How many miles (on average) can you put on a '90-'95 Honda Accord or Civic?

[db]

My old '88 Accord LXi has 264,xxx and is still good--needed 1st clutch at about 212,xxx.
My '95 EXL has 120xxx and is beautiful and stong--I still consider it "new".

If you don't abuse it, fix it when it needs it, and do scheduled maint, it will last a very long time. Change the oil and filter frequently, and the water pump when you change the timing belt, etc.

 

[rh71]

We have an 89 Honda Accord up to 150k miles. We're getting rid of it in July only because we don't want to pay for repairs that won't pass inspection otherwise. It physically runs fine, just not good enough to pass the next inspection.

 

[RichieZ]

88 Accord LX had 212,000 miles. Gave it to my cousin when i left for college. This summer I'm getting a WRX or something similar

 

[Pepsi90919]

Zenmervolt,



<< , burns absolutely no oil, >>

so you never start the engine? ok, well that's why it's reliable.

 

[Eli]

<< <<Using high quality synthetic engine oil is a better preventitive measure than changing the oil every 3,000 miles. Probably cheaper, or at least break even, in the long run too.>>

Not necessarily true. In order to offset the added cost of the synthetic, the change interval must be extended. Even though synthetic does not contaminate or break down as quickly/easily as mineral oils the synthetic change intervals are calculated to give equal performance to mineral oil change intervals. Given that I would not trust any oil, synthetic even, past 9,000 miles or six months a synthetic switch would end up costing me money in the long run because the interval is not extended enough to offset the cost.

In my air-cooled engines I use only synthetic because of the increased possibility of thermal breakdown, and I change it every 3,500 miles because I stress the aircooled engines rather heavily.

Unless you are very heavily stressing your liquid cooled engine, mineral oil changed every 3,000 miles will provide more protection than is necessary for the car to last 25-40 years.

ZV >>



I understand what you're saying, but I disagree. IMO, the protection a synthetic gives over natural oil is worth the added cost, even if you're going to insist on changing your oil every 3,000 miles. It's not really the extended drain interval you're concerned about; it's just an added bonus.

High quality oils like AMSOil have drain intervals of 25,000 miles or 1 year, whichever comes first.

The point isn't really to save money. Trying to save money on the oil you put in your engine is a big mistake. I was just trying to point out that using synthetic oil is very much worth it, and in some cases it may not even cost more. Even if it does cost more, the savings in the long run are worth it.

If you really want to get technical.. You should start with a brand new engine, and find the "best" drain interval for you and your engine. After breakin, drain your oil at 3,000 miles. Have it analyzed, and study the report. You will be given a representation of the ammount of different metals found in your oil. Based on this, you can decide to increase, or decrease your drain intervals. Believe me, with a good synthetic, and a properly broken in engine, you're not going to need to decrease them. Obviously, high ammounts of things like iron, aluminum and nickel aren't desirable. :Q If you do this every oil change, you will have a very good idea about your lubrication requirements.

Synthetic oil is superior to natural oil in all ways.. Your engine will run better, and last longer. The peace of mind alone is worth it for me.

If you really want protection, get a bypass oilfilter. Engine wear is caused by particles larger than 5.0 microns. There are bypass filters that will remove contaminants from your oil down to 0.1 microns, virtually eliminating engine wear*.

*This of course, is an exaggeration. ~60% of all engine wear is caused by particles in the 5 to 20 micron range. The typical full-flow filter on your car will stop contaminants no smaller than 25 to 40 microns. You can see how this could reduce engine wear significantly.

 

[thomsbrain]

120K on my Accord -- running like new
145K on my Dad's Civic -- running like new

 

[Nocturnal]

a friend of mine has a integra i think its a 91 or 92 it has over 250k on it. it was taken cared of like a little baby.

thats all you gotta do is take care, do the regularly check ups oil changes plugs etc etc.

its still running too. and he also races his car at the tracks on a weekly basis.

i have a 92 civic with about 100k on it right now, still going smoothe.

 

[Thegonagle]

Hondas are great cars. So are Toyotas, but Hondas are more fun to drive (while a Toyota is generally more comfortable) and Hondas usually have a slight edge in fuel economy. With good care, 200,000 miles should be easy, and 300,000 is definitely not out of the question, especially for an Accord.

