Oil change experience

[eytonxav]

I've been using the same trusty funnel since 1964 and it still works great.

I still have my craftsman toolset and box from the 60s with a bowtie stenciled on it, but alas, my funnel is now plastic. For a while I didn't even use a funnel until one day found my aim faltered.

Years ago they had those metal spigots that you could insert in the can which negated the need for a churchkey or funnel.

 

[nafddur1]

I don't think these are synthetic oil - pretty cheap if that is the case. I just bought 5 quarts of Mobil1 synthetic oil and Mobil1 filter at Pep Boys for $30. Pep Boys will also take the old oil for recycling. I try to change my oil every year. I usually don't go over 12K a year.

I GUARANTEE you that at $10 for both oil and filter, you are getting the cheapest oil and filter on the market. I'd never use them in my cars, but to each their own.

$30 for 5 quarts of M1 synthetic and an M1 filter is a very good price. I just paid $25 for the 5 quart container of high mileage M1 synthetic (at Walmart - still the cheapest place for synthetic oil near me) and $10 for my M1 filter. The funny thing is, Walmart used to carry the M1 filters but no longer do. I guess typical Walmart clientele don't buy $10 oil filters.

 

[samclem]

I remember 30-40 years ago when automotive oils were so primitive we were strongly advised to change them every 3K miles! Now, even the cheapest stuff will likely be fine even to 5K miles - though I'd certainly never take that chance. Synthetic oil is so good that I've even heard that if you change it at much less than 7K, you're throwing $$ away.

The synthetics are very good oils, and I used to use them a lot. But now I drive much less (approx 4K miles per year), and I change the oil every 6 months.

A lot of junk ends up in motor oils as a result of the combustion process, especially in an older car that might get more "blow by" past the rings. Regardless of how good the new oils are, all that junk is still accumulating in them and getting circulated through the engine. Changing the oil not only gets rid of the junk that has accumulated in it, it also get you a fresh dose of the anticorrosion additives the oil contains. Now I use good quality conventional motor oils rather than synthetics (to save a few bucks), and I change it every 6 months or sooner if I happen to reach 3-5K miles.

 

[JakeBrake]

Back in the day when I was working at Megacorp, a co-worker had the theory that you could tell the state of the economy by the number of people working on their cars in the Autozone parking lot. He called these people the "Autozone Class". So, now whenever I pass an Autozone (or any other discount auto parts store), I try to observe and count the people working on their cars in the lot.

 

[frank]

I was thinking about trying synthetic oil because of the cold here, as someone mentioned above, it gets around -25 but thats it. If I thought I could go 10k per oil change it might be worth the extra expense. I wonder how many people run their motors to the limit of mileage, I usually don't keep a car past 150k mis. before trading it off and I know a lot of you guys go way over 200k. did any of you using synthetic ever run one to the end? usually they will still be running good at 150k with regular dealership oil and filter. changing every 5k.

 

[BigNick]

Here is why I change my own oil.

YouTube - Jiffy Lube Scam Caught on Tape!

In the 80s, a friend of mine in the Netherlands had an Audi 100 (5000 in the US) as a lease car. He took it in every 6,000 miles to have the oil change, per the schedule. One day, some way from home, with 60,000 miles on it, it broke down. The mechanic told my friend that the engine had seized, because "you've never changed the oil, have you?". Apparently the garage had been parking the car out the back and doing no service at all, for three years. It's a testament to how well they build them, that it lasted so long.

My friend called the lease company, very apologetic although it wasn't his fault, and they said "Sure, no problem, it happens all the time (!!), we'll send you a new car". It seems that it is (or was, then, anyway) par for the course for a shop not to do a service on a lease car, knowing that Avis or Hertz would pick up the tab in the end.

 

[kumquat]

I wonder how many people run their motors to the limit of mileage, I usually don't keep a car past 150k mis. before trading it off and I know a lot of you guys go way over 200k. did any of you using synthetic ever run one to the end? usually they will still be running good at 150k with regular dealership oil and filter. changing every 5k.

DS has a car with 400,000+ kilometers on ir (about 250K miles). Body shot still runs well. He started using synthetic oil at about 350K since it had noisy valve lifters. Noise gone, goo compression, body (1989) about to fall apart.

 

[WhoDaresWins]

Back in the day when I was working at Megacorp, a co-worker had the theory that you could tell the state of the economy by the number of people working on their cars in the Autozone parking lot. He called these people the "Autozone Class". So, now whenever I pass an Autozone (or any other discount auto parts store), I try to observe and count the people working on their cars in the lot.

Still kicking myself for not buying AZN stock five years ago when it was at $93.00 a share. I thought it was hellishly expensive at the time.

Oh, well, don't cry for me. At least I hung onto my CMG which I bought at $49.00 a share.

 

[veremchuka]

I GUARANTEE you that at $10 for both oil and filter, you are getting the cheapest oil and filter on the market. I'd never use them in my cars, but to each their own.

$30 for 5 quarts of M1 synthetic and an M1 filter is a very good price. I just paid $25 for the 5 quart container of high mileage M1 synthetic (at Walmart - still the cheapest place for synthetic oil near me) and $10 for my M1 filter. The funny thing is, Walmart used to carry the M1 filters but no longer do. I guess typical Walmart clientele don't buy $10 oil filters.

