newmaxguy

So...does it matter if I get my oil changed at the dealer or somewhere else? Jiffy lube? It would cose me half to go to jiffy.

any reason to stick with the dealer?

matt

Neice Anne

But there's no reason to go to Jiffy Lube. Go to Zip Lube for sures!

DA-MAX

iTrader: (10)

to Jiffy Lube, etc. make sure you check the oil drainage plug/screw after they finish the job...my friend recently realized that the idiots who worked on his car must have screwed up the threads on his drain plug, because there was an orange "sealant"(I think) all over the plug and hole after he got the car back the other day. I'm not sure whats he gonna do about it but be careful when you let others(you don't really know) work on your car.

laserjet

Exactly. That's why you should just change the oil yourself. The drain plug and filter are easy to get to on these cars, and for what those quicky places charge, you could buy better quality oil & filter (I use Mobil 1 with a Fram filter). Plus, I personally prefer to let the old oil drain for a while - ten minutes isn't long enough.

newmaxguy

I think that's what I should do...change the oil myself. While I understand that I need to drain the old, change the filter and check all the fluids, I don't know exactly how to do it. Can someone give me a quick rundown of any gotchas and a quick step by step? I would totally appreciate it.

Thanks,
Matt

HoJo

It's pretty straight forward.

1. Run engine a couple of minutes, not all that necessary but it warms the oil up a bit and it will flow better.
2. With the engine off unscrew the oil drain plug on the oil pan. Make sure you have something under it to catch the old oil
3. Unscrew the oil fill cap and wait for the oil to drain.
4. When the oil is done draining replace the plug and move the pan to under the oil filter and unscrew the oil filter. Try not to spill oil over everything, which is hard since the filter is mounted upside down There will still be quite a bit of oil in the filter so be careful not to spill it anywhere.
5. Get the new filter and "wet" the rubber gasket with fresh oil. Screw the filter on, don't use the wrench to screw it on hand tight is fine.
6. Fill with fresh oil, about 4.5 qts.
7. Let car run up to operating temperature and check the oil, if needed add more.

I don't think I've left anything out, but it's late.