i have a 24,hybrid Accord exl, the dealer said they won’t authorize a first oil change service until it reads at 15%. this seems like a really bad idea. i have 7000 miles in it and it only is down to 40%. i always change my oil every 3000 miles. is this really good for my car to wait this long?

 

Change it and void the warranty..

 

It appears that what you are referring to is the dealer offering no charge oil changes for a given period of time.

Dealers do not “authorize” service. They may be “authorized” by the manufacturer to perform warranty service. Oil changes are not warranty service. However if you do not do them as specified by the manufacturer and subsequently have an issue you may have your warranty claim denied.

Way back in 1975 a law called the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act was enacted. Basically the law prohibits manufactures and their agents to require you to use their products or service.

Back in 1975 oil quality and standards were not near what they are today so a 3000 mi oil change was a good thing. With todays oils 7500 mi would meet manufacturer specs for most vehicles. Obviously lots of exceptions to that including type of use.

Now we get to synthetic oils which is what your engine uses in the 0W-20 range. My 2011 Daimler specifies Full Synthetic and 10,000 mi change intervals. My 2022 Hybrid is the same as yours with no mileage specified. Changes are indicated by monitoring the oil and displaying the appropriate percentage of oil life remaining as determined by the manufacturer.

What all that means is that you would be wasting your money by changing the oil prematurely. If indeed your dealership is covering the oil change as a sales incentive or alike, they will likely not cotton to you wasting their money.

My first oil change was at just under 2000 mi. I did that to insure that the normally slightly higher initial wear deposits were removed. I did not send the OEM oil to a lab so it was a matter of simply giving me a bit more peace of mind. Had I gone to the Maintenance Minder 15% that would be fine too. I assure you that my greater than 15% oil change did not nor could not void a manufacturers warranty.

So now you have the “internet” dilemma. Do your homework and decide what you want to do.

YMMV

 

Welcome to the forum. " Info only. “ In 2002 I purchased a brandnew Honda Civic. All the people who purchase a new vehicle from this dealership were invited to a seminar/training class to learn about their new honda. The service department top manager who was sent to training class at Honda presided. One of the things he mentioned and asked by a new owner was oil change and percent. He stated that due to the new oils being used, the oils can last up to 13k miles. He did stated that he does not recommend running all those miles for an oil change but use the percent of 15 oil life or once a year as a good guide for oil chnages. If you are under this dealerships free oil change for life warranty, we will not change it unless its 15 percent or one year. Also it depends on how harsh the environment is to your driving. Like in a desert with many dusty days, or up in the mountains.