| cycler15 |
Here is my proposed maintenance schedule... please let me know if anything isn't right or if I am missing something. Thanks.
Oil change - 5,000 miles
Rotate & balance tires - 10,000 miles
Alignment - 15,000 miles
VTM fluid - 15,000 miles
Tranny fluid (full flush) - 25,000 miles
coolant - 2 years
brake fluid - 3 years |
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| DaleB |
quote:
Originally posted by cycler15
Here is my proposed maintenance schedule... please let me know if anything isn't right or if I am missing something. Thanks.
Oil change - 5,000 miles
Rotate & balance tires - 10,000 miles
Alignment - 15,000 miles
VTM fluid - 15,000 miles
Tranny fluid (full flush) - 25,000 miles
coolant - 2 years
brake fluid - 3 years
I 'might' rotate tires more often. Michelin recommends every 3000 miles, IF no rotation cycle is given in the vehicle's owner's manual. The MDX owner's manual says 7500. Maybe balance every other rotation. |
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| Jim03MDX |
cycler15,
Looks good but what about the air filter? It falls somewhere in the 15K - 30K miles range. |
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| EXCALIBUR |
cycler15,
Since you plan to change your oil at 5,000 intervals, it might be a good idea to rotate the tires at the same time. The 5,000 mile interval is an easy to remember number. Good luck.:29: |
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| cycler15 |
quote:
Originally posted by Jim03MDX
cycler15,
Looks good but what about the air filter? It falls somewhere in the 15K - 30K miles range.
I thought I read somewhere on this forum that the X's air filter was a special kind that didn't need replacing. I might be wrong... Can anyone answer that?
Yeah, I think I'll rotate my tires every 5,000 miles and balance every 10,000 miles. |
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| evoge |
quote:
Originally posted by cycler15
I thought I read somewhere on this forum that the X's air filter was a special kind that didn't need replacing. I might be wrong... Can anyone answer that?
No, it's replaceable like any other air filter--just more expensive. 30k miles for normal driving; 15k for "severe" driving conditions. |
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| Oh_My_Baby |
| Toyota dealer's maintenance schedule recommended engine oil flush after new car break in period. Please advise if the same is applied to X. |
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| DaleB |
quote:
Originally posted by Oh_My_Baby
Toyota dealer's maintenance schedule recommended engine oil flush after new car break in period. Please advise if the same is applied to X.
No proven benefits other than increasing dealership profits. |
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| cycler15 |
Here is my updated maintenance schedule based on input.
Oil change - 5,000 miles
Rotate tires - 5,000 miles
Balance tires - 10,000 miles
Alignment - 15,000 miles
VTM fluid - 15,000 miles
Tranny fluid (full flush) - 25,000 miles
Air filter - 25,000 miles
coolant - 2 years
brake fluid - 3 years
I forgot about the fuel filter... how often does that need to be changed? |
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| DaleB |
Looks good. Not sure I would wait to replace the cheapie paper air filter. Maybe 12-15.000. I would replace the cabin filter by 25,000.
Fuel filter (in the tank) does not have a recommendation for periodic replacement. Guess we wait until it's clogged.
I would do the plugs and timing belt at 80 to 90K instead of waiting for 105,000 if you plan to keep your MDX that long. |
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| srpbep |
cycler15,
Some thoughts:
** Oil change at 5K is good unless you have severe duty useage. Think Acura suggests 3,750 in this situation. If severe duty, I agree that more often is better. If not severe duty, consider Mobil-1 full synthetic (or other full synth) and change at 7,500.
** Alignment every 15,000 seems excessive to me unless you do off-road or the roads in your neck of the woods are poor. On both of our Hondas (MDX and Accord V6) and previous Honda, I have only done alignments when tires are replaced and I get very good tire life (rotate and balance check every 6,000). More frequent allignments might be necessary if you hit something, have noticable steering pull, or see uneven tread wear.
** Air filter change depends on air and type of driving (city worse than highway). I suspect that you should get 15K - 30K on the air filter depending on conditions.
