I’ve never changed my own oil on a car and have no interest in learning how to do so. I’m terrified that I’d screw something up and ruin my engine. Yet it comforts me to know that some enterprising people — regular guys who don’t know everything about cars — can take it upon themselves to learn the fine art of oil changing and save themselves hundreds of dollars a year.
Edmunds checks in with a comprehensive-seeming how-to-change-your-oil guide that I can only assume works well, considering its authoritative source. I must admit that the story lost me somewhere around the first mention of “oil plug.” The very fact that there’s a plug down there terrifies me. For all I know, there are trolls and erector sets labyrinths laden with mouse traps down there. This is a link for those braver than I.
For those of you who do dare to change your own oil, what tips can you offer up to the less enlightened?
How To Change Your Oil (The Real Down And Dirty) [Edmunds]
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I’m reasonably mechanically inclined. I’ve stripped a motorcycle and its engine down to its individual components and (successfully) rebuilt it. And yet somehow I’ve managed to – twice in my life – mistake the transmission drain plug for the oil pan drain plug, then proceed to put 5 more quarts of oil in for a grand total of 10 quarts of oil and minimal quarts of transmission fluid.
Both times were the first changes on new vehicles, although that’s no excuse. My point is, if you’re undertaking this as a new endeavor, be clear on the distinction. And as others have pointed out, I got sick of dealing with the old oil and having my neighbors give me dirty looks when I poured it in to the storm drain.
To keep from making a mess place your catch pan downstream from the direction your plug faces. The oil comes out with force. Removing the fill cap makes no diffference if it did then the oil would glug glug out the drain hole. And lasly when removing the drain plug, break it loose with a socket wrench and remove by hand. While unscrewing it keep pressure on it back into the drain hole. When you know it’s fully unscrewed then pull it up and out of the oil stream. This helps you not get so much oil on your hands or the ground. Don’t super tighten the drain plug or filter. The oil on them both helps seal and keep them from loosening, I’ve never heard of any of them falling out. Make sure you use the perfect size socket wrench, it’s better to have to tap it on then for it to slip and round the corners, and I really mean just tap not pound.
I can change the oil in my car, my sisters car, wifes van, dads truck, and moms SUV in 90 minutes and I’m no gear head.
While it would be a valuable service if shops were honest when they do the “complete inspection” I’ve never found one that was. They’d recommend replacing parts I had recently done myself or parts the car didn’t have or parts you don’t replace til they’re bad. A shop might give reasonable prices but it still doesn’t mean they’re being dishonest about needing additional work done.
Don’t forget to check the oil before and after you run the car. The oil filter itself can hold up to 1/2 a quart (liter) of oil.
I used to change my own oil. I don’t have a garage any more so I stopped. It’s not that hard but it is hot and messy. Most of the pain is in not making a mess with the used oil.
I would NOT recommend using old milk jugs to hold the used oil. All you need is for jug to fall over and the top to pop off while you’re driving to dispose of it. I used to use a gasoline container (marked clearly and only used for used oil). Most of the places you will go to will make you pour the oil out of the container so having something that’s easy to drain helps as well. The gasoline container I used had a second cap to let air in so it didn’t “glug” while draining.
I just hang onto the 5qt containers I buy oil in to hold the used stuff. Wait until a couple are filled up then take them to Autozone.
I REALLY save money by changing the oil on my motorcycle. Buying my own:
I’m in my 50s, and I grew up with a father who did oil changes and spark plug changes, and all sorts of arcane 1960s automotive stuff. When I got my first car, I did my oil changes under the tutelage of my father and friends, and was able to do them well, except for a car that had the oil filter in an very inaccessible location. 30 years later, I’m paying the $25 to have it done for me, and then they screw it up, my receipt entitles me to have them fix their f*ck ups. I’ve had a car with transmission issues because an oil change place said they did a tranny fluid check when they didn’t. I got a new transmission out of the deal, based on my receipt. Instead of a morning, I can get someone else to change my oil in 30 minutes. That reminds me- I need to get my oil changed before winter sets in.