As I stated early in this thread I change my oil and it costs $10 for 5 quarts of oil and a filter. Now I know it is not synthetic oil but it is good quality oil and it is a good filter. How do I know? It comes from the Honda dealership, my friend works there (25 years) and sells me a 5 quart jug of 10w-30 (it used to be a 4 quart but now he has access to 5 qt only) and a Honda oil filter.

All oil is equal regardless of the brand name as long as it has the API seal and classification on it and I don't know how'd you'd find oil that isn't API rated today. 40 years ago yes but not today. I change my oil and filter every 3,000 and always have on every car I ever owned. When Ray adjusts my valves he is amazed at how clean the valve cover is inside and how clean the valve train area is especially as I have over 300k miles on the original engine. So you don't have to buy synth oil to get good oil and for $10 I get good quality oil and filter, a very cheap oil change and very good insurance for engine longevity.

I'd like to use synth oil but with the high miles I have on this engine I'd be afraid to switch for fear of loosening up deposits or creating leaking seals. If I had a newer car with under 100k or especially 50k I'd definitely use synth oil but then I'd extend the changes to 5k, maybe 10k depending upon what Ray suggested.

 

[Ready-4-ER-at-14]

I tend to change my own oil when it is warm and take cars in during the coldest part of the winter.

I had one garage possibly try to sweeten their take by removing all the special bulbs in the high brake light and declaring them burned out. I had had brake lights checked by a relative standing behind the car just a day before so I assume most were ok then.

I declined the bulbs and bought others elsewhere. Suckers are like $6 a piece so they do add up.

I find that when I can watch stuff is done right, other wise is anyones guess.
I also like to see the fill level immediately after an oil change. Dark oil or wrong level would be a big flag.

Had one place change my transmission fluid, but they said no filter for this car. I went to an auto parts store, bought one and went back with it and had them drain and refill it with the new filter installed while I watched.

At this age I need a job that is quick and easy and makes me feel like I both saved some money and accomplished something worthwhile. Changing oil works for me.

 

[Nords]

Was this the one with the radio ads that said:
"Sunday, SUNDAY, SUNDAY!"

With extra reverb...

I use full synthetic oil because of the winter temps here. Synthetic oil doesn't thicken until about -60. The coldest we see is about -40 and it's a lot easier on the engine when the oil circulates properly right away. If i was sure I could always plug in the block heater I'd go back to regular oil but there are times where I might go 8 hours or more without being able to plug in.

Nodak, as we used to say in the military, it's lifestyle insights like this that make me glad you're living up there... so that I don't have to!

 

[rescueme]

Back in the day when I was working at Megacorp, a co-worker had the theory that you could tell the state of the economy by the number of people working on their cars in the Autozone parking lot.

I used the same kind of "theory" when I interviewed for a job. I would look at the employee’s parking lot to see the age/models of the vehicles parked there, and found that there was a correlation between the cars and the pay/benefits of the company.

Needless to say, I was lucky enough to get into a company where the "worst" car on the lot was still much better than the one I was driving at the time. Of course, I "upgraded my ride" shortly after being hired ...

 

[winger]

My truck (Ford Diesel) holds 15 quarts of oil. I bought a used-oil pan at Wal-Mart that holds 16 quarts. Almost always do it myself, but have had a Ford dealer change it a few time if the truck was there for other work.

I just can't bring myself to trust a quickie change place to get it right. We are full-time travelers, and can't build a relationship with a "local" place.

 

[kcowan]

Large Nitrile Gloves - Pack of 100

Wow so then you are all set for the next 100 oil changes. How does that compare to the longevity of your car/you?

I get my oil changed in Mexico for my 1993 Explorer by watching the guys do it. There is no line up and it happens while I chat with mi amigo, the owner of the garage.

The problem with livng in Mexico is that is is very hard to justify doing it yourself. The cost of cleaning your hands or buying the gloves is more than the cost of the change. Plus he gets the oil wholesale and I would have to drive across town (10 minutes more) to buy cheap oil.

 

[travelover]

Wow so then you are all set for the next 100 oil changes. How does that compare to the longevity of your car/you?

I get my oil changed in Mexico for my 1993 Explorer by watching the guys do it. There is no line up and it happens while I chat with mi amigo, the owner of the garage.

The problem with living in Mexico is that is is very hard to justify doing it yourself. The cost of cleaning your hands or buying the gloves is more than the cost of the change. Plus he gets the oil wholesale and I would have to drive across town (10 minutes more) to buy cheap oil.

I use the gloves for lots of things - anytime I want to protect my hands from things like cleaners or herbicides.

 

[BigNick]

I take my out-of-warranty cars to the Turkish guys at the end of my street. Great welcome, good prices, job done right. No charge for rotating tyres or other ten-minute jobs, and when I had a dead battery, they came round, jump-started it, took it in, and brought it back the next day, for the cost of the battery. It took them 10 days to write up the bill, too, which is something I had become used to when living in the countryside but didn't expect to find when I moved back into town, where most garages won't let you have the keys back until the debit has gone through on the machine.