My current ride is a ?92 Civic LX with almost 151,000 miles on it. It runs like new, but it uses a quart or so of oil between changes.

Dino oil in an Accord is definitely good enough when it's changed every 3000 miles. I'm another person who would never drive 10,000 miles on any oil, synthetic or not, so I would be "wasting" my money. My '87 automatic (carb'd LX, dino oiled) had 247,000 on it when I accidentally ditched it and f'd the suspension. I swear it was actually running stronger than it's rated 98 horses. The completely original transmission was still doing great, too. It had it's fluid changed (partial drain and refill with Honda brand fluid) as recommended every 15,000 miles or so. It's as easy as an oil change because Honda used a drain plug and no filter. It took 2.7 quarts, about $12.

If you want durability, go for an Accord over a Civic, IMHO. I did have an 89 Civic that had 192,000 miles on it (running like new) when it met it's unfortunate end in a morning rush hour pile up, but I still think the Accord has more potential, for a couple of reasons. It's more expensive, and so is not quite as subject to cost cutting to keep the base price under a certain point. As such, you'll have better luck finding one with fastidious maintenance by a dealer or other Honda specialist, who knows which aftermarket replacement parts to avoid using. Also, the larger engine in the Accord is torquier, so it is generally run at lower revs, and doesn?t need to be ?flogged? as often to merge, etc. (as most people know, if all other factors are equal, an engine will last longer at lower revs).

To the dude who is having problems with brakes and exhaust, I?m sure you?re not taking it somewhere that uses Honda parts, or the brake pads would be silent, and the exhaust would last 8 years, even in salty Minnesota. Cheap parts should never go on a car that you want to keep for years. Another common aftermarket part failure on Hondas is the drive shafts. The originals last 100,000 miles, but cheap, ?lowest quote? parts don?t even last half that. The local independent Honda guy (OHV Motors in Eden Prairie) said that nobody seems to be able to rebuild them correctly, and after seeing the ?Parts Plus? drive shafts in his 180,000 mile ?88 Accord, admonished my friend to go only to the dealer or his shop for CV joint work.

 

[Eli]

<< Dino oil in an Accord is definitely good enough when it's changed every 3000 miles. I'm another person who would never drive 10,000 miles on any oil, synthetic or not, so I would be "wasting" my money. My '87 automatic (carb'd LX, dino oiled) had 247,000 on it when I accidentally ditched it and f'd the suspension. >>



lol.. dino oil. I like that.

I don't want to seem like I'm trying to convince anybody of anything. It's true, the 3,000 mile drain interval is good for you could say all engine oil. However, that's not the point I'm trying to make.

It's not like engine wear doesen't occour when theres plenty of clean oil in your engine. It's the oils job to reduce this as much as possible. Synthetic oils are superior in every aspect to dino oil. They reduce wear even more, and are much more stable thermally and chemically.

Like I was saying, engine oil isn't an area where you should be trying to save money. Personally, I want the best money can buy.

Think of it like computer stuff. When you buy that new video card, you want the best you can get. It doesen't matter if it will have to be swapped out(obsolete) in 6 months.

I have no problem paying 8$ for a quart of AMSOil.. especially when you change your oil and it's still honey colored. It gives you a good feeling.

 

[ThisIsMatt]

<<

<< Dino oil in an Accord is definitely good enough when it's changed every 3000 miles. I'm another person who would never drive 10,000 miles on any oil, synthetic or not, so I would be "wasting" my money. My '87 automatic (carb'd LX, dino oiled) had 247,000 on it when I accidentally ditched it and f'd the suspension. >>



lol.. dino oil. I like that.

I don't want to seem like I'm trying to convince anybody of anything. It's true, the 3,000 mile drain interval is good for you could say all engine oil. However, that's not the point I'm trying to make.

It's not like engine wear doesen't occour when theres plenty of clean oil in your engine. It's the oils job to reduce this as much as possible. Synthetic oils are superior in every aspect to dino oil. They reduce wear even more, and are much more stable thermally and chemically.

Like I was saying, engine oil isn't an area where you should be trying to save money. Personally, I want the best money can buy.

Think of it like computer stuff. When you buy that new video card, you want the best you can get. It doesen't matter if it will have to be swapped out(obsolete) in 6 months.