I personally, don’t like other people messing with my toys. I will do what i can on my own, and if i can’t, there is only one other guy i trust to do the work.
I always change my own oil and disc brake pads. But, my father was a mechanic for 20 yrs so I helped change timing belts, water pumps, heater cores and other in-depth repairs when I was younger. If you buy decent quality oil and an oil filter, you don’t save much doing it yourself as opposed to taking your car somewhere, but you know it what you’re using and the job will be done right.
Most of the oil change companies -Jiffy Lube, Valvoline, etc- employ young guys and they don’t care how they get the job done. My brother-in-law had the oil pan on his accord cracked in half cause the Valvoline shop didn’t care to turndown the torque on their impact gun when they re-installed the oil plug!! And, I had to come over and help him make a red-neck oil filter wrench to take off the filter cause it was torqued on with one of those oil filter sockets! [red-neck oil filter wrench = drive a screwdriver thru the filter]
Also, I used to have a dodge dakota and I took it to a jiffy lube for the first oil change it needed, cause I had things to do. They stuck me w/an extra $25 Truck/SUV charge cause it was a truck!!? What BS!! There’s nothing magical about changing oil in a truck/SUV as opposed to a car and usually it’s easier due to the higher ground clearance/better access.
Big Thumbs down on this article. My wife went to a local shop that charged $9.95 plus tax and disposal fees for a whopping total of $13. She took a walk while they did the work.
Cant beat that.
Surprised no one has said this yet – it’s fine to get your oil changed by these shops. Just never let them change your air filters – especially the cabin air filter! It’s 5 minutes of work and you can save $10-$40 a pop doing it yourself.
Yeah, that’s the real swindle. “Changed your air filter…$25″. Umm, it’s a $5-$10 part and takes like 60 seconds in some instances.
More to the point, don’t let them do anything you didn’t walk in the door intending for them to do. They live for the upsell. Cabin air filters, engine air filters, and wipers are the worst offenders (and biggest profit centers).
A very timely article – I was just going over the instructions for changing my car’s oil because for the 30th time, I really want to do it myself. But like the author wrote, it’s all scary under that chassis and oil is such a vital component that I’m paranoid I’ll mess it up. However, neither do I really trust a lube monkey not to mess it up.
Mostly I really don’t want to burn myself on the exhaust bits.
If you aren’t willing to get a couple of little burns or abrasions then you should probably not work on your own car. I’ve twisted so many wrenches that I rarely skin a knuckle now but it still happens occasionally.
I changed my oil for years. You would save around $10-$15, but the last time I did it, the bottom fell out of my drain pan (plastic seam came undone) and I ended up with oil all over me, my tools, tarp and driveway. Then carrying it in for disposal is always messy (but free). I’ve been paying the $25 to have it done since the oil mess fiasco. That took like 2 hours to clean up.
I don’t change my own oil and have been going to the same guys for years. It saves me the aggrivation of having to do it myself, plus I can go in at the month and a half mark and get all my fluids topped off for free. It doesn’t take more than 20 minutes and they are always nice enough to offer me a cup of coffee and a donut
Totally worth the 30 bucks I spend.
Hundreds of dollars a year? My god, what are you guys having Jilly Lube put in your cars? Oil with gold flakes hand delivered from Persia by 50 nubile virgins?
Same things my old man taught me,don’t over-tighten the drain plug or cross the threads, and ‘kiss’ the old filter to the new filter so that the gasket is lubricated…
I can do my own oil changes, but damn if it is not convenient to pay someone else to do it… maybe if I get a garage some day…
Oil changes are one of those things that I highly recommend either doing yourself or having an actual mechanic perform.