** Don't forget micron (pollen) filter. Acura says every 2 years or 30K.
** Might consider changing power steering fluid every 3 years or so. Like brake fluid, it is a hydrallic fluid and does like to collect moisture. I mention this because you seem to be thorough and this is a fluid often forgotten in my experience.
Ohhhhh .... and don't forget to change the air in your tires ... gets stale over time :2: |
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| srpbep |
oilchange,
That's funny, taking it one step further, the "updated" change schedule is:
Change at 52,000 miles or 50 months, whichever comes first but not before 51,000 miles or 49 months. In rare instances, Acura recommends changing tranny during the warranty period should one of the following occur:
** Tranny whining that exceeds pitch/volume of similar sound emanating from the passenger seat occupant. While Acura will replace whining tranny, Acura will not be responsible for the competing issue.
** Vehicle stops abruptly by itself (due to tranny lockup) and the vehicle behind you embeds itself into the MDX's rear bumper. In order to prove that the tranny failure did not occur as a result of the accident, MDX with embedded other vehicle must be presented to nearest Acura dealer in the "embedded condition". If the vehicles are separated before examination by a qualified Acura embedding specialist, a replacement tranny will not be covered under warranty.
** Vehicle will not move due to apparent tranny failure. In this instance, owner must drive the MDX to the nearest Acura dealer and submit for warranty repair. Use of tow service, which may damage the Acura drivetrain, will void the coverage and a replacement tranny will not be covered.
Ohhhhh, and Acura has just modified the Extended Warranty Coverage to exclude 01-02 transmissions if there is any evidence that the owners operated the vehicles with improper tranny oil fluid pressures which resulted in overheating of and subsequent damage to any of the internal tranny components. |
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| cycler15 |
quote:
Originally posted by srpbep
cycler15,
Some thoughts:
** Oil change at 5K is good unless you have severe duty useage. Think Acura suggests 3,750 in this situation. If severe duty, I agree that more often is better. If not severe duty, consider Mobil-1 full synthetic (or other full synth) and change at 7,500.
Since I live in LA and there is a fair amount of stop and go traffic, I thought changing the oil every 5k would be reasonable.
** Alignment every 15,000 seems excessive to me unless you do off-road or the roads in your neck of the woods are poor. On both of our Hondas (MDX and Accord V6) and previous Honda, I have only done alignments when tires are replaced and I get very good tire life (rotate and balance check every 6,000). More frequent allignments might be necessary if you hit something, have noticable steering pull, or see uneven tread wear.
A friend of mine recommends doing this once a year. May be a little excessive, but he says it's better to do it on a regular basis than wait for something to come out of alignment.... could help lengthen the life of the tires.
** Air filter change depends on air and type of driving (city worse than highway). I suspect that you should get 15K - 30K on the air filter depending on conditions.
** Don't forget micron (pollen) filter. Acura says every 2 years or 30K.
Thanks, I'll add this to my list.
** Might consider changing power steering fluid every 3 years or so. Like brake fluid, it is a hydrallic fluid and does like to collect moisture. I mention this because you seem to be thorough and this is a fluid often forgotten in my experience.
Ditto... all fluids will start to break down after years of use. This is something I've never actually changed before. I've never had a car more than 4 years though.
Ohhhhh .... and don't forget to change the air in your tires ... gets stale over time :2:
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| edepa |
Reading this thread gave me a different question. My X is going to be due for its 30k service in a month or two. I had planned on having the tran fluid flushed and changed. Now they are doing this recall and as a minimum doing the 'jet' installation. Will this require them to change the fluid while they do this? Or will I/should I still go for a flush? Or just see if they change out the whole transmission???
The more I think about this tran issue, the greater my concern. I hope that Acura comes out with an extended warranty on the transmission to relieve all our concerns. It would be a great customer relations move and encourage me to stick with the brand. |
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| DaleB |
A few more points to consider..some after-thoughts after reading through the posts.
I go to a shop that 'checks' the alignment free..then charges only if they have to do it. And then charges less if ONLY the rear or front need alignment, not both...Of course, it has to be a shop you can trust, some will always say you need one.
You can pay for lifetime alignments.. for some shops that's a joke..they just look at your tires. If they actually measure your alignment it may save you $$ over the years.