I have no problem paying 8$ for a quart of AMSOil.. especially when you change your oil and it's still honey colored. It gives you a good feeling. >>

dino:synthetic::silicon:AS3?

 

[mithrandir2001]

<< It's not like engine wear doesn't occur when there's plenty of clean oil in your engine. It's the oil's job to reduce this as much as possible. Synthetic oils are superior in every aspect to dino oil. They reduce wear even more, and are much more stable thermally and chemically. >>


Synthetics may be superior on the spec sheet to their fossil-derived cousins, but the question remains: will it make a difference to the end user? For me, synthetics are a waste. I buy cars new and am lucky if I put 50K on a car before I trade it in. I don't need to increase my maintenance costs for something that will not improve the longevity of my car, during the period when I own it.

Synthetic oils seem better-suited for "special applications", not general commuter use. If you live in Minnesota and crank up your engine in sub-zero temperatures, free-flowing synthetic oil is desirable. If you drive a taxi cab and force your engine to suffer extreme operating conditions, synthetics may offer you better protection. If you pull a trailer with your truck, a synthetic oil may protect the engine from stress and heat. But for 90-95% of drivers, synthetic oil is more of a "feel good" product than anything provably better under the conditions their vehicles are driven.

If you use a synthetic oil, Honda mandates that you do not lengthen the drain interval. For some warranty work, Honda demands that you produce maintenance documentation and they may blame the end-user for improper care if they replace their car's synthetic oil every 10K miles or so, for instance. And you if do replace synthetic oil as frequently as dino oil, then you are incurring significantly higher costs. $8/quart? Wow. I think Mobil 1 is under $5/quart.

 

[evergreen96]

Why is anyone changing there motor oil so soon?

The 95 Accord manuals says you should change it at every 5000 miles....whereas I remember seeing a dateline saying that you can change your motor oil at 7500 miles

Also dateline say motor oil is just motor oil, (not to sure about synthenics) as long as you change it at regular interverals. They dismantled a couple of engines and studied the wear and tear on those engines.


How many of us really change our motor oils at 3k.... I frankly change it at 5k.

 

[dohyun]

I have got a honda civic CRX 88' hf

i just hit 228,000 miles, seems to run pretty good still. i've had the car for 45,000 miles so far,

bought it 3 years ago @ 183,000 miles for 1600. Hondas are sweet!

 

[Zenmervolt]

<<<< , burns absolutely no oil, >>

so you never start the engine? ok, well that's why it's reliable.>>

OK. how about, "burns no measurable amount of oil"?

<<How many of us really change our motor oils at 3k....>>

I do. Personally I'm spazzing right not because I'm at 208,300 miles and my interval was up at 208,000 miles. Not only that, but it's a 248 mile drive back home where I can get it changed. (Don't even think about suggesting a Jiffy Lube place.)

<<Synthetic oil is superior to natural oil in all ways..>>

I agree. However, with a 3,000 mile change interval the protection offered by mineral oils is already more than sufficient. Short of finding a way to pump oil through the system before starting the engine (to reduce start-up wear) you really cannot significantly reduce wear provided you use a high quality filter. Also, at $8 per quart for Amsoil you're paying $4 per quart too much. Mobil One does the job quite well. I run it in my motorcycle, 9,500 rpm shifts, 90+ degree days with an air-cooled engine, carbs the run rich no matter what I do to them, and after 3,000 miles the oil flows out freely with a nice rich amber color. Basically I agree that synthetics are superior, but unless the engine is being stressed heavily there is really no practical real-world benefit to synthetics. Good qaulity mineral oil changed at 3,000 mile intervals is more than adequate for a non-abused car to last 25-40 years. Otherwise there would be no original '55 Chevy Bel-Airs around anymore. Not to mention original Porsche 356's, VW "Things" and the like.

ZV

 

[Thegonagle]

Exactly, Zenmervolt. My 247,000 mile Accord confirms this, as does your 208,000 mile Accord. My oil level on that car went down about a pint-pint and a half between oil changes, because of frequent oil changes by me and the previous owner.

$6 for Castrol (or Valvoline, regular Mobil, or any other quality brand) + $5 for a good filter every 3000 miles is good enough and ends up being much cheaper than $20 (Mobil 1, etc.) + $5 (filter) even every 7500 miles (and many of us here will never go that far between oil changes, despite claims of superior particulate suspension, etc. that make it OK to go so long).