If you’re paying $9.99 or $19.99 for an oil change, it’s because:
1) It’s a loss leader and they’re trying to up sell
2) They’re using exceedingly low quality oil and filters
3) They have very low paid lube techs doing the work
Outside of #2, there’s nothing inherently bad about any of those things. You just need to accept that the “30 point inspection” most likely never happened or was half assed, any fluids topped off are probably with universal fluid (or universal + additives), the vehicle likely never sat long enough to drain the preponderance of the oil, torque was never verified on a tire rotation, etc., etc.
This is rather ironic considering the other day consumerist was posting an article about things people do themselves that are best left to the professionals, and oil changes were one of those things. Flip flop much?
A Blitz oil receptacle is a crucial thing to own, as it can catch the oil drain plug (when it inevitably slips out of your fingers) on its grid, and it can also catch all the oil, even if not exactly positioned. Better yet, it slides under the car without the need to get the car up on a lift, ramp, or jackstands.
It also allows you to pour the used oil into the empty containers in which your new oil came, for recycling. You must recycle oil, and every auto parts store accepts it for recycling.
http://www.blitzusa.com/products/oil/Oil%20Drains%20and%20Pans/podp6od.htm
Please – no changing oil with only a car jack under the car. Jackstands, or go to quickie-change!
Too many cars fall on people as it is.
Been changing my own oil on my 1982 Volvo 240 Wagon since…. umm.. 1982.
I do it now in a parking garage in Manhattan, so I am hardcore.
I can change the oil in my 05 Impreza WRX in just under 20 minutes, in my wife’s 08 Chevy HHR it takes me about 15 minutes. Most of that time is waiting on the oil to drain. A big plus? Neither car requires me to put it up on ramps or jack stands to get to the filters or drain plug.
Two things missing in the article: Warm up the engine a little before changing the oil. This will help the oil flow out of the nooks and crannies a little easier. Second, if you’re filter is a regular “from the bottom” type, fill it half way with clean oil. Obviously if you have the filter on the top of the engine, this would just create a mess.
Wait until you knock over a container of oil on your garage floor or driveway. You’ll always take it back to the shop every time for oil changes from that point on.
I actually enjoy changing the oil in my cars but I honestly spend the same amount changing it myself that I would to pay someone else. Thus, a few months ago, I decided that I probably wont change my own oil any longer since I’m not saving any money…
Having someone else change my oil costs me $160 per year at $40 per.
5 quarts of motor oil and a filter = at least $35 per oil change. Add to this my time and effort and doing it myself actually costs more.
There’s several things i do not do as an adult with a job: Change my oil, mow my lawn and do my laundry. These things i hire out for a very low cost. i’ve done the calculations on these and factoring in time/effort/stresses makes it well worth it.
I have always changed my own oil. Always.
I have personally seen the results of mistakes made by the quickie-lubes on friends’ cars and know better than to take the chance. Ever seen the mess that results from a quickie-lube neglecting to put back the oil fill cap?
Plus, I can use a higher quality oil and filter for much less than a similar such change would cost me at the quickie-lube. Those cheap prices are only for their lowest-quality, non-synthetic oil with a dirt-cheap filter.
The only downside is that I currently drive a VW, and they make that oil filter highly difficult to remove without making a huge mess.
“…saving themselves hundreds of dollars a year.” Yeah, if you do the mythical 3,000 oil change and are changing oil on a dozen cars a year, then maybe. I have changed my oil in the past, but I would guess it only saves my about $20 a change. Twice a year, two cars? That’s only $80. My “Glee” watching time is worth more than that.
“Terrified you’ll screw it up?” Can you boil water? You can change your oil. If you can’t do basic maintenance don’t own a car.
you have no business owning a car if you don’t know how to at the very least:
change your own oil, check and top off all your car’s various fluids, change a tire, change a battery, change your air filter, and fill up your own gas. I know several people who would have little clue how to do any of these, and plenty more than that who can only fill their own gas.
