppl from coming back saying that theit vehicle is leaking oil......which is what happens when oil travels and sits on the axel boot..... :roll: ..and it was regular oil..but like I said Wallmart has Mobil 1 on sale $18 for a 5 QT.container..so I just need a filter.........tomorrow.....Injen intake ....c'mon Friday...... 8)

Does walmart sell the 0W20 by the case? I'll have to check it out... have a great weekend.

Just had my first oil and filter change on Friday (8/29/03) at about 5100 miles. I had my vehicle serviced at a Honda dealership. This morning I noticed oil spots on my garage floor. I'm hoping the oil leak is the old oil that dripped onto the boot axle as mentioned by HEK. I'll keep my eyes on it over the next couple days.

:shock: Ed

Put your E on ramps if you have them and crawl under with lots of paper towels, wipe all the oil off the rubber boot leading to your right front tire, wipe oil off the lower control arm top, it is hollow so oil can go inside as well (fun), wipe around the oil filter itself and the drain plug, if they re-used the washer it will drip or if they did not seat the filter gasket correctly it will drip...

Good luck, no fun guessing where oil is coming from.

I took my E in for it's first oil change at 5K....I went to the dealer and it only cost $24.95. My husband and I used to take our cars to the Valvoline Quick Stop Oil Change....and it was more expensive than the dealer! My husband still takes his car to the Valvoline place, but I will be going to the dealer.

I didn't have any drips or leaks after my oil change :)

Now I must interject.. I used to be a grease monkey at Honda while I wasz still in High School, when an oil change came in I went out of my way to make sure everything was in proper working order. Iwould check all belts, brakes, rotate the tires, and wash and dry the car for the customer. I guess I've always felt that I should go the extra mile so the customer would come back, besides if you don't look/feel good in your Honda then I don't look/feel good about working on it....

I'm afraid you are more of an exception then the norm for most dealers. I used to pick up my bmw washed and vacuumed but it also cost $125 for an oil change, minimum...

I actually enjoy taking care of my E, I was surprised how the oil did spill all over the rubber boot when you pulled the filter off. Next oil change I'll put some paper towels on them first...

I have read several articles and the experts (Patt Goss - Motorweek and Click & Clack) reccommend oil changes every 50 - 70 hours of operation.

Avg speed = 50 then oil change due between 2500 and 3500 miles
Avg speed = 65 then oil change due between 3250 and 4550
miles

Of course lots of city driving or short trips require more frequent oil changes due to the oli and engine not fully heating up.

I am not anal about changing my oil but do so every 4000 - 5000 miles and all of my cars both new and used have always had tight running engines.

If you go 3001 miles your car won't die!

Remember, Quaker State sells you the oil so the more often you change it the beeter for them. As a comparison take a look at your laundry detergent - they reccomend 1 cup/capful for a load of laundry. I bet if you use half of that the laundry will be just as clean.

elementma2003 posted:
Remember, Quaker State sells you the oil so the more often you change it the beeter for them. As a comparison take a look at your laundry detergent - they reccomend 1 cup/capful for a load of laundry. I bet if you use half of that the laundry will be just as clean.

OR they would like you to do oil changes like shampooing:

Change oil, change oil again.

I just read through this thread and discovered two nuisance items --

1. The oil capacity is not an even number of quarts. This means having to measure it out rather than just counting bottles. It also means having to store the leftover pint. I would want to use the larger oil filter to avoid this -- if I could get it.

2. The oil drains over undercarriage components. This means having to use something to route the old oil down to the drain pan.

This is discouraging for a guy who prefers to change it himself.

Even if an oil change shop is used, there is still the likelihood of wetting the undercarriage, and having a drip when you go home.

[quote:0c81e0be01="zetemo_52"]I just read through this thread and discovered two nuisance items --

1. The oil capacity is not an even number of quarts. This means having to measure it out rather than just counting bottles. It also means having to store the leftover pint. I would want to use the larger oil filter to avoid this -- if I could get it.

2. The oil drains over undercarriage components. This means having to use something to route the old oil down to the drain pan.

This is discouraging for a guy who prefers to change it himself.

Even if an oil change shop is used, there is still the likelihood of wetting the undercarriage, and having a drip when you go home.[/quote:0c81e0be01]

Both these points are inconvenient but in all ten cars that I've owned and serviced, it has been the same, nothing new (except my 92 BMW which has a drop in oil filter, no mess) . While vehicles don't usually have an even number of quarts on an oil change, sometimes you can go over or under by a couple of tenths and still remain at or near the full mark.

Just keep that one bottle in the corner of the garage and use it next oil change. I never measure the exact amount and then fill with that amount, what I do is this: say it requires 4.6 quarts, I will fill with 4 quarts, check the level and add in increments until it reaches the full mark, I will then stasrt the car for a minute, turn it off and let it sit for a minute or two then check the level, making sure it is at the full mark (not over). I find it is usually slightly different than the amount specified in the manual, and I want to make sure not to overfill it.
Other than that, newspapers for the ground and paper towels are required for cleanup.

I'm taking mine in soon at 5k to the dealer for a free change. I still don't like going 5k miles before the first change. The 5w20 oil seems rather thin too. Oh well, I'm going by the Honda maint schedule.

I suspect it was designed to hold four liters. I've been looking for a liter-to-quart conversion, but haven't found one. I know that a liter is slightly larger than a quart. If it works out close to 1.1 times the quart, then it would hold four liters.

Perhaps one of our Canadian friends can help. Does the Canadian owner's manual give a capacity in liters?

To go from litres to imperial quarts, multiply by 0.880. To from imperial quarts to litres, multiply by 1.136. I'd don't have the manual handy, do I can't list the volume by litres.