Is Oil Dilution Still a Problem for Honda CR-V & Civic? | Exploring the Issue & Debunking the Myths

Does the 1.5L Turbo GDI engine in the Honda CR-V and Honda Civic still suffer from abnormal oil dilution? In this video, we take a deep dive into the issue of oil dilution and see what normal and abnormal oil dilution looks like. We also talk about the fixes/repairs that Honda issued for the 2017-2018 CR-V and 2016-2018 Civic, the extended powertrain warranty, causes of abnormal oil dilution (extreme cold, short trips) and if the 2019/2020 models are fixed. We hope you find the video informative!


#honda #oilDilution #carconfections

#CR-V #Civic #1.5T engine #earthDreams #carTips #cars

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[RJ-vbgh]

I've been driving and working on cars for a very long time and oil dilution isn't normal.... period - full stop. And just saying it is, doesn't make it so! And I'm getting really tired of companies fixing mechanical problems by simply re-defining the word "normal". Like a friend that just had his head gaskets replaced on his Subaru... and strangely enough he told me it was "normal" for Subarus to need head gasket replacement... NO! Blowing head gaskets are NOT normal! Oil dilution is NOT normal! It's due to poor design, cheap parts or poor build quality.




If you are going to take your customer's hard earned money engines that run right and transmissions that shift right should be the only thing normal about them for at least the first hundred to two hundred thousand miles...

[mikenone]

Why can't we just go back to regular fuel injection? just to save 1-2 mpg is ridiculous. You will spend more on repairs then you save on gas.

[CarConfections]

BEFORE YOU YELL AT US BELOW....
We are impartial towards oil dilution. This video is intended to INFORM and takes into account both what CR-V owners and Honda say about the issue. We're not paid by Honda, but we just wanted to provide some clarity into the situation since it concerns a lot of viewers.

[parkland]

As a owner of a 2018 Honda CRV in a cold climate and having all the updates done including the last which involves an interior warmer, further programing changes, a circulating coolant heater of sorts and some kind of change to coolant flow I do feel that the cabin heat and oil dilution issues are improved. Not fixed but improved. Though ambient temperatures in my part of the world have not been severely cold my oil level runs about 1/8" above full which is no where near the 5/8" it was at the beginning. Now with the use of the interior warmer on cold start I turn the heater fan and the temperature setting on low. The warmer, heated seats and wheel has made the cab bearable and possibly due to the other changes, the engine warms up much quicker especially when it does not have to heat the heater core as well. As soon as the indicator is solidly in the gauge I turn up the temperature and put it on auto. Yes I will pay a bit more on my power bill but it is more comfortable. You refer to short trips being a factor but realize that it has to run for a long period after it reaches temperature to vaporize any gas in the crank case. In my experience 10 mile trips is not enough and long road trips have not lowered the high oil level much. Not happy about having to change the oil more often to extend engine life. Just thought I would share. No more Hondas for me.

[chih]

If you had to get a Cr-V, find a 2019 or older model with the 2.4L.

I am genuinely disappointed by Honda because they used to make great cars. Several issues that I have personally encountered:

Around 2010, they switched their paint to shitty water-based paint and all the models from that era were affected. Honda expects people to park their cars in the garage, as a result, only garage-kept Honda's would avoid the paint de-lamination. Not everyone has access to park a car in the garage. Honda knew about the paint issue, and would only offer recalls on popular/expensive models. The dealership also knew about the issue, and they stated that they were not fixing it. (My fiancé has a 2011 Honda Fit in blue, and the paint on the roof started fading in 2015)

Oil dilution is not normal, so stop calling it normal.

[paul_iFomo]

I know a CR-V owner who told me that the fix was ECU programming to direct the heat to the engine instead of cabin that makes the inside of the car stay cold until engine warms up, and extension of the warranty 1 year, which is ridiculous in my opinion. In fact China told Honda to stop selling cars with this engine until issue is completely resolved, something that will never happen here, because of business interests and lobbying.

[asdfghjqwertyu]

I bought the 2020 Civic with the 2L, since it is not only the engine that does not mix oil and gas, but this K-series VTEC engine is a multi-point (port injected) engine. I do not have to worry about carbon buildup like on the 1.5 turbo. For anyone deciding on a new Civic, I personally think you should still avoid the 1.5 if you are expecting typical honda reliability and go to competitors like the Corolla or Mazda 3, but the 2L is probably one of the most reliable new cars you can buy.

