Topic: Honda CRV engine woes

[EV-Light]

https://www.autoblog.com/2018/10/05/2017-2018-honda-cr-v-engine-problem/

Honda has a problem on its hand with the CR-V in 1.5-liter turbo four-cylinder form. It admitted as much in response to a story from Consumer Reports. Gasoline that hasn't been vaporized in combustion appears to be washing down the cylinders and mixing with the oil on some cars, a big problem indeed. We asked Honda about this issue, and a Honda spokesperson sent us this:

"Honda has received some reports in the United States of irregularly high oil levels in certain 2017-2018 Honda CR-V vehicles equipped with 1.5-liter engines, primarily from the northern areas of the country during extreme cold weather conditions combined with short, intermittent driving. Honda has been investigating the situation and developing a remedy, which we hope to make available through authorized Honda dealers by mid-November 2018."

We've gotten here because some CR-V owners have been complaining to dealers about high oil levels. Obviously, a car's oil level can't "increase" on its own, and in this case it's because gasoline is eventually making its way into the oil pan, causing the reading to be high. Thus far, it appears as though Honda dealers have been changing the oil in cars where this has become an issue. That action merely pushes the problem further down the road as Honda figures out a permanent fix, though.

For the U.S. this problem appears contained to the CR-V. Honda uses a 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder in the Civic too, but that's a different engine for the U.S. and reportedly doesn't suffer from this problem. Another interesting factoid to note, Honda recalled certain 2018 CR-Vs and 2016-2017 Civics in China for a similar issue. The fix in that case was to adjust a fuel-injection setting that could cause unburnt fuel to make its way into the crankcase at temperatures below -4 degrees Fahrenheit. That cold temperature factor is consistent to Honda's original statement, where it talks about the problem cropping up in cars from cold climates. We definitely buy that the problem would be related to cold ambient temperatures, since the engine will naturally take longer to warm up in climates like that. However, the report from Consumer Reports stated that people are complaining about the issue in other warmer regions like New Mexico and Texas too.

We'd like to point out that gasoline mixing with oil is definitely bad for the longevity and general health of your engine. If the oil is diluted, it can't properly lubricate the engine, causing rapid wear on components. We asked Honda what its game plan was for engines affected by this potential damage, including possible replacement. Honda said that it won't have an answer to that question until its investigation is completed and the remedy is made available to owners. Since the problem has been identified, Honda says that whatever "enhancement" it decides is needed for 2017-18 CR-Vs will also be applied to the 2019 model year before sale. We'll know more official information about the issue once Honda finishes its investigation and comes out with a fix sometime in November.

[ChaosphereIX]

wow...that is serious

What happened to the company that made the S2000 engine?

[ChaosphereIX]

Is this specific to this engine or is it a broader problem with turbos?

I think it is engine specific, because I have not heard of this happening as a "turbo" issue on any other cars.

[EV-Light]

Is this specific to this engine or is it a broader problem with turbos?

Engine specific...

Ford had lots of issues with the 1.6T when they came out with it, looks like Honda is following but it’s quite a surprise - I had absolutely faith that Honda’s 1.5T was going to be a reliable engine and not suffer any of the pitfalls Ford dealt with.


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[duck]

From what I understand Honda was swift to recall vehicles in China but not in Canada/U.S.A.   Being a Honda fan I do not understand why.

[UnknownJinX]

I believe this only happens if you live in a cold climate and you only drive short trips, which a lot of people would do with a CR-V.

wow...that is serious

What happened to the company that made the S2000 engine?

They went full turbo. Once you go turbo, you can't go back.

Seriously, I am gonna slap someone if there is a next S2k and it's turbocharged.

From what I understand Honda was swift to recall vehicles in China but not in Canada/U.S.A.   Being a Honda fan I do not understand why.

Because there were a lot of protests outside of Honda dealers in China and the Chinese government also stepped in and issued a stop sale on the CR-V and the 1.5T Civic.

