spike

Welcome to TCC, you will enjoy it here. Yes the car uses 5W20, not 5W30.

annie

Ok 5W20 it is. I don't know how to do oil changes myself (insert laugh here...) but couldn't I just tell the dealer or whoever changes my oil to use 5W20?

miss_jess

iTrader: (2)

ummm the mechanic doing the oil change will know

MPR

Not always.

Quite often shops have 'bulk oil' of one kind that they put in all cars no matter what they are, unless you specify otherwise or provide the oil (buy it) your self.

miss_jess

iTrader: (2)

oh... well thats no good

annie

Alright cool. That's what I always wondered, like no one has ever asked me in the past what oil I want. Maybe I just never paid attention and agreed to whatever lol.
Thanks for the tips!

MPR

Yeah....had some experiences with some shops in the past.


That's why I do all the work on my own car.

MPR

You don't have to be exact with the oil you use. Oil these days, especially the synthetics, are much better than they used to be.

You can run 5w20 in an engine that is meant to run 10w30 and it will be totally fine, as long as you change it regularly.

Were the different oil grades come into play is with extreme temperatures. Some people run a different oil in the summer and in the winter.

I run full synthetic of the same grade all year-round and have never had a problem. Cold starts are a breeze, even at -20 or less. Some regular oils that are graded for warmer temperatures will cause harder cold starts and will need more time to warm up to proper operating viscosity.

I suggest googling motor oil and reading up about what the different grades mean.


Cheers.

95_civic_wit_lots_of_pink

Dealers know what oil your car uses.....I work at a Honda dealer and watch them do oil changes all day long....98 and older use 5W30 and 98 and newer use 5W20.....so the techs at my dealership use the right oil for the right car.....moral of the story: take your car to my dealership, lol

95_civic_wit_lots_of_pink

*sorry 99 and newer

Polkaroo Killa

For motor oil I recommend using what your car is supposed to take, in this case it's 5w20. And as already mentioned, if you change to 5w30 or 10w30 it won't make any difference at all. 5w20 is just a little less viscous then 5w30, so no big deal.

For security systems, I recommend a Compustar. I had one on my car for years and it's a very good and reliable alarm. The only problem is, they are more then $200. Check out our TCC affiliate "Audio Heaven", they sell and install them for a reasonable price.

annie

Ok Compustar is the name I was trying to recall. Will phone up audio heaven now & hopefully get something installed asap!

thanks polkaroo!

miss_jess

iTrader: (2)

i have a compustar also... great alarm.. and of course, installed by jeff from audio heaven