Home oil change procedure?

Yes, I know it was intentional.

I don't doubt you, but a buck's worth of oil hardly seems worth the risk of a lawsuit over a blown motor.

If it is known that it was intentional, and can be proven, the oil change place would bear a huge liability. Their insurance company wouldn't even cover them for fraud.

I have almost always done my own oil changes, only when i had a company car and they payed for the change did I take it some where.

I run Mobil 1, in my cars and most quick change places either don't have Mobile 1, or charge an arm and a leg for whatever synthetic they do carry.

My procedure for mine and the wife's car is:

1. Run car for about 10 minutes to get the oil nice and warm so it flows out better.
2. Put on a pair of Nitrile shop gloves.
3. Jack car up to the lowest point I can get the jack stands under then let car down on the stands.
4. Undo drain bolt then add an extension to the socket so I don't have my hand so close to the hot oil stream.
5. Since both cars have the drain pointed to the rear of the car the tilt actually helps drain the car. So I let them drain till it stops.
6. Replace drain plug.
7. Remove oil filter
8. Fill and replace new filter
9. Remove stands and lower car.
10. Fill car with remaining oil, run for 10 minutes, check level.

I also use an import filter wrench Like this one, it makes it so easy to remove the filters.

Oil extractor = mess free oil changes on my 328i. Filter was up front in a canister. I could (and once did) change it in a suit and not get dirty. With my new 7 I'll have to get a little dirty since the filter is down below, but I'll still use the extractor for the oil.

I prefer rams... I've been using em sence I was 7... no seriously... my dad has a set that we'd roll the suburban up on and feel completly safe (these things are WAY overbuilt and weigh a ton + have removable ramps...

when I got out on my own i picked up a cheap set at walmart... all my cars i've used have cleared with out problem (granted the mr2 backed up onto em haha)... used em a few times on the astro van and felt just fine with em... it would take some serious weight to kill them

my typical ritual for oil change is... after I get home from running errands I snag the ramps and roll on up... drain the oil into the bucket... get up top and remove the oil cap... then go inside for a while... come out when I feel like it and look to see if the dripping is done... usualy it's 30 min or so... lets things cool off... the put the bolt back in... then depending on how the filter mounts remove it or punch a hole in it and let it drain... remove the filter, dab the new filter with oil on the seal and install... get top side and fill with oil... start it up and make sure there's no leaks... make sure and get all the stuff out from under the car then roll off the ramps...

side note... one of the cars I had I installed a "Fram Sure Drain Oil Change System" basicly it's a check valve that you put in place of the drain plug bolt... when you screw on the hose section it opens and starts to drain... no mess to deal with (it worked PERFECTLY with the vertical oil filter) messiest part was putting the dirty oil into a jug for recycling

How tight are you putting on your oil filters that you need a filter wrench (or screwdriver to punch a hole)? I know some of the monkeys at quickie lube do it, but sheesh.

Brust wrote: How tight are you putting on your oil filters that you need a filter wrench (or screwdriver to punch a hole)? I know some of the monkeys at quickie lube do it, but sheesh.

I pulled one one time with a cold chisel and a hammer. The wrench crushed it, the screw driver ripped the body off. The only thing left was the steel disk. What a PITA that was. I never put them on more than hand tight, but every once in a while you get one that is just stuck.

punch a hole in the filter is just to let it drain in a clean location... AWAY from the engine and my arm ;-) although i've had to use the trick to spin em off in the past on a new to me car...

also on some cars... it'd be a lot easier to get to with a filter wrench of some sort...

I'm fat and my cars are lowered so I use ramps.

I made a set of ramps out of 4x10s of decreasing lengths stacked and nailed together. They are awesome. They fit under my longnose SC400 with coilovers and never slip, even when it is wet outside. They are like 8 feet long and really heavy though.

I do my own. Start with the side that tilts the drain hole toward the pan and rotate tires while it drains. Then go to the other side and after getting it up in the air, rotate tires, replace the oil filter and install the drain plug. I feel pretty good that most of the oil drains out.
I just did my first oil change on wife's Mazdaspeed 6 and it may be my last due to the cannister oil filter. So far I have not found a tool to remove the container and it is a pain to do it with channel locks.

have you checked with mazda for a that tool?

Changing your own oil is the most grass roots thing you can do on your car. I always use ramps with jack stands and a wheel chock behind the rear wheel just to be sure. Plus when you are down there you can check out the under carriage and suspension and I usually clean all the crud off the oil pan for better heat removal. It's tight down there, especially on the Miata and RX7 but I don't think any shop/dealer would do it as well as me.

I have never paid anyone to change my oil. and that is a LOT of changes.

I do all the maintenance work on my cars myself, I've done everything from timing belts to clutches, diff swaps etc etc in my short time of wrenching (4-5 years). I also own every tool known to man kind...or close to it

I also try to maintain my wife's car but oil changes have always been the least bang-for-the-buck since her car was new and Honda was always reasonable for oil changes. My only complaint was the bastards would overfill it by half a quart which irked me. However, all that changed recently, wife got laid off, Honda wants $46 for oil change and I finally installed a lift in my garage. So I guess I'll be doing the oil changes on her Accord too now...plus it's due for ATF change, brakes and a couple of small items.

Back to the topic on hand. I too used the plastic ramps for oil changes and if leveling was required (depending on how the oil plug was designed) I would simply jack up the rear end too. I ALWAYS made a habit of having two or three backups i.e. in addition to the ramps I would also use the jack stands, throw a couple of wheels under the car and sometimes even leave the floor jack in place just in case the car tried to land on me. So do yourself a favor and buy the ramps, a floor jack and 4 good quality jack stands (Sears has them for a reasonable price).

Note: I always pull the emergency brake and chok the rear wheels before lifting the front end in case the car starts to roll. It gets a little tricky when lifting both ends. Just make sure the car can't roll and crush you between it and the wall/door. Always have a way out.

iceracer wrote: I have never paid anyone to change my oil. and that is a LOT of changes.

Exactly. And you have got to figure a shop/dealer is getting paid by the job (for an oil change) so they are motivated to get it done and out of there. Do you think they are going to sit around and wait for every last drip to come out of there?