Never asked before but is 5w-20 the same thing for every brand. Or is their key differences starting from the Walmart $14 4qt to $23 mobile 1 to $30 Honda OEM 4 qt
Never asked til I turbo charged now I never wanna replace it again. Step one oil. So now I’m asking if I should continue only using the Honda oil made for the engine or if I’m just wasting money on a name brand.
As long as the 5W-20 has the API crest on it and the appropriate rating (SN and SP are the two most current, see here: API | Oil Categories) then you can use any brand. If your engine uses a turbo, it likely requires a full synthetic oil so make sure you use one (again, any brand). You do not need to need to purchase your motor oil from Honda, though I would definitely buy transmission fluid directly from Honda since Honda’s transmissions are very picky when it comes to fluid specs.
Honda does not own an oil refinery, so the oil with their brand on it is made for them by a company that does own an oil refinery. ANY oil that is of the correct viscosity, that meets the same specifications, and that is synthetic (assuming that Honda specifies synthetic oil for that engine…) will do just fine.
When Costco runs a sale on Mobil-1, it would be very hard to beat their price, so if you are a Costco member, you might want to watch for their sale and then stock-up on Mobil -1.
Note: If the oil that you see for sale anywhere is branded as “Mobile-1”, it is clearly not genuine Mobil-1. Those who sell counterfeit products like to use similar–but different–spelling for their product name in order to rope-in those who don’t look closely at the packaging.
As mentioned, if the oil has the crest and correct rating one is as good as another. I’'ve used nothing but Wal Mart oil for decades and routinely put 250k miles and way on up on all of my vehicles with no engine problems.
Unless things have changed, Wal Mart oil is, or was, manufactured by Quaker State. My wife used to work in a Wal Mart office and saw invoices to that effect. Also, unless it has changed, the Wal Mart automotive centers (which are not owned by WM) are run by Quaker State also. Yes I know that the WM auto center employees wear uniforms with WM badges but that’s to keep the theme going.
Who knows, the oil manufacturer and service center operator may be different now.
People will pay 15 to 20 bucks a quart for Harley Davidson oil and it’s made by Sunoco I believe. There are cheaper and better alternatives. I’ve used Aeroshell in all of my Harleys. It’s cheaper, made for air cooled aircraft engines, and at 6 bucks or so a quart much cheaper.
You seem to have a turbo-charged Honda . . . Civic, perhaps?
I was under the impression . . . perhaps incorrectly . . . that the specified viscosity is 0w20, not 5w20 . . . ?!
Well you’re on the right track for the most part, in that any 5W30 with the API SN rating is equal to another, but carmakers also specify synthetic vs. conventional is some cases.
But that’s for most cars. Say you have a VW or Audi that requires 5W30 that meets specification 502.00 . That’s not the same as the API certification and many oils do not meet the VW spec.
You’re talking about a maximum difference of $16 per oil change. You change the oil, what, 3 times a year? That’s $48. Pocket change. Use whatever oil makes you feel better. Price is irrelevant.
They’re all Jiffy Lubes! JL is also owned by Shell Oil, which also owns Quaker State. 
Actually $14 for 5qt.
I’ve used it for a couple years with no problem.
I see no reason to get “Honda” brand oil. But I would go to the dealer for the correct ATF and coolant.
Forgive me for not reading all the responses before spouting off. The owner’s manual will say “or other quality oil” or something to that effect. As long as the oil meets the specs.
Now in my experience with Acura (Honda), on a trip I needed to buy a quart of oil for my new car that was not broken in yet. I stopped at an Acura dealer to buy it. When they sold me the oil it was a 0-20 synthetic BLEND, not full synthetic. I questioned them and said that’s all they use. So I just use Mobil 1 which is a full synthetic not a blend. I consider full better than a blend for the same price. Either one will meet the specs.
+1
ANY motor oil that fully complies with the vehicle mfr’s specs will be just as good as “Honda” oil.
Again, +1.
Yeah agree. First thing I do is buy a gallon of coolant to have on hand. Interesting though when I asked the salesman whether my old Acura power steering fluid was still ok for my new Acura, he didn’t know for sure. Of course he didn’t know the new one had electric steering. So much for knowing your product.
Putting “car salesman” and “knowing the product” in the same sentence usually requires placing “not” before the words “knowing the product”. 
For the sake of the veterans of the forum, I won’t repeat the story about Traction Control.
Of course the sales consultant had no clue about the technical specs of the vehicle he’s selling. If cars were marketed based on their technical specs, rather than “fluffed-up” advertising, people wouldn’t buy most of the models on the road today.
That’s a new one on me. I’ve never seen synthetic blend in a viscosity lower than 5w20.
I dunno if I’d classify electric vs hydraulic steering as a technical spec though. Seems like a pretty major feature like V6 vs I4. He forgot to put the 21 day tags on the car too so maybe just a bad day or something but drove the 30 miles to deliver them anyway. I’m not sure who would have paid the fine if I would have been stopped. Me I guess since I should have noticed. Good coffee though.
IIRC, Honda’s house-brand oil is made by ConocoPhillips last I heard. It was made by Exxon-Mobile up until 2009-ish.
There’s no overwhelming reason to stick with the Honda-branded oil. If your car has an aftermarket turbo on it, (particularly if it’s oil-cooled, some are some aren’t), then I would definitely consider moving up in viscosity. For example, if the recommended weight for a stock N/A engine is 5W-20. Then I would consider going to 5W-30 if you’'ve added a turbo.
Honda (and pretty much all manufactures) renegotiate the contract with oil companies on their house brand. I don’t know why anyone would buy the manufacturers house brand oil. ANY and I mean ANY oil that meets the manufacturers API and viscosity spec will be as good or better then the manufacturers house brand - usually at a much reduced price.
When I bought my 2014 Highlander in 2014 - it came with 2 free oil changes. They itemized the bill showing how much each part cost… filter - $7 and Oil - $7.50/qt. What a deal!!! NOT. Good thing it was free. Doing the oil change myself costs me $3.50 (Wix oil filter) or $4 for Toyota filter. I can get Mobil-1 oil (which currently is the OEM provider for Toyota synthetic oil) for less then $4.
the magnason moss act says a dealer can’t tell you to use their fluids or after market as long as they meet the OEM specs. can’t void the warranty either if you keep records.
Almost. They can IF they supply those parts/service for free.