Accord V-Tec Engine

I am thinking about buying a Honda Accord EX with a V-Tec engine that a
friend of mine is leasing. She leased for 3 years and the car looks great and
has given her no problems. We were all set to complete the deal with the
leasing company when she told me she only changed theoil once during the 3
year period. At that point I hesitated. She has 26,500 miles on the car and
did not overheat or have any engine or oil light come on. If I buy the car
now, change the oil regularly, etc., does anybody have any advice about how
much of a risk I'm taking? What about the engine's lifespan? I'd appreciate
any help. It's more money than I've ever spent on a car and don't want to
make a stupid mistake.

 

first things first - why don't you check what the service schedule is
for that vehicle, then compare that to the maintenance undertaken?

 

One oil change in +26K miles would be beyond pretty much any service
schedule (even for synthetic oil) and a good reason for concern. There may
not be a current issue with the vehicle, but the probability for future
issues would be higher.

 

We have a 2003 Accord EX and the oil change interval suggested for
"normal" service is 7500 miles. I've always used the severe service
interval of 3750 miles (approximately). So, to me it seems like the oil
has not been changed often enough.

Ken

 

ok, so i'll ask again: what is the service schedule for that vehicle?

 

and i should have added, "what is the basis for the leasing company's
information?" if it's only been serviced at the dealer once, but
serviced at an independent other times, the leasing company would never
know about the latter.

 

You're apparently not reading the responses OR the original question.

Ken Harris, who also owns a 2003 V-Tec said that the recommended change
for "normal" driving comes at 7,500mi but he uses "severe" at 3,750mi to
stay ahead of the game.

Please re-read Truble's original post which you requoted above. He's
buying a friend's car off lease and SHE told him that SHE only changed
the oil once during the 26,500 miles she drove it. Ergo, in the kindest
of worlds, she ran it to 13,250 miles before touching the oil.

Truble you should probably ask her WHEN she changed it. If she's
beaming and telling you "you won't have to change the oil since I just
changed it 2,000 miles ago when I noticed it was really low" you may
want to "walk on by." If she tells you that she found that she had to
add a quart every 3,000 - 5,000 miles with an oil and filter change at
13,000 then maybe it'll be okay.

 

3750 severe, 7500 normal, as Mr Harris has already alluded to. 1 change in
26K miles is well beyond any service schedule for any vehicle that I have
ever owned or investigated or for any synthetics that I have looked at.

 

If you read the initial post, he states that "she" (assuming the "she" that
leased the vehicle is one and the same "she" he refers to as to giving him
this information) stated the oil was only changed once.

The leasing company was the party he was arranging the financial aspects of
the deal with.

 

When in a lease, isn't one required to perform all scheduled maintenance and
present records when surrendering the car the end of the lease ? Otherwise
will incur "excessive wear and tear" charges ?

Just asking... never leased a vehicle before, but always assumed it was safe
to buy a previously leased car - at least as far as maintenance is
concerned. Well, not anymore ...

Regards,
Stan

 

i don't have that service manual, but i think you'll find it's 10k, not
7.5k. "staying ahead of the game" is great business for dealers and
jiffy lube but a waste of your money.

ok, i misread that - i misunderstood it to be the leasing company that
said that. but the fact still remains, with modern oil and a 10k
service interval, there's really not much to worry about.

 

m1 extended service is 15k.

 

Nothing was mentioned about when the oil was changed. We don't know if she
went 13K and then changed the oil or if she went 26K before changing it.

Al

 

Well, I guess it depends on when the oil was changed....though I doubt if
the car was shipped with it!

 

Thanks, everyone for all of the info and advice. I'll be asking my friend at
what point she changed the oil. Even though the V-Tec seems like a pretty
durable engine, my tendency at this point is to "walk on by" unless I get
satisfactory info...Pretty irresponsible not to perform regular maintenance
even if you are not keeping the car long-term. One last question...would
regular maintenance undo any potential damage done?

 

My opinion is that is is like stopping a smoking habit. There is a lot of
immediate value to getting back on track, and the crank bearings are
probably safe. The steel-on-steel contacts that depend on oil will have
suffered already and may give trouble before the engine's time is due; valve
guides definitely, along with possibly cam bearings, lifter surfaces and
possibly the control hydraulics for the cam.

Mostly, a revelation of inadequate maintenance is reason enough to make me
look elsewhere. I always wonder - has tap water been used in the cooling
system? You can look under the oil filler cap for varnish or (shudder!)
deposits on the rocker arm assembly and you can look for signs of rust or
cloudiness in the radiator, but I use those checks to answer the questions
about maintenance that I couldn't be sure of getting a candid answer to. You
have the answer already.

Mike

 

No, it will never UNDO the damage which MAY have been caused, excessive
wear, etc. All you can hope for is maintain the status quo and prevent
further, excessive wear by performing proper maintenance.

 

With only 26K and only one oil change behind it, I would feel pretty
safe saying that nothing has been done to the cooling system or
anything else. Nothing else critical is past due so I wouldn't worry
on that account. The timing on that one oil change is pretty
critical. I am guessing she might have changed it at 3K and never
again. If it was changed at 13K it's probably OK. I would put in
Mobil 1 immediately and then change it again in a couple thousand
miles in hopes of washing out any sludge that might have formed.

The other question I have is whether you are going to get a good price
buying her off-lease car. I have a friend who had a car coming off
lease. She asked the price to buy it and the lease agency quoted a
price thousands higher than market value. She tried to reason with
them that they had to sell the car to someone and that no one was
going to pay that price, but they wouldn't budge. She walked, of
course.

 

Most, Most helpful. I agree that damage done is irreversible. I also spoke
with my current mechanic and a good friend who owned his own auto shop. They
pretty much said the same thing-the life span of the engine may be affected.
The price was a littele better than book, but there was no getting the dealer
to budge. I've decided to let it go. Thanks for all the candid and helpful
advice.

 

Might work out fine, might shorten the life, but I'd certainly expect a
LARGE discount over book price, for which you could find an Accord with
meticulous maintenance records. Of course, you probably can't tell the
leasing company, or your friend will get the bill, no?