In every household that owns any vehicles out of warranty, there should be at least one person capable of doing basic maintenance – scanning and interpretting trouble codes (especially on 96 and up cars), fuel filters, trans filters, plugs, wires, alternators, radiators, brakes, etc. If not, you are flushing money down the toilet.
Yes, there certainly are circumstances where you might not be able to change your own oil (living in an apartment or condo in a big city for example), and there is very little you have to do if you buy a vehicle every 3-5 years to keep an active warranty, but honestly, if you don’t have the basic concepts down of how a vehicle works, you shouldn’t be driving it.
I leave my car with my mechanic (not Jiffy Lube or WalMart — the guy who takes care of my car) and make in less than an hour what it costs me to have him empty and dispose of the old oil, add new oil and change whatever filters need to be changed — plus have him give the car a once over to see all is well and top off my other fluids. Ignoring that the better use of my time is spent working in the office than under my car, it is not that much cheaper to do it myself — especially when I add in the inconvenience and expense (figure a dollar or so for gas plus my time) of disposing of my old oil.
By the time i was done collecting basic shop materials to do this correctly (after about ~4-5 oil changes with improper equipment) I would have ended up spend the same amount to go get it done. But it relaxing and its fun to me. Just me and my old Honda, bonding, nursing it past its second 100,000 miles. Plus you get better filter and oil for the same price as getting it done at a shop which to me and my baby is worth the sweat and grime.
I bought a new car. It requires 8 qt. of synthetic oil. It costs about $100 to pay someone to change the oil. Cost for me to do it
I change oil on my cars for years. It is simple to do with the right tools but you will get your hands dirty. For safety’s sake, use strong support stand together with the jack from your car and put bricks against the two rear tires. I had an experience that while the car is jacked up, it moves forward and drops. Fortunately I was not under it at that moment.
For some cars, the hardest thing to do is to remove the old oil filters. They may be hard to find and difficult to reach. You need the right tool and some patience.
Always remember to put the oil cap back before you start the engine. I had it happened to me twice (my bad), and the fresh oil was splashed all over under the hood. A big clean up job.
For the used oil, I cut the gallon water bottle in half and use it as a big funnel to pour oil into the big 2.5 gallon corn oil bottle (from Costco.) Most stores will accept 5 gallons of used oil. When I fill up 2 big bottles, it is exactly 5 gallons.
Wow…never knew so many people were not able to perform this simple task themselves. Changing your oil is the EASIEST thing you can do on your on car. This takes about 15 minutes (after spending 1 hr the first time figuring our where everything is located). It really is a simple thing. That said, here are a few pointers that may help out:
1. Whether you, or some store does it for you, ALWAYS make sure to fill the filter with oil before putting it on (9/10 shops will not do this, and can lead to a air bubble in the system that fries the head, gaskets, etc)
2. If a store does it for you, make sure to get all ‘old parts’ back (y, I know you will have to dispose of it yourself, but usually the local highway admin office in your neck of the woods has a oil recycling bin outside)
3. Get to know your car, not all vehicles benefit from expensive synthetic oils or mixes, some may actually break because of it.
4. Do a simple Google search and I am sure you will find all the information about changing the oil of your specific vehicle without any problems
5. Do not over-tighten your filter, this will lead to more problems down the road. Screw on by hand until; snug, and then another 1/4 to 1/2 turn.
6. Screw in drain plug properly, if worried use a safety wire (as we always are required for racing) and it will never fall off!
Good luck…..
I’ve done it–on my old Plymouth– but it scares me to get under the car. Also, I left my ramps at my ex’s house and since that was ten years ago, I don’t think I’ll go back and ask for them. They might not even be there anymore.
I recently bought a car which is much easier to change the oil on than my Corolla – SO I went down to the local auto parts store.
1 gallon oil (nothing special): $18
1 Filter: $5
Total Consumables: $23
I also would have had to get a drain pan ($15) and suffer through the aggravation and mess of draining the oil and disposing of it in a legal manner.