[ozarklife]

Saying the engine oil level will rise past the full mark is normal is

[mikepayne]

Nice that you covered a subject most hosts would shy away from. A plus in your rating.

[ozarklife]

Checked my nephew's 16 civic. As soon as I popped the hood i could smell the gas. It was over half inch overfilled. It was very thin black runny oil. I advised him to changed the oil immediately. He told me the maintenance minder was only at I closed the hood and went inside....
The exact fix for these cars has still hasn't been explained. Honda tells there customer to live it nothing more be done. People really don't understand cars and will probably drive it till it conks out on the highway. Let's see how all this plays out over time. I'll stick with port injection non turbo engine vehicles for now.

[davidleung]

dont think changing oil more frequently is an acceptable fix

[andybub]

While all GDI engines have some oil dilution, none have experienced these problems that the 1.5 has. And according to what I found online, the 2019 Civics, CRVs, and Accord 1.5s are still having the oil dilution issue. I am pretty sure the fault lies within the piston rings, not the software. Honda says they fixed it, but until they release a recall and a real fix, they havent. OIL DILUTION IS NEVER NORMAL. Many other manufacturers make great GDI engines, but Honda doesnt. (Nothing against you guys)

[MichaelCzajka]

The trouble with fuel dilution is that it breaks down the lubricating film that separates the metal parts... making it more likely that you'll see scoring up and down the bores.

Even small amounts of fuel in the oil seem to result in scoring of the bores as it's a common problem in many different direct injected vehicles... as they age.

😞

[DCPEvo]

Sadly this takes what used to be a great manufacturer out of consideration. Until a mechanical redesign is put in place, it’s not fixed. All too often manufactures resort to a ‘remap’ as the solution. Excessive fuel making it past piston rings is beyond that. We are in an interesting period where many have been caught out by direct injection. We’re seeing the migration to port and direct which hopefully will take care of the majority of the carbon issues.

[drew]

The Accord is impacted too. My 2018 Accord Sport 1.5 6 speed just had the entire fuel management system and cylinder head replaced after multiple check engine lights and stalling issues. Honda didn't say it was oil dilution, but all the symptoms point to that and carbon build up. I'm only at 25k miles! I love my car, but I won't put $6k of repairs in this car when it's out of warranty. Also I drive 80 miles a day of highway round trip each day for work. I rarely do short drives.

[amcdonalVT]

I had this problem on the 1.5T Accord. At least I had the dipstick that smelled like gas and very overfilled all the time. Sometimes the car would stall or stumble when starting. But I was always able to start it the second time. I was not confident in the car and got rid of it.

[Metalhead]

I own a 19 civic hatch and I remember hearing about the problem with the Crv. I remember changing my oil and smelling a strong smell of gas. I contacted my dealership and they told me it’s only with the Crv. After about 6 months Honda said it’s also the civic now and they have an update for the software to fix it. I took it in got a free oil change and update and tbh I think it’s fixed I smell no gas in my oil when I change it now.

[vincentrolfe]

When listening to this review I started to grin when I heard, "well, the gasoline gets stuck between the piston and the cylinder wall". Sounds very high tech explanation. My 2.7L Diesel turbo has no oil dilution with 10K miles change intervals. With the high compression of this little 1.5L motor, the direct injection, the turbo engaging and some cold temperatures if you buy the Honda at this time you will be in a world of hurt within 5 years. Some drivers like acceleration and the turbo coming in really does the motor no good. I have instructed my daughter to buy the Rav4 with 2.5L and Toyota's combination of port and direct injection with a lower compression and no turbo business. The daughter has a heavy foot on the gas pedal so the Rav4 with 8 speed automatic vs. the Honda CV transmission was the way to go. The Rav4 will get a little better gas mileage than the Honda and probably last way beyond 200K miles. I suggest trading your 1.5L turbo Honda for a different brand at your earliest opportunity. Just face it: the Honda 1.5L turbo motor is a disaster and there is no way out of it so do the trade. There are a few 2.7L Diesel turbo vehicles around Chicago that have 500K miles and one man has 800K miles on his and he buys tires same place as I.

[siriosstar]

This is NOt a fix . Basically what honda did was redefine the term oil dilution and increase the
warranty . increasing the warranty is a red flag for me as it indicates that honda is admitting
that the engine is faulty . I was goi t to buy a new crv in two days but after reading numerous articles about this problem the deal is off.

[ozktmwj]

So I buy a new car and now I have to worry what kind of trips I’m gonna be making. This is major and huge dealbreaker for me. Based on customers review this issue is not resolved for 2019 and 2020