QCK HNDA

I have approx. 5000 miles on my baby...

When I first got it...it had 15 miles...broke it in very very well...might have hit vtec 3-4 times within the first 2500 miles!

Neway...this is the story:
I took it home with 15 miles...had the oil changed to synthetic the next day! The HONDA dealer did it for me! Broke in the engine...and then had the oil changed again (synth.) at 2500 miles! I get the oil changed in it every 2500 miles...only synthetic...and the HONDA dealership changes the oil for me!

Well...I get into it tonight...and the Maint. Light starts blinking... I shut it off...and start it back up...the same thing happens!

Everytime I start up the car...it does this...~What's the problem with my baby?~ I hardly beat on it...maybe hit vtec once a day IF THAT! So...what do you all think...I gotta wait til Monday to bring it in...so whatcha think?

Schatten

1) read the FAQ section above or your manual which says that the maint light comes on when its time to change your oil

2) make sure you have oil in there, do you check the oil levels? with synthetic, I'm very positive that your rings have not sealed and you are running quite dry right now

3) make sure your dealership has documented that THEY are the ones that put synthetic in the car before the break in period was completed, and the second time, before the first oil change was due - this is just in case any sealing problems with your engine do not occur and cause any future problems.

QCK HNDA

what do you mean "your rings have not sealed"????

SteveUCI

Well as I understand it, you're supposed to leave the oil that comes with the engine in the engine for a good amount of miles (~5000 miles, more than the usual length of time) so that the rings around the pistons will seal... meaning the friction and debris from the aging oil will fill in the little gaps around the edges of the rings. When switching to a synthetic oil without a good seal, your engine will continue to burn oil for the rest of its life. For a normal S2000, it takes a while to seal up, say from 4 to 6 thousand miles, although some people (including me) have had to wait 12 thousand miles before the it stopped burning oil.

So I dunno about this maintenance light on your car, but you definitely might wanna get it in writing that your dealership changed the oil to synthetic if you changed to synthetic so soon.

RT

blinking maint light is normal, soon it will be solid and that's normal too!

Team Hybrid

just to let you know, sometimes the dealers forget to reset the maintenance light. Which means that it will start blinking because it (your car) has not been told that it has been serviced yet.


Just ask the dealers to press the button that resets the maintenance light, or do it yourself. Shouldnt be too hard to find. Usually its under the steering wheel somewhere ..on other hondas.



nothing to worry about IMO, unless its the check engine light.

integrate

Don't maintenance light come on on all Hondas at like 5000 miles? The maintenance light came on at that many miles with our 2000 accord.

CoralDoc

The Maint Req light comes on at specific mileage intervals and has nothing to do with a problem with the engine. Engine-related problems cause the Check Engine light to come on. To reset the Maint Req light, follow the procedures in this link to the FAQ section of this forum.

*** Link updated on 25 Jan 2006 ***

littleton

Don't know if the manual varies from year to year but I have model year 2001 and the instructions that I found in the manual allowed me to turn off the maintenance required light. It began appearing at approximately 7500 miles. The instructions were similar to those in the FAQ cited by CoralDoc. On page 49, of the 2001 manual,the instructions are:

- Turn the ignition switch to the LOCK position.
- Press and hold the Trip Meter Reset Button while you turn the ignition switch ON.
- Continue holding the button until the indicator resets (the indicator light goes out.)

Penforhire

One more opinion here that 5K miles is not enough for the switch to synthetic. I'm thinking at least 10K miles.

BTW, even though synth oil does not break down as quickly as dino fluid the additive packages are similar and have less-than-stellar life themselves.

Can you believe there are big companies working on oil sensors for vehicles that tell you when to change your oil? Would save truck fleet managers bundles of $$. I know of two methods beyond the prototype stage now. First is similar to a thermocouple mass flow meter (measures thermal conductivity of oil). Second is capacitive spectroscopy (measuring capacitance of the oil at various frequencies). Both have the drawback that the good/bad meter has to be calibrated for a specific type of oil. Some day you might end up buying "Detector" grade oil in addition to SJ and other grades.