I can get the oil changed down at the local NTB for about $25 out the door. Save money? I think not. For one, oil changes are a loss leader at places like NTB, and two, they buy their oil by the drum, and filters by the crate, and get it a whole lot cheaper than I can.
The way you save money on oil changes is by changing it based on the auto manufacturer’s recommendation (7500 miles, typically, 5000 if difficult driving conditions), not the recommendation of the oil change place (3000 miles)
The 3000 mile oil change was a concept invented by Jiffy Lube.
If you have a performance car, you really should do it yourself.
When you have a cast aluminum oil pan, for example, proper torque matters…a lot. Stamped steel like on most cars…not so much.
Plus, doing it yourself basically gets you a free upgrade to synthetic and the filter of your choice.
On my S2000, an oil change runs me $30 (filter plus 5 qts synthetic). The same oil change is $70, and even then you are not assured they didn’t use cheap oil or over/undertorque something.
Then there’s other shortcuts the oil change places don’t even mess with, like using crush washers. That kind of stuff matters when your soft metal oil pan runs $500+
for the avg joe, its not worth the hassle to learn and do
for repair shops, they do 100′s a day, and are experienced
for a regular person, they do it once every 3 months….versus 100′s a day ?
if you wanted to save money, don’t do the oil changes , and break your $10′s of thousands car
or eliminate your phone bill, $35-$45 per month, which is equal to an oil change roughly
Me at age 18: Oh, man, it’s so cool to change the oil in my Volksie- and it’s gotta be done every 3,000 miles, according to Muir’s book. And then, it’s to the crags to pull down some big climbs, a Dickies concert and dating my ex’s sister! Punk rock!
Me at 47: I bought it at the dealer, lifetime oil changes, nine bucks forever and they check for recalls, lube the hinges and refill the fluids, change dead bulbs, etc. I have to go make money and chase kids off my lawn.
(I still like punk rock, though…)
Sorry, but you can save money by doing everything yourself. Oil change rarely cost more than $15.00, and when you take into account the cost of materials, the cost of driving around getting them, plus the time you are going to waste on the actual work, does it really save you anything?
Changing your oil is quite easy, and I have done it on my vehicles before. I can’t say that I get excited about working with about 16 bolts to get it done, when it costs so little to have someone else do it. I’m glad I have the knowledge, but it’s up to you whether the savings is there or not.
While I don’t trust places like Jiffy Lube myself (teenagers working on, what’s most often, your second most expensive purchase?), as someone who works as a service writer in an automotive garage, I can guarantee that more of the people that come into our shop with problems have caused them themselves, rather than one of our technicians having made a mistake. From botched tune ups (ever seen how much power it takes to put a dent into the hood with a single spark plug? we have.) to failed battery installations (one person switched the terminals).
Professional mechanics have already made all the mistakes and know already what not to do. Sure, working on your car can actually be therapeutic and possibly entertaining at times, but it’s real easy to screw up something on a relatively late model car considering the amount of electronics and complex systems involved. And often more modern cars are easier to work on than other classic cars (I hear about “back in the day you could work on cars yourself!” all the time, and believe me, they are just as complex and more unforgiving than modern cars.) considering extremely helpful things like OBDII and electronic ignition and injection. Systems that most people have no idea what they do. Ever tried adjusting, to spec, a four way carburetor manifold?
If you feel comfortable enough working with them, however, all the power to you. Just remember to take it to a real mechanic when you screw up.
I change my own oil. I’ve never screwed up an oil change and I’ve done dozens upon dozens on my own vehicles and friends.
Now… I have a county that allows me to drop my oil and filters at a local recycling center… Making it easy.
Do I save money? A little bit on the cars. – save probably $10 a change on both cars. Main thing is, I get to use the oil and filter I want, I’m not up sold into anything different, and all my fluids and air are done to my own satisfaction.
On my Bike…. an oil change at the dealer is $150+. Doing it myself is $60. You do the math.
