Maintenance Minder FAQs

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To help vehicle owners know when scheduled maintenance is due, Honda has introduced

THE MAINTENANCE MINDER SYSTEM.

Honda Service Pass: Complimentary maintenance includes oil changes, tire rotations, and multi-point inspections for up to 2 years or 24,000 miles, whichever comes first. Maintenance minder light must be on to qualify. No other services included.

View our FAQ below. If you have additional questions, please contact our Service Department.

FAQ

The maintenance minder system shows engine oil life in the information display to let the owner know when it is time to have the engine oil replaced and regular engine maintenance done. There is no longer a maintenance schedule in the owner’s manual. The system shows engine oil life as a percentage, which drops over time as the vehicle racks up miles. It starts out at 100% with fresh engine oil, and winds down to 0%, signaling the oil life is over.

The system counts down oil life based on engine operating conditions (both normal and severe). The on-board computer continuously monitors engine operating conditions such as speed, engine temperature, ambient temperature, time, and vehicle use to determine when an oil change and regular maintenance is necessary.

The Honda Maintenance Minder is very easy to use. As the on-board computer continuously monitors your vehicle, it provides continuous information on the remaining engine oil life left – simply depress the Select/Reset knob on the information display and you will see use progression. When the on-board computer determines that your vehicle has reached 15% of remaining life, it will turn on the Maintenance Minder light for you. In addition, each time the vehicle is started; the information center will default and automatically display the percentage of remaining life. To return to the odometer/tripometer, simply depress the Select/Reset knob.The following chart will explain exactly when service is due:

Oil Life % Message What to Do
15% Service Due Soon Plan to take your vehicle in for service.
5% Service Due Now Take your vehicle in now for maintenance.
0% Service Past Due Service is overdue. Take your vehicle in now.

If you do not perform the recommended maintenance the display will start to show negative mileage. This indicates how many miles that the vehicle is past due for service.

All maintenance items in the display are in code. There are two codes: Main-codes and Sub-codes. Your vehicle will always be due for a main code, and at times for a sub-code. Please refer to your owner’s manual, Honda Service History booklet, and the following chart to interpret the code:

Main Code What it means:
A Replace just the engine oil
B Replace the engine oil, oil filter, inspect the front and rear brakes, check the parking brake adjustment, and inspect other items specific to your vehicle
Main Code What it means:
1 Rotate the Tires
2 Replace the air cleaner element, check the drive belt, and replace the dust and pollen filter
3 Replace the transmission fluid and transfer fluid (if equipped)
4 Replace the spark plugs, replace the timing belt (if equipped), inspect the water pump, and inspect valve clearance
5 Replace the engine coolant
6 Replace the rear differential fluid (if equipped)

The-codes are turned on when the main-codes are triggered. Main-codes are USER SPECIFIC and are triggered based on the vehicle’s operating conditions. The system is designed to maximize customer convenience.

These items require maintenance on a time/mileage based schedule, similar to the maintenance schedules of the past. The Maintenance Minder also calculates time as it factors vehicle use and automatically moves up or delays the sub-codes so they get done with the main-codes. For example, if tire rotation is normally done at 7,500 miles, but the oil life ends around 6,000 miles, the system will move up the tire rotation. Or, if the life appears to be ending around 9,000 miles, the system will delay the rotation. In either case, you would see the maintenance item code A1 in the information display.

It will vary. The beauty of the Honda Maintenance Minder system is that it automatically adjusts the maintenance intervals based on engine operating characteristics, your driving habits, and the climate that you have operated your vehicle in. For instance, mild highway driving in a warm climate will maximize the interval between required maintenance. Depending on the vehicle, this could be as high as 12,000 miles. On the other hand, short-trip driving in a cold climate may limit the maintenance interval to 3,000 miles or less. In general, most people who combine city and highway driving find that the Honda Maintenance Minder will indicate maintenance needs about every 6,000 miles. Most people maintain constant driving habits; this means that mileage between maintenance will be consistent.

