[patterdaleoz]

We just bought a new '11 Insight-our first Honda ever. We have been a Toyota family for many years- have a RAV, Tundra, Corolla, PreRunner, and Tacoma in the family.

My question is oil changes. The manual does not suggest frequency--it only says when the indicator indicates to chg oil. Would that be every 3K or 4K miles? Also, is their a better oil or filter that can take a chg 7K miles? I drive 60 miles a day on highway.

My husband has always done all the maintenance on all of our cars (and rebuilt on a proj car) and we have never had any probs with maintenance. He hates paying mechanics for something he can do himself. Does anyone have any tips or special knowledge that may help? (other than a list of profanities I am likely to hear about car manufacturers requiring special tools)

Thanks

 

[kjanracing]

mY iNSIGHT HAS A LITTLE OVER 5k on it now and the oil monitor is at 50%. I just can't see 10,000 mile oil change intervals, especially with that small filter. I'm going to change mine soon. I think 5K intervals are good. Cheap maintenance, especially if you are doing it yourself.

 

[circa1986]

Most modern cars have long oil change intervals. I wouldn't worry about going up to 10k miles or 1 year.

 

[kjanracing]

Most modern cars have long oil change intervals. I wouldn't worry about going up to 10k miles or 1 year.

I believe that is because the manufacturers want to give the impression of low maintenance costs/mile. I also think it's crazy not to change the filter at the first service interval. It is these long change out and maintenance intervals that start to show problems later in the vehicle's life. I think for the long term 5-6K intervals are better and well worth it.

 

[circa1986]

Yes, you're right. It's a grand conspiracy for them to trick people into buying their cars, so they can bring in tons of revenue on engine replacements!

As long as you are using a good filter (OEM or otherwise) and synthetic oil, there should never be a problem.

 

[Zwolfe]

Over 6k miles on mine and the oil life meter shows 50% at the moment. Waiting for my belly trim push pins to arrive then I'll probably try to find some time to change the oil and filter, already have that stuff on a shelf.

 

[kjanracing]

I wasn't implying any sort of conspiracy. I don't know about Honda Insights, as this is my first one I've owned, but I can think of a number of cars with extended oil change intervals that can have major problems later in their lives.
Especially for someone that can do it themselves, the cost is minimal. The benefits may be great.

 

[FistofStone]

Been a while since I've posted, so thought I'd jump in here.

I just had my 3rd oil change a few weeks ago with just over 27K miles on the car. I tend to get the car serviced as soon as the indicator comes on, mostly because the service reminder at start up annoys me. Otherwise, I probably could have squeezed another 5K out between services.

So far, car still running tip top. I have no concerns that the manual / service folks are steering me wrong.

 

[Jayemtee]

On a brand new car it might be wise to respect the manufacturers specs. We all have opinions, but if you ever deal with warranty issues, the fewer obstacles, the better.

That being said, I don't know of anyone with late model engine oil issues related frequency of oil changes.

My opinion is to start watching the oil when the MID shows 50% remaining. Inspect the oil regularly. If you know what it looks like, smells like, and feels like when it's new, you will be able to detect when changes. The main thing is color. If it gets to less than 10% or turns black (whichever comes first), change it. ALWAYS change the filter with the fluid. That's all just my opinion.

Ditto for CVT fluid. Check at 50% and change it when it gets black or before it's due. And change the filter while you're there.

 

[insightfulone]

Trust the MID

On page 284 of the manual about the break in period, it expressly advises:
"Do not change the oil until the scheduled maintenance time"
To specifically state this I believe there are special additives in the factory oil for the break in period that they don't want to remove quickly. My maintenance minder indicated a first oil change at 7000 miles. This was over the winter, where I believe the interval is shorter. The second one was 9400 miles later, the third in 6200 (winter again). This is only slightly more than what has been recommended for 'normal' service oil changes - 6000 mi - for a number of previous American made cars. Tighter ring clearances probably reduce the contamination by gas, and the low operating temp of this engine probably helps too. I doubt Honda would recommend longer oil change intervals at the risk of their engine durability just to reduce their perceived maintenance costs. The dealer replaces the oil filter regardless of the A1 or A2 indication. Since there is no lower price for an oil only change, and not changing the filter makes me nervous, I don't insist that they don't replace it , but I expect it would be fine not to change it as well.