When I had company vehicles, and when I lived in apartments and used jiffy lubes or the dealers… I always… and I MEAN ALWAYS ended up with rounded over drain plugs and one time a stripped oil pan.
It is not rocket science… doesn’t take long to do it safely and you will save a few bucks.
I’ve been changing my own oil for a while now, but I have some reasons.
First, I strictly use synthetic oil (Mobil 1 Extended Performance and the matched Mobil 1 filter), and for good reason. It’s recommended for my car, a 2007 Hyundai Accent SE, and it’s guaranteed for 15,000 miles between changes, though I don’t go that long. Local shops around me want to charge upwards of $70 to use sythetic, and I don’t have much control over which one they use.
Secondly, and tied to the first, I drive 120 a day for work. That’s my actual commute from home to work and back. If I used dino-juice, I’d be wary of going over 3000 miles between changes, and due to the distances I drive every day I’d be changing my oil about once a month. Hence, I use the aforementioned synthetic and change it about every 7-8000 miles. No sludge, no break down. In fact, I probably could go the guaranteed 15k, but I don’t want to push it.
So in the end, I really do save quite a bit doing it myself. The whole kit costs me somewhere around $40 a change for 4 quarts and the filter, which is the singular most expensive part. I even custom built ramps for my car since it’s so low to the ground, though that’s not something I necessarily recommend.
Changing oil yourself is one of the biggest money-saving MYTHS of all time.
Besides the cost of the oil and filter, you need to factor in your time to:
1. Drive to the store, purchase the oil and filter, and drive back home.
2. Wait for car to cool down so you don’t scald yourself with scalding hot oil.
3. Pull out the jack and jack STANDS (you ARE being safe about it, right?) that you had to buy to get at the oil.
4. The actual time to wait for the oil to drain.
5a. The actual time you are cursing at the filter because it doesn’t want to come off easily
or
5b. Dig out the oil filter wrench (strap or otherwise) you BOUGHT to do the job with. If non-strap variety, perhaps it is the one using the wrench you had to BUY to do the job with.
6. Cleanup time.
7. Drive back to the store to drop off the used oil.
Go ahead now, add up the REALISTIC time it will take you to do this.
Now, multiply that by a REALISTIC monetary value of your free time.
Got the figure? Good.
So, how much more was it than the $18.95 I paid to have someone else do it while I took a few minutes out of my day to sip a cup of complimentary coffee, read a complimentary newspaper and just RELAX for a small portion of my day?
Word.
I’ve been changing my own oil for a while now, but I have some reasons.
First, I strictly use synthetic oil (Mobil 1 Extended Performance and the matched Mobil 1 filter), and for good reason. It’s recommended for my car, a 2007 Hyundai Accent SE, and it’s guaranteed for 15,000 miles between changes, though I don’t go that long. Local shops around me want to charge upwards of $70 to use synthetic, and I don’t have much control over which one they use.
Secondly, and tied to the first, I drive 120 a day for work. That’s my actual commute from home to work and back. If I used dino-juice, I’d be wary of going over 3000 miles between changes, and due to the distances I drive every day I’d be changing my oil about once a month. Hence, I use the aforementioned synthetic and change it about every 7-8000 miles. No sludge, no break down. In fact, I probably could go the guaranteed 15k, but I don’t want to push it.
So in the end, I really do save quite a bit doing it myself. The whole kit costs me somewhere around $40 a change for 4 quarts and the filter, which is the singular most expensive part. I even custom built ramps for my car since it’s so low to the ground, though that’s not something I necessarily recommend.
I don’t see the point. 5 quarts and a filter cost me more than the local lube place will charge me to do the whole job. Even less when I use the coupon they send out every week. Never mind my time to do the job and bloody knuckles.
The last time I tried changing my own oil, I cursed the people who designed the engine and wished they had to crawl under there and remove the filter from a really inaccessible spot. But I felt like I accomplished something.
On the other hand, I haven’t had the desire to crawl under my car and try it again in about 4 years.