First Oil Change, when?

[Joe LNC]

Hi, I just recently purchased a 2008 CR-V and I'm interested in knowing when to first change its oil. Also, when to regularly change the oil and general break-in suggestions. Thanks.

[Honda 367]

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your new CR-V. As far as the oil change is concerned, I wouldn't do it until your oil life indicator shows 15-20% life remaining. I wouldn't follow the traditional 3,000 mile oil change as this has been thoroughly discussed as being non-sensical.

During the break in period of anywhere between now and 1,500 miles, don't overwork your engine at high rpm for sustained period. Pick up speed gradually and try to engage all the gears in transmission. Vary your speed to make sure that the V is being operated in wide range of rpm.

Other than that, enjoy your new ride!

[Joe LNC]

Thanks for the feedback.

[Black Pearl]

There are rather brief break-in suggestions in your owner's manual and you will also note the Honda does not want you to change the oil prematurely. They would like you to keep the oil in the engine until the maintenance minder gets to 15%. For most people that is ocurring between 7,000 to 10,000 miles (you can do the math for km). The reason they don't want you to drain the oil prematurely is that they use a molybdenum based lubricant when they assemble the engine. The factory fill oil becomes saturated with the moly and provides extra lubrication for your engine up to the first oil change.

Welcome to the club, and good luck with your new V!

[sleeksilver]

Like others have said, change it when the MM tells you to.

[pattyrthomas]

I purchased an '08 CR-V in December. I am still running on the original oil, have 7800 miles and my oil life is reading 40%! I even went as far as taking the boyfriend's advice and scheduled an oil change. When I pulled up to the Honda service department, they turned me away and said to come back when the MM said 15%, doh! :p

[Black Pearl]

For those with long mileage intervals, if your MMI does not indicate service by 12 months you should change the oil at 12 months. It is in the owner's manual on a foot note on the A / B maintenance chart. Don't hold me to the pages but I think 263 on the 2007 and page 226 on the 2008 manual.

EDIT: Rocket girl! Welcome back, haven't heard from you since last December. Its good to hear from you again!

[kinoav8r]

For those with long mileage intervals, if your MMI does not indicate service by 12 months you should change the oil at 12 months. It is in the owner's manual on a foot note on the A / B maintenance chart. Don't hold me to the pages but I think 263 on the 2007 and page 226 on the 2008 manual.

Not to pick a nit, but the 2008 manual (pg. 279) actually says,

If the message ‘‘SERVICE’’ does not appear more than 12months after the display is reset, change the engine oil every year. [Emphasis added.]

This could be read as 12months for oil changes after the first one. Has anyone gotten a definitive answer from someone in the know at Honda?

I'm at 10 1/2 months with only 5900 miles and showing 50% on the OIL LIFE indicator. Every 12 months certainly makes sense, but I'm just wondering if the manual was written by a lawyer or a normal person.

[Black Pearl]

I am not sure what you are driving at but it sounds like you are asking if you have to change the oil at 12 months or do you wait until the MMI tells you to change the oil the first time, and then 12 months there after.

I have not contacted anyone in the know (I was due at 6 months) for this particular question but if I were a betting man, the answer is you better buy some oil in a month and a half. I doubt Honda is going to recommend that you wait 21 months for your first oil change.

Call Honda Corporate, not your dealer, and see what they say. Your dealer will condemn you for not having changed it twice by now.

Check out post # 19 here:

http://www.crvownersclub.com/forums/t3860-5/

[kinoav8r]

I am not sure what you are driving at but it sounds like you are asking if you have to change the oil at 12 months or do you wait until the MMI tells you to change the oil the first time, and then 12 months there after.

Exactly what I was "driving" at. (Pun intended.)

Call Honda Corporate, not your dealer, and see what they say.

By "Corporate", do you mean "Customer Service" at (800) 999-1009?

Check out post # 19 here:

http://www.crvownersclub.com/forums/t3860-5/

I don't follow the relevance as post #19 on that link is:

Yeah BP, I second what Sollybro said.

This post is especially helpful to me at this time. I'm starting to sweat this rear differential stuff. But if I understand you correctly I wait until B16 shows up and then take it in and pay Honda to service it. On the other hand if I hear noises prior to that, I should take it in (which I would anyway of course) but expect Honda to replace the fluid under the warranty per TSB 07-024.

Does B16 show up right at 20K miles?

JPO

Did you mean post #49?

Thanks, BP.

[Black Pearl]

Assuming the MMI is linear, which there have been some questions about that, and that you just flipped to 50%, again you would be looking at a 21 month oil change. I don't expect that Honda will buy that.

Yes, that is the correct number for US customers in the 07 manual.

It was post 19. The relevance was not to your question but rather to my comment that the dealers will tell you anything to get your car into the service bay. The member in the post was told one thing by the dealer (come in at 5000) and something altogether different by Honda Corporate (come in when the MMI tells you). So assuming that you want the real answer and not your dealer giving you some clouded answer, call Honda corporate not the dealer.

Post 49 is about rear differential fluid. jpod goes long mileages between oil changes. There was some discussion as to when one should change the rear differential oil. We don't know when to change it, because the MMI will tell you when to change it. When you get the 6 subcode, you change it. Well it turns out that the 6 hits the second oil change, but the manual doesn't tell you that. So theoretically I could go and pay Honda to change my rear differential oil at 12,000 miles because perhaps the way I drive the MMI clicks over faster and gives me a 6,000 mile oil change. jpod making his trips from OK to CA gets 20,000 miles before the second oil change. Meanwhile his rear differential start making racket at 18,000 miles but he has not had the 6 sub code show up. In my estimation jpod should get the work under warranty because his car is not due for the fluid change per Honda's rules, even though I had to pay at 12,000. I am not sure that I can draw the same conclusion on your question. Your making the inference that until the MMI has been reset the 12 month rule does apply. I doubt that to be the case, but it is worth a try. I am sure you will hear that the MMI is reset after the factory fill oil is installed.

But now let me ask you this, what if Honda says, yeah sure run it out the first time to what ever the MMI tells you, are you going to go 21 months without changing the oil?

[tsmithvt]

Before the fancy MMI it was pretty clear and very simple what Honda wanted us to do. It was "Every 10,000 miles (16,000 km) or every 1 year, whichever comes first". It's not likely the maintenance requirements (oil/filter changes) changed that much between Gen 2.5 and 3. So, change the oil and filter at one year, reset the MMI, no matter what the use % is, and your safe mechanically and legally.;)

https://techinfo.honda.com/rjanisis/pubs/om/9B0606/9B0606O00187A.pdf

Pardon the intrusion Black Pearl.

[Black Pearl]

MMI discussions can approach naval staring. Thanks for a breath of fresh common sense!