Honda’s Oil Dilution Issue

[JT Si]

Did you got your software updated ?

Not available on my region. Not cold enough.

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[saiko21]

I deliberately put in 4 quarts that oil change, so it was at the top of the dipstick the whole time. So far this interval the oil level does not appear to have risen, so we will see if the dilution is any lower.

Our oil capacity is 3.7qts. if you kept 4 qts it's gonna damage the cause more bad to engine than good

 

[RehabJP]

I thought they had a recall on all of the pre 2020 Hondas with the L15B7 that was supposed to fix the issue with the gasoline dilution of the motor oil? As a mechanic I might suggest that if it was a frequent issue and you are getting severe dilution you could run 5W-30 instead of the 0W-20 the factory recommends. Now officially I guess I would say do what Honda tells you but in my opinion most likely would not hurt anything you may loose some power due to a slightly heaver oil but if its thinning out due to gas contamination then it evens out in the end.

 

[fabrizzio71]

Our oil capacity is 3.7qts. if you kept 4 qts it's gonna damage the cause more bad to engine than good

4 quarts won’t damage anything. In fact I’ve measured when changing and 3.7 doesn’t actually bring it to the full mark but 4 qts does. Once the dealer changed my oil without permission and overfilled by .5 to .75 quarts. When overfilled it is very obvious-goes above the top of the orange piece.

 

[zspeed]

Usually not sitting too long idling will help reduce oil/fuel dilution. Just idling there with a DI engine on a cold start is brutal(probably on a warm operating temp engine too). I do take off after maybe several seconds from firing up the car. Get that combustion going and combust every droplet of fuel before the unburnt ones are sent down to the sump.

This is what I’ve read as well in regards to DI engine operation during cold start. Slowly drive the car until reaching optimal operating temperature will do rather than idling it.

 

[@thatblu_si]

Ive got a 2019 si, when did this software update yall are talkn about get released? i mean i havent noticed any fuel dilution, atleast not enough to cause concern

 

[CastorX]

I thought they had a recall on all of the pre 2020 Hondas with the L15B7 that was supposed to fix the issue with the gasoline dilution of the motor oil? As a mechanic I might suggest that if it was a frequent issue and you are getting severe dilution you could run 5W-30 instead of the 0W-20 the factory recommends. Now officially I guess I would say do what Honda tells you but in my opinion most likely would not hurt anything you may loose some power due to a slightly heaver oil but if its thinning out due to gas contamination then it evens out in the end.

My Honda dealer in Germany actually puts Shell Helix Ultra ACEA C2 (or C3) 5W30 oil in the 1.5 turbo Civics, I didn't ask why, but I'm not sure they ever used the 0w20 Honda oil. The other thing is that the oil must be gasoline engine particulate filter compatible in Europe, but according to the manual the 0w20 Honda oil should also be fine, but the manual also mentions that the "0w20 Genuine Engine Oil Type 2.0: Entwickelt zur Verringerung des Kraftstoffverbrauchs", that basically means that the goal was to reach better fuel economy. But everything synthetic can be used between 0w30 and 10w30, BUT if you want to use 0w20 then you can use the Honda 0w20 only. Again, according to the manual here.

 

[zspeed]

Ive got a 2019 si, when did this software update yall are talkn about get released? i mean i havent noticed any fuel dilution, atleast not enough to cause concern

Last year. A letter was sent out regarding it.

If you’re running a tune like Hondata, they also updated their software in regards to this oil dilution.

 

[@thatblu_si]

Last year. A letter was sent out regarding it.

If you’re running a tune like Hondata, they also updated their software in regards to this oil dilution.

I live in miami florida, i havent received any letters tho, could my location be less susceptible to this dilution? And i am on hondata and literally just did my +9 tune 2 days ago and it did a software update, so maybe that was it

 

[zspeed]

I live in miami florida, i havent received any letters tho, could my location be less susceptible to this dilution? And i am on hondata and literally just did my +9 tune 2 days ago and it did a software update, so maybe that was it

I would check your local dealership regarding that since I’m always reminded to have mine updated but I tell them “nope, I’m fine since I have a Hondata tune uploaded”.

I can definitely flash it back to stock so that they can upload theirs and then I can flash it again with my tune.

 

[@thatblu_si]

I would check your local dealership regarding that since I’m always reminded to have mine updated but I tell them “nope, I’m fine since I have a Hondata tune uploaded”.

I can definitely flash it back to stock so that they can upload theirs and then I can flash it again with my tune.

See i would love to just swing by a stealership and have them update my software but the thing is, i got a pretty decent number of mods on this car xD even though i wont be doing any kind of warranty or service i really dont want them taking note of the mods on the car and f*cking me on any possible future warranty claims. I trust hondata lol ill just stick to their update ?

 

[Gruber]

My Honda dealer in Germany actually puts Shell Helix Ultra ACEA C2 (or C3) 5W30 oil in the 1.5 turbo Civics, I didn't ask why, but I'm not sure they ever used the 0w20 Honda oil. The other thing is that the oil must be gasoline engine particulate filter compatible in Europe, but according to the manual the 0w20 Honda oil should also be fine, but the manual also mentions that the "0w20 Genuine Engine Oil Type 2.0: Entwickelt zur Verringerung des Kraftstoffverbrauchs", that basically means that the goal was to reach better fuel economy. But everything synthetic can be used between 0w30 and 10w30, BUT if you want to use 0w20 then you can use the Honda 0w20 only. Again, according to the manual here.

Genau. Honda manual in German recommends 0W20 oil only if it's genuine Honda oil, with particulate filter or without. If you use other oils available on the market, use 30 weights, they say. But the engines are not any different.
Which means clearly, that Honda's blanket 0W20 recommendation in North America is only motivated by fuel savings and fulfilling the label estimates.

 

[CastorX]

Genau. Honda manual in German recommends 0W20 oil only if it's genuine Honda oil, with particulate filter or without. If you use other oils available on the market, use 30 weights, they say. But the engines are not any different.
Which means clearly, that Honda's blanket 0W20 recommendation in North America is only motivated by fuel savings and fulfilling the label estimates.

Yes, it is probably the reason. And the fact that there is no Engine Idle Stop/Start in the US/Canada cars but there is -as far as I know- engine remote start in some models makes the whole super environment friendly approach with the 0w20 somewhat pointless, or at least strange. I wonder if there is some correlarion between frequent use of engine remote start and extreme cases of oil dilution, I mean, it's definately not good for the car.

 

[Gruber]

Yes, it is probably the reason. And the fact that there is no Engine Idle Stop/Start in the US/Canada cars but there is -as far as I know- engine remote start in some models makes the whole super environment friendly approach with the 0w20 somewhat pointless, or at least strange. I wonder if there is some correlarion between frequent use of engine remote start and extreme cases of oil dilution, I mean, it's definately not good for the car.

For me it's pointless, for Honda the point is that they can make websites like this:

https://hondainamerica.com/environment/

 

[CastorX]

For me it's pointless, for Honda the point is that they can make websites like this:

https://hondainamerica.com/environment/

Wow. Nice! I can feel the Earth Dreaming!