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If you perform your own oil changes and would like to reduce the wear on your engine without any additional costs, read on.
You already know the best favor you can do for your TSX (or any vehicle) is to change oil regularly. Interestingly, Acura doesn't recommend changing the filter at each oil change, instead, they recommend every other oil change? I don't see it that way, as you leave behind some contaminated oil if you don't change the filter.
Since most engine damage occurs during initial startup when little or no oil immediately circulates, the sooner oil flows the less grinding and wear. While synthetic oils improve protection by reducing friction and coating parts longer, anytime oil is not freely circulating wear increases.
With that in mind, I have been performing this little "trick" for years and have found it to reduce the time an engine runs dry without lubricant during those first few critical seconds after an oil change.
During a "regular" oil and filter change you drain the oil, remove the filter, replace the drain plug and washer and install a new filter. Next time try "prefilling" your oil filter first. Divert some oil you normally pour directly into the engine to your new oil filter.
By "prefilling" your oil filter, you reduce the amount of time the upper cylinders receive oil by almost a second, possibly more! I know this to be true as I have verified the difference on each of my cars and friends' cars.
Here's the procedure:
:thumbsup: "Prefill" a new oil filter to the top with fresh oil.
:spin: Wait a minute or two for the element to soak all the oil in. Repeat this procedure about 2 more times. With each succeeding fill the oil will take a little longer to soak in as the filter becomes increasingly saturated. I usually multitask during this time by draining the old oil from the car.
:naughty: Lubricate the filter's O-Ring. As you're topping off the filter, "touch" the oil with your finger tip or a "Q-Tip" and lightly run it around the rubber filter gasket to lubricate it.
:banghead: Don't overfill the filter! By about the 3rd refill, oil will no longer soak into the media, when this occurs only half fill the filter. Since the filter mounts horizontally, you have only a few seconds to position the filter horizontally and spin it on until the rubber gasket seats and not leak oil out. Imagine how much more "fun" this would be if the filter were completely fill?!
:attention IMPORTANT: Do not overfill the crankcase by adding additional oil for the filter! For example; the TSX uses ~4.5 qts of oil with a new filter. Depending on the filter, as much as .5 or 1/2 quart of oil may be consumed by the filter. In this case, after prefilling the filter, you need only add the remaining 4 quarts of oil to the engine.
:woot: Congratulations, go have a beer and watch the game. You've gone a long way toward increasing the life of your TSX with just a little extra effort and best of all... No extra money!
If you don't believe this works, try this test. Next time you change your oil the old way, restart the car and watch the oil pressure light. Count the number of seconds the light stays on from the moment you start the car till the time it goes out. In most new cars it will light for about 2-3 seconds, in older cars or with higher mileages, about 3-4 seconds. Document the time and next oil change try the "prefilling" method. See if the oil pressure light doesn't go out sooner by ~1 second or more? Multiply that over the lfe of the engine and you definitely will make a difference.
You already know the best favor you can do for your TSX (or any vehicle) is to change oil regularly. Interestingly, Acura doesn't recommend changing the filter at each oil change, instead, they recommend every other oil change? I don't see it that way, as you leave behind some contaminated oil if you don't change the filter.
Since most engine damage occurs during initial startup when little or no oil immediately circulates, the sooner oil flows the less grinding and wear. While synthetic oils improve protection by reducing friction and coating parts longer, anytime oil is not freely circulating wear increases.
With that in mind, I have been performing this little "trick" for years and have found it to reduce the time an engine runs dry without lubricant during those first few critical seconds after an oil change.
During a "regular" oil and filter change you drain the oil, remove the filter, replace the drain plug and washer and install a new filter. Next time try "prefilling" your oil filter first. Divert some oil you normally pour directly into the engine to your new oil filter.
By "prefilling" your oil filter, you reduce the amount of time the upper cylinders receive oil by almost a second, possibly more! I know this to be true as I have verified the difference on each of my cars and friends' cars.
Here's the procedure:
:thumbsup: "Prefill" a new oil filter to the top with fresh oil.
:spin: Wait a minute or two for the element to soak all the oil in. Repeat this procedure about 2 more times. With each succeeding fill the oil will take a little longer to soak in as the filter becomes increasingly saturated. I usually multitask during this time by draining the old oil from the car.
:naughty: Lubricate the filter's O-Ring. As you're topping off the filter, "touch" the oil with your finger tip or a "Q-Tip" and lightly run it around the rubber filter gasket to lubricate it.
:banghead: Don't overfill the filter! By about the 3rd refill, oil will no longer soak into the media, when this occurs only half fill the filter. Since the filter mounts horizontally, you have only a few seconds to position the filter horizontally and spin it on until the rubber gasket seats and not leak oil out. Imagine how much more "fun" this would be if the filter were completely fill?!
:attention IMPORTANT: Do not overfill the crankcase by adding additional oil for the filter! For example; the TSX uses ~4.5 qts of oil with a new filter. Depending on the filter, as much as .5 or 1/2 quart of oil may be consumed by the filter. In this case, after prefilling the filter, you need only add the remaining 4 quarts of oil to the engine.
:woot: Congratulations, go have a beer and watch the game. You've gone a long way toward increasing the life of your TSX with just a little extra effort and best of all... No extra money!
If you don't believe this works, try this test. Next time you change your oil the old way, restart the car and watch the oil pressure light. Count the number of seconds the light stays on from the moment you start the car till the time it goes out. In most new cars it will light for about 2-3 seconds, in older cars or with higher mileages, about 3-4 seconds. Document the time and next oil change try the "prefilling" method. See if the oil pressure light doesn't go out sooner by ~1 second or more? Multiply that over the lfe of the engine and you definitely will make a difference.
