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Car Experts - I Have a Question..

cyfan92

cyfan92

Well-Known Member
Sep 20, 2011
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Augusta National Golf Club
I have a 4 year old Honda Accord (about 40K miles) that has only been driven 2500 miles since it's last oil change (11/2019, 100% synthetic oil). The oil meter on the dash says I have 60% of the oil life left.

My question is do I need to have it changed since it is over a year old? How long should I go before it is changed? WFH and limited travel over the winter mean I'm probably not putting many miles on it until late Spring/Summer 2021
 
cyfan92 said:
I have a 4 year old Honda Accord (about 40K miles) that has only been driven 2500 miles since it's last oil change (11/2019, 100% synthetic oil). The oil meter on the dash says I have 60% of the oil life left.

My question is do I need to have it changed since it is over a year old? How long should I go before it is changed? WFH and limited travel over the winter mean I'm probably not putting many miles on it until late Spring/Summer 2021
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I’m gonna have the same issue.
 
cyfan92 said:
I have a 4 year old Honda Accord (about 40K miles) that has only been driven 2500 miles since it's last oil change (11/2019, 100% synthetic oil). The oil meter on the dash says I have 60% of the oil life left.

My question is do I need to have it changed since it is over a year old? How long should I go before it is changed? WFH and limited travel over the winter mean I'm probably not putting many miles on it until late Spring/Summer 2021
Click to expand...

DriveAccord.net is a good source for this and I would bet a number of posters there have posted this very question.

Anecdotally, I have seen this question in the past and some people follow guidance pretty strictly about doing it at least once a year. Others will say it's perfectly fine to wait - particularly in your situation where it's been more than a year, but you still don't plan to drive much until spring. I would tend to fall in the latter camp.
 
When you do drive it, are the trips short or long? I think the break point is something like 10 miles between those two definitions. If you're just doing short trips, you probably should change it after a year. If the trips are longer, you might be able to get away with putting it off.

Personally, an oil change is pretty cheap compared to what could happen if you push it off. I'd change it myself.
 
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Oil becomes less effective as it ages. I certainly would get it changed at least once a year no matter how many miles are driven. Oil changes are cheap. Even cheaper if you learn how to do it yourself.
 
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CtownCyclone said:
When you do drive it, are the trips short or long? I think the break point is something like 10 miles between those two definitions. If you're just doing short trips, you probably should change it after a year. If the trips are longer, you might be able to get away with putting it off.

Personally, an oil change is pretty cheap compared to what could happen if you push it off. I'd change it myself.
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90% of my driving since April has been 5 miles or less for the round trip
 
Isualum13 said:
Oil becomes less effective as it ages. I certainly would get it changed at least once a year no matter how many miles are driven. Oil changes are cheap. Even cheaper if you learn how to do it yourself.
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I'm leaning this way as I want to keep the car for a LONG time. More just being cheap and curious if I can wait until Aprilish time frame and it'll be ok
 
cyfan92 said:
I have a 4 year old Honda Accord (about 40K miles) that has only been driven 2500 miles since it's last oil change (11/2019, 100% synthetic oil). The oil meter on the dash says I have 60% of the oil life left.

My question is do I need to have it changed since it is over a year old? How long should I go before it is changed? WFH and limited travel over the winter mean I'm probably not putting many miles on it until late Spring/Summer 2021
Click to expand...

Change it at 5000 miles and don't worry about it. The oil experts (who sell oil) will tell you that you have to do it in a certain amount of time. Again, they sell oil.
 
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cyfan92 said:
I'm leaning this way as I want to keep the car for a LONG time. More just being cheap and curious if I can wait until Aprilish time frame and it'll be ok
Click to expand...
In my very unprofessional opinion you probably would be fine until April. Especially if you only make short trips. An issue would be more likely to arise on a long trip. I would still get the oil changed asap. If you are in ames just go through the LOF express by Walmart and be done in 5 minutes. When I was in school putting very few miles on my car that is what I used about every 8 months. Never had an issue with the service they provide.
 
Last edited:
cyfan92 said:
I have a 4 year old Honda Accord (about 40K miles) that has only been driven 2500 miles since it's last oil change (11/2019, 100% synthetic oil). The oil meter on the dash says I have 60% of the oil life left.

My question is do I need to have it changed since it is over a year old? How long should I go before it is changed? WFH and limited travel over the winter mean I'm probably not putting many miles on it until late Spring/Summer 2021
Click to expand...
Just yesterday I got an email from the dealership where I get my oil changed telling me you should change the oil once a year regardless of how many miles you have put on.
 
I have three cars that I pretty much only drive for cruise nights or shows. I might put 1000 miles on a year and I have always changed at 3000 miles. One car I have owned since 1996 and no issues. I run conventional oil and these three are carbureted cars. Now if you are unsure, an oil change is cheap so just do it. I’m just passing on what have have been doing. My cars do sit inside and I keep the garage set at 40 degrees in the winter time.
 
I'd run it down and change it later. But I'll probably put on 40,000 miles this yr. So I don't have this problem.
 
SIAP: I would go by what the car is telling you. Sure it will be fine. If you notice anything while driving then maybe re-evaluate.
 
bannedman said:
another question... with a lot of people doing short trips and less often. is carbon build up an issue that is going to come up?
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Ah, I miss the good old days of carburetors and big old Detroit V-8s when "burning the carbon off" was mostly a great excuse of redlining your car on the old Dundee blacktop. Also answered the important question of "What is this cars top speed?" and "Does dad know how fast his car goes?"
 
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So the oil meter in my car (2016 Wrangler ) appears to be strictly mileage based - it wants 7500 miles, regardless of any other variable. So I'm not entirely sure I'd just trust that blindly. To be fair, it is a Chrysler product, so take that as you will.
 
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