2000 Honda Accord Instrument Lights

I didn’t know about that trick, cool. If the trick in the video didn’t work then the problem is probably not the multiplex control unit but something else. Unfortunately there is no ‘fix’ that I can think of but rather you would need to track down a wiring diagram and check the circuits to find the fault. You might want to ‘wiggle’ the connector that goes into the cluster as I’ve seen more than one problem caused by a loose connection. Good luck.

Personally speaking, if I had a car that told me when to change my oil, I’d still change it every 5000 miles, regardless of what the idiot light said. I use synthetics in both of my cars, which is why I go 5k between oil changes. I also believe that there are some things on cars nowadays that are completely unnecessary. Shift lights come readily to mind. I mean, if you know how to drive a stick shift, I presume that you know when to change up a gear without a light telling you to do so. If you need a light to tell you when to shift up a gear, you would probably just buy a car with an autotragic anyway.

If you want to know for certain, find a place that will do a used oil analysis. Blackstone Labs comes to mind. They’ll send you a kit in the mail for you to retrieve some of the old oil to send to them and they’ll analyze it for you, for a fee of course, to let you know exactly what kind of stuff is floating around in it. It’ll give you a look at just how much wear and tear your engine is seeing. You can use their results to adjust your oil change intervals if you feel the need to do so.

Engine Oil lifespan has definently improved over the years, but if you drive your car in the city, that is considered heavy duty driving. I live in a very weather damaging city as well so I change mine every 3 to 3 1/2 months.

11,000km isn’t bad if you are using a synthetic or a high quality regular oil. Oil analysis is a great idea to get an idea of how hard your engine is on your oil. Some oil life moniters are actually quite good. The ones from GM that take into account: mileage, oil temperature, RPM, etc. are just about spot on. I prefer to follow a set schedule though.

If I had a BMW and I wanted it to last, I definitely wouldn’t follow their 15,000 mile intervals. Oil analysis has shown that oil is way past its prime by the time it hits 15k. My friends with bimmers change their oil every 7k or so. BMW maintenance is tailored towards people that are busy, have money, and don’t keep the car more than a few years. That is also why BMW has “lifetime” ATF fluid – a joke really – people drop the pans and the ATF looks like burnt motor oil.

I wouldn’t trust the Maintenance Minder. I change my oil & filter in my car right before 5,000 miles. Using Amsoil Full Synthetic and a K&N Oil Filter. Now in my truck I change it every 3k using High Mileage Oil, usually what ever is on sale at Autozone.

Quoted From Trcustoms719:

I do every 3K miles if it’s non synthetic oil.

with the newer oils today every 4 to 5,000 miles change oil and filter with the recomended weight oil I usually choose the middle weight for example if the book says 5×30 or 10×30 or 10×40 il use the 10×30 .

Although my vehicle is not new enough to have one of those reminders on it, I believe in keeping fresh oil in the crank case, for me I used Pennzoil 5w30 conventional oil and a fram extra guard filter every oil change which I usually run 3,000-3,500mi.

I may sound old fashioned but like 1939p7 said oil and filters are cheap compared to the thousands you would spend having to replace an engine just from trying to push you oil an extra few thousand miles to save a few bucks. Not saying my ways are correct its just what I was taught and what I believe in.

Preventative maintenance. Do what you have been doing all along.. change it every 5000km. Its what I do. Done it to every car I have owned and those motors are whistle clean inside… no build up of sluge or dirt. I don’t always put faith in those idiot lights. lol Hence the name they are given. Basically its saying.. hey idiot you forgot me! Then its too late.