02 CRV EX and battery ?

I've got a 2002 Honda CRV. Ever since the first year in the winter
that i had this car I noticed that duringf winter and cold the start
time / turn over was very delayed. It would turn over slowly when i
crancked the key.

Anyway, is this because the battery is weak? -- I have no trouble in
the summer.

Also I have had the same battery since 2002, I think its time for a
new one. I would like a stronger one. Is it OK to get one that has
more kick? Is there a max I can go to? If I get a new harder working
battery will the starting issue get better?

 

Probably a tired battery, 6 years is doing pretty well. Cold weather
slows chemical reactions, an effect is that the cranking amps a battery
can supply drop with temperature. Additionally, engine oil thickens at
cold temps and increases the load on the starter cranking the engine.
Any autoparts store can test your battery for you, usually for free. As
far as new batteries go, the limit is dictated by what will physically
fit, increasing the Amp-hour capacity will not cause a problem but
should not be necessary unless you have specific needs. You may also try
some of the more modern multiviscosity oil, 0W30 will thicken less at
low temperature than 10W30 and offer you a slight improvement in fuel
economy in the bargain. It's also worth checking the battery cables,
particularly where they connect at each end. The starter motor can pull
upwards of several hundred amps, so it doesn't take much resistance in a
loose or corroded connection to burn up a lot of power as waste heat
instead of useful mechanical work.

 

what motor oil are you using? [generally, oil viscosity increases as
temperature decreases, thus starter motors turn slower.] synthetics
aren't generally subject to winter problems like standard oils.

 

where did you get that information? do you know how the oil grading
system works?

 

I agree with most of the above, but I think that 5W-30 oil is a
safer bet for an older vehicle than 0W-30. Really light oils can cause
oil burning in vehicles that aren't currently using any. Even 5W-30 can
be a problem for worn engines, so I use 10W-30 in Summer at least.

 

Firsthand experience, and yes I realize that there *should* be no
difference between a hot engine running 0W-30 and one running 10W-30.
Nonetheless, the only time my '86 Civic burned oil was when I switched
from 10W-30 full synthetic to 5W-30 full synthetic. And it stopped once
I switched back. Others have had the same experience with slightly worn
engines. It may simply be that they burn quite a bit on startup if it's
too 'thin.'

 

with synthetics??? that's not my experience. and my experience is that
my car has nearly stopped using oil now that i've been running synthetics
for a while. you probably ran into the same cleaning effect as me, but
misattributed it to grade.

 

No, the car was run on full synthetic from right after break-in. The
problem occurred at about 90k miles. I had to replace the plugs and
oxygen sensor because of the oil burning caused by the lighter oil. It
still wasn't burning oil on 10W-30 when I sold it last year with 146k
miles on it.

 

i still have a hard time believing that - what you describe is a
mechanical problem, not an oil problem. and just so you know, the flash
point of lighter oils is higher than heavier oils - it doesn't burn as
readily.

 

No, the car was run on full synthetic from right after break-in. The
problem occurred at about 90k miles. I had to replace the plugs and
oxygen sensor because of the oil burning caused by the lighter oil. It
still wasn't burning oil (except a puff on startup from seal leakdown)
on 10W-30 when I sold it last year with 146k miles on it.