[revalations]

i've heard of Ford 3.5 Ecoboosts making oil too. GM's 1.5 T4 had an appetite for pistons (pre-ignition detonation) Some of these tiny boosted engines still need some time in the oven I guess.

[Dante]

This issue has been known for a while it seems and it affects the Civics as well.  The regulators in different countries have responded differently to the issue and so did Honda based on the media reports and various Honda forums. So far the work around is frequent oil changes.
I guess most owners are unaware of the issue and they may be in for a surprise regarding engine longevity  if they keep driving with diluted oil for a long time.

[PJungnitsch]

Might have got lucky not getting the CRV we were looking at last year

I see for 2019 Hyundai has dropped the 1.6 turbo/dual clutch combo in favor of a non turbo 2.4 with a regular automatic:

SEL, Sport, and Limited models will have a 2.4-liter I-4 projected to generate 181 hp and 175 lb-ft, replacing the 175-hp, 195-lb-ft 1.6-liter turbo-four. A six-speed automatic transmission will be the only gearbox available on the 2019 Tucson, as the seven-speed dual-clutch unit will no longer be offered.

https://www.motortrend.ca/en/news/2019-hyundai-tucson-first-look-review/

[JohnnyMac]

I know a lot less are sold but I wonder if the Accord is suffering from the same issue.  It sucks for those who bought this in the first year or two of production but I'm sure they'll get this fixed soon as America has gone full class action lawsuit on Hondas recently and that was just for over stating fuel efficiency on one of thei extremely low volume vehicles (Civic hybrid), so I can only imagine what will happen if they don't address this soon for the amount of 1.5 turbo engines they sell per year.

[Dante]

I know a lot less are sold but I wonder if the Accord is suffering from the same issue.  It sucks for those who bought this in the first year or two of production but I'm sure they'll get this fixed soon as America has gone full class action lawsuit on Hondas recently and that was just for over stating fuel efficiency on one of thei extremely low volume vehicles (Civic hybrid), so I can only imagine what will happen if they don't address this soon for the amount of 1.5 turbo engines they sell per year.

As you can imagine class action lawsuit for this issue has already started  in the US.

[UnknownJinX]

I know a lot less are sold but I wonder if the Accord is suffering from the same issue.  It sucks for those who bought this in the first year or two of production but I'm sure they'll get this fixed soon as America has gone full class action lawsuit on Hondas recently and that was just for over stating fuel efficiency on one of thei extremely low volume vehicles (Civic hybrid), so I can only imagine what will happen if they don't address this soon for the amount of 1.5 turbo engines they sell per year.

The specs for the L15 in the Accord is slightly different. For one thing, the Accord L15 has VTEC(albeit on the exhaust valves) while the Civic and CR-V ones lack the VTEC.

I believe some owners have reported this problem. We will have to see.

[EV-Light]

Honda is rolling out a very limited fix to the oil dilution problem for both CRV and Civic - it’s so limited in scope that it doesn’t cover US states with warm weather...it basically involves an update to the software,  to help the engine warm up faster, an oil change and a potential new AC control unit.

Sounds like this is not a real fix to the issue at all, feels like Honda is just kicking the problem down the road - since as indicated by CR there were several complaints from owners living in warm states with the same issue....

This is going to be an interesting one to watch.

https://youtu.be/qBsY55e8VUU

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[BWII]

i've heard of Ford 3.5 Ecoboosts making oil too. GM's 1.5 T4 had an appetite for pistons (pre-ignition detonation) Some of these tiny boosted engines still need some time in the oven I guess.

Yup...me too, but...so far so good.

I just keep an eye on it...not really.  Maybe the trick is to drive it hard and put it away wet.  Or tow...maybe that's why sometimes I get 40l/100...it's not wind, I'm making oil. 

[Arthur Dent]

My mother got a recall notice for hers last week so sounds like Honda is doing something. She sent me a photo of it but the print was unreadable. Sounds like a software fix for the most part.

[ArticSteve]

Turbo 4 bangers with DI only are going to be a problem.  AVOID.