Driving habits. The first 7,700 were racked up with mostly highway driving in warm weather – conditions that are favorable to oil life. The next 4,300 miles were racked up in warm weather, mostly highway, AND mostly pulling a boat trailer. The Honda Maintenance Minder system is very intelligent and monitors engine load to determine oil usage. With this situation, there were inconsistent driving conditions and the Honda Maintenance Minder responded as such.

It is recommended that you follow the Honda Maintenance Minder. While your driving habit may be such that it is recommended every 3,000 miles, it may be that your driving characteristics indicate maintenance due at 2,500 miles, or, most people will see about a 6,000 mile recommendation. The system will help you and the environment with the following benefits:

  • There will not be unnecessarily wasted natural resources (oil).
  • There will not be unnecessary hazardous materials that will require proper disposal (oil and filters).
  • As a consumer, you will only pay when it is necessary, saving you time and money.

The 3,000 mile oil change is a very conservative approach to maintaining your vehicle that dates back to 1968. Since then, there has been much advancement in both oil technology and engine design. These advancements, along with the Honda Maintenance Minder, allow you to increase maintenance intervals without risking harm to your engine. In addition, as your Honda dealer, we are trained by Honda and specialize in Honda, this allows your dealer to know your car better than non-Honda service facilities.

It is recommended that you follow the Honda Maintenance Minder. However, should you choose to have maintenance performed early, be sure to reset the Maintenance Minder light – this will keep the main-codes and sub-codes synchronized.

Yes. The Honda Maintenance Minder is not just an “oil change” indicator, it makes recommendations for the entire vehicle’s maintenance. Main and sub codes will get out of harmony and the Maintenance Minder cannot properly predict required maintenances. When proper maintenance is followed, you will realize the following benefits:

  • Better resale value
  • Continued reliability
  • Longer vehicle life
  • Continued warranty coverage

If you reset the Honda Maintenance Minder light, you reset the maintenance schedule of your vehicle. By doing this, the Honda Maintenance Minder will not be able to properly predict required maintenance. Your Honda dealer can reset the Honda Maintenance Minder system. Resetting the system is not as simple as resetting the dash light, and you may be charged. Your Honda dealer will have to use a computer called the Honda Diagnostic System (HDS) to complete what is called a forced activation – this will allow your vehicle to have proper time and mileage set with the current maintenance completion. When the dash light is reset, the input tells the on-board computer that ALL required maintenance was performed. The Maintenance Minder system will not allow for line-item maintenance, the system requires maintenance completion as indicated.

The Honda Maintenance Minder is not just an oil change indicator, it reminds us of all maintenance requirements. If you change your oil, it is important that you complete all Honda Maintenance Minder recommendations and reset the light.

No. The Honda Maintenance Minder is an intelligent system and monitors every drive cycle. A drive cycle is defined as each time the car is turned on and off.

That depends. It is very important that all recommended maintenance be completed, if more than just an oil change was necessary, your Honda dealer would be doing you a disservice by resetting the light as the light is not just an oil change indicator – it monitors the complete maintenance requirements of your vehicle. In addition, if you racked up miles before you came to the dealer, there has been wear and degradation of the oil in your vehicle – your Honda dealer may have to change the oil again to properly set your Honda Maintenance Minder.

Yes. The system does not sense oil level. Please follow the owner’s manual recommendations for Service Station Procedures.

The oil may discolor under normal conditions, depending on driving conditions. This is a normal condition.

Yes. Your Honda technician has been trained on the Honda Maintenance Minder and will use the Forced Activation mode to determine what the next recommended services are. The option to check this will only work between 100% oil life and 16% oil life, as when the system gets to 15%, it automatically turns on.

No. To ensure proper engine break-in, the factory-fill engine oil needs to remain in the engine until the first scheduled maintenance interval. The factory fill oil is the same as Honda Service Replacement Oil. The difference is the Molybdenum lubricant that is applied to specific internal engine components.