In most cases, if the car drives ok and you can see yourself there is no uneven wear, it is likely you do not NEED one.
That does not mean that curb you slammed into 2 days ago is not about to change all that. Just something to think about.
On the airfilter, if you don't have a servicable one like a True Flow or K&N, I would not go past 15,000 miles. Paper is fairly effective at blocking dirt, does a good job of passing air. But can not do both very effectively for very long. It is cheap enough to replace every 15K and will ensure better gas mileage.
I pulled the cabin filter at 19,000. It was very dirty. No smokers in the car either. I would not go past 25K with it in the car.
Adding the PS fluid along with the brake fluid is a good one too.
I think the 5K is good for oil changes, if using a full synthetic. |
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| DaleB |
quote:
Originally posted by edepa
Reading this thread gave me a different question. My X is going to be due for its 30k service in a month or two. I had planned on having the tran fluid flushed and changed. Now they are doing this recall and as a minimum doing the 'jet' installation. Will this require them to change the fluid while they do this? Or will I/should I still go for a flush? Or just see if they change out the whole transmission???
The more I think about this tran issue, the greater my concern. I hope that Acura comes out with an extended warranty on the transmission to relieve all our concerns. It would be a great customer relations move and encourage me to stick with the brand.
So, you have not changed your ATF at all? How does it look? Mine looked bad at 19,000. Did not smell bad, but quite dark. I had a 3X done.
The local Acura dealer charged me $130. I could have had a flush done at the Honda dealer for about the same price. It was a toss-up. I also could have done it myself, but was under a time constraint at the time, didn’t want to mess with it. Had the tensioner recall done at the same time.
I figured if I had a warranty problem later, it might look better that I got a standard drain (3X) at an Acura dealer, than a flush at a Honda dealer. Probably a moot point. I will say the fluid looks like new even though there is about 10% of old fluid still in there.
In your case, I would be tempted to wait for the inspection, if you waited this long already. |
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| cycler15 |
quote:
Originally posted by DaleB
I go to a shop that 'checks' the alignment free..then charges only if they have to do it. And then charges less if ONLY the rear or front need alignment, not both...Of course, it has to be a shop you can trust, some will always say you need one.
You can pay for lifetime alignments.. for some shops that's a joke..they just look at your tires. If they actually measure your alignment it may save you $$ over the years.
In most cases, if the car drives ok and you can see yourself there is no uneven wear, it is likely you do not NEED one.
That does not mean that curb you slammed into 2 days ago is not about to change all that. Just something to think about.
Firestone has a lifetime alignment for around $90 where they give you a computer printout each time (so you know they're not just doing a visual check). I'm not sure how much my local Acura dealer charges, but I believe it's around $60-70 each time. I'll just hold off on the alignment for now and see how things go.
On the airfilter, if you don't have a servicable one like a True Flow or K&N, I would not go past 15,000 miles. Paper is fairly effective at blocking dirt, does a good job of passing air. But can not do both very effectively for very long. It is cheap enough to replace every 15K and will ensure better gas mileage.
How much is the Acura air filter? I had a K&N filter in my old Tahoe that cost around $60 if I can remember correctly... didn't seem get any mpg gains, but probably worth it in the long run since you don't have to pay for replacements.
I pulled the cabin filter at 19,000. It was very dirty. No smokers in the car either. I would not go past 25K with it in the car.
Thanks, I'll keep this in mind.
Adding the PS fluid along with the brake fluid is a good one too.
I think the 5K is good for oil changes, if using a full synthetic.
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| DaleB |
Personally, I would not be caught dead in a Firestone center. (well, on 2nd thought, I might be!)....just based on a personal experience some time ago. Different car, etc. I think you are better served with an independent with a long standing rep. Not to say all chains are bad, by any means. In fact the shop(s) I go to normally, is a bay area chain.
If you do some consumer research on various businesses you will find a lot of complaints and class actions suits against, Sears (the 'old' Sears auto), Monkey Wards (now defunct), Midas (mostly resolved), and Firestone, among others. Things have improved and most are running scared after Sears almost lost all their automotive business, and overhauled their management several years ago.
This may have been localized to California, I can't speak to other states.
I use a True Flow filter. It has the easier breathing advantage of the K&N plus a foam cell structure is able to handle a much higher contamination load. It compares quite favorably with the Amsoil air filter but has superior construction. Plus, one filter for the life of the car. About 45-50 bucks. Paper gradually deteriorates in efficiency over 20K miles. It would be negligible in a True Flow, etc. Clean it every 40K, that's about it.
The above based on my experiences. Yours may vary..
:cool: |
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| keremoner |
| do you see any problems with changing the oil every 7500 miles as the manual says? I don't do much driving in heavy traffic, if that matters. Thanks. |
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| hha27d |
i read somewhere that 10 years is ok for psf, what do you think (but definitely every 2 years for brake fluid).
also i would veryfy that garage does balancing as well as rotation (mark the tire up (1 or more) with a marker color to help) and the cabin filter should be changed based on how often you drive with windows open (lots of diust comes in that way- just check the back window - i had a lot in camaro (86) and 90 legend coupe)
afd |
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| DaleB |
quote:
Originally posted by hha27d
i read somewhere that 10 years is ok for psf, what do you think (but definitely every 2 years for brake fluid).
also i would veryfy that garage does balancing as well as rotation (mark the tire up (1 or more) with a marker color to help) and the cabin filter should be changed based on how often you drive with windows open (lots of diust comes in that way- just check the back window - i had a lot in camaro (86) and 90 legend coupe)
afd
10 years?? Why bother flushing it at all! I would do at least every 3 to 4 years. I don't believe the cost is that prohibitive. In 10 years the fluid is already well contaminated and acids have already been working away on metals.
Not sure what you are doing marking the tires, unless you want to make sure they rotated them. Watch them where I go.
Personally, my experience say balance on every 2nd or 3rd rotation.
Have never had an out-balance condition. Guess it would depend how often you rotate. 10K - 15k seems about right for balancing.
Of course balance any repaired tire.
I rarely ever drive with the windows or the moon roof open. The filter looked like crap when I changed it at 19K. |
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| cmilioto |
quote:
Originally posted by keremoner
do you see any problems with changing the oil every 7500 miles as the manual says?
How many Honda/Acura's have you seen blowing black smoke out of the tailpipe? When's the last time you heard of a Honda/Acura with a burnt engine? Doesn't happen often.
I had a '89 Accord coupe in college, and usually changed the oil every 7K, occasionally at 6K but sometimes would wait till 8K. Drove it 225,000 miles without any mechanical engine problems. Only problem I had was with the electrical distributor going out at just under 200K... and that was a car built with technology 14 years older than what I have now.
I guess if you want to change your oil every 3K, sure that can only help, but why not change every 1K? Now that's protection.
Ok, so I'm using an extreme here to make my point, but my guess is with an engine from a company with a history of highly reliable vehicles, I think you'll be ok following the manufacturer's recommendations and waiting 7500 miles between oil changes. Why would Acura tell you to change it at 7.5K, if it really needs it at 3K? After all, Acura wouldn't want to do anything to put their reputation at risk. |
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| mogur |
Bad idea! Engine flushes are just profit centers for dealers and can actually do more harm than good. Avoid it!
quote:
Originally posted by Oh_My_Baby
Toyota dealer's maintenance schedule recommended engine oil flush after new car break in period. Please advise if the same is applied to X.
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| Oh_My_Baby |
quote:
Originally posted by mogur
Bad idea! Engine flushes are just profit centers for dealers and can actually do more harm than good. Avoid it!
What would you do if your doctor recommend flushing your system? Same deal? Somehow I think flushing would do something beneficial. Eh? .... |
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| mogur |
quote:
Originally posted by Oh_My_Baby
If my doctor recommended flushing either MY system or my car's system, I'd look for a new doctor, pronto! Flushing accomplishes nothing beneficial in a properly maintained engine, period. It CAN, however, plug oil passages and leave solvents behind that will contaminate the oil that is subsequently added.
Tom
What would you do if your doctor recommend flushing your system? Same deal? Somehow I think flushing would do something beneficial. Eh? ....
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