Oil change?

[elison]

considering how much you neglect your vehicle, it wouldn't surprise me if you needed those "bullshit" repairs.

not changing oil isn't going to immediately show signs of bad vehicle performance. it's just going to fuck your engine internally. once that happens, well.. have fun paying for an overhaul/used engine swap.

[Yabby]

5 quart jug of Mobil 1 EP is 28.99 at wal-mart, fram filter is 4.30~ last time i checked my car takes a 3387a. If you want to get real cheap, ask one of the techs for their in house oil filters. They are 1.50 and they are the same thing as boxed one, they just don't come with a box.


If you get normal Mobil 1 its 22.99 (Some times on rollback for 20 even)

[Gadritan]

That explains it. I try to avoid the evil empire when I can, but, I'll have to make an exception here. Thanks! :D

[Yabby]

I do as well now a days, but you can't beat that price for that kind of oil lol.

[Bingbong]

i just hate going to service places for my car cause they always come up with some bullshit reason to spend more money at their place.

Repeat after me: "No thanks, just an oil change today." Say it enough times, they'll get the hint.

[Kobus]

you can usually bring the right oil and they'll change it, at least we used to when I worked at a Ford Dealership. granted, they charge you for a full oil change even if you bring the oil.

preventative maintenance is the way to go, $25 every 3-5 months is not a lot to spend to save thousands if your car blows up.

[Militant]

A little late here but wanted to add my .02 and dispel a few incorrect things, coming from someone who fixes cars.

First, if you haven't changed or added oil in 2 1/2 years, you are going to have some very serious internal motor damage more than likely. Your valves have probably been starved for oil for months and have warped pretty badly. Do you hear a ticking, or tapping sound right under your hood when you start the car?

Secondly, if you have been running conventional motor oil for the life of your car, randomly switching over to synthetic at say 80,000 miles is not going to do any good for your car, in fact, its probably worse. Engines are designed to operate with precise tolerances within .002 of a mm sometimes. Naturally, as an engine puts on miles, these tolerances can increase ever so slightly, a lot of the times, the oil will make up for that difference. By all of a sudden throwing synthetic, or a different weight of oil in, you fuck with the equilibrium of the engine.

Third, and this may sound harsh, and I know it has been stated already, but you really have no business owning a car if you go 2 1/2 years without doing an oil change. Its like the simplest, easiest, piece of maintenance you can do to a vehicle, and if you neglect that then well, you deserve to have the engine crap out on you. Amazing it hasn't already. Also, I notice a lot of people try to save 5 or 10 bucks, and go to cheapest oilchange place you can find. This is a HUGE no-no in my book for several reasons. One, they are probably uusing crappy oil, oil so crappy in fact, I seriously wouldn't use it in my lawnmower. Second, a lot of these "cheap" places, won't even replace your oil filter. What I've seen a lot of guys do is take a rag and degreaser, and simply clean the outside of the filter, to make it appear as if it is new. If they do happen to change the filter, I can almost guarantee they are using a complete dogshit filter. More than likely they will not be looking at anything else, checking your lights, tire pressure, or giving the car a quick visual inspection. At my shop we charge 29.95 for an oil change, but we use good quality filters, good oil, and are required to top off/check all fluids/tire pressure. Really, its quite a value if you take care of your car.

Certain newer cars have oil life moniters, so if your car has one, make use of it. If it says your oil is at 10% or 15%, well then get it fucking changed. Don't wait for it to go to 0, when all the lubricating properties of the oil have failed. It also depends on how and where you drive, the lengths of the trips, highway or city, a number of variables. So the 3k regular, 5k synthetic is a safe rule of thumb for estimating. If you really want to take care of your car, you can always bring it in sooner.

If that's STILL too much for you, change your own oil. If you can operate a simple ratchet, you can change your oil. Investing 1 time in a drop pan, a few automotive rags, and a 3/8th's ratchet set will save you tons of money in the long run. (Sears or craftsman quality tools will work fine for the amatuer). I won't go into detail on how to do it here, since it is so retardedly easy but if you still have any questions, I'm sure there are plenty of "How-To's" on youtube.

Change your fucking oil people.


Edit: Also Ksandra, you are getting hosed. I do synthetic oil changes on Mercedes' with huge motors, SL500's, GL450's for less than 100 bucks. More like the 70 dollar range, so 100 for a Volkswagon, they are just bending you over. Sounds like they are taking advantage of the fact thats VW's use cartridge filters, and unless you have the right oil filter fitting for it, you can't take it out and change it. Any shop worth its salt should have a full line of Toyota/Lexus and German filter wrench fittings. For comparison, your oil change at my shop should would cost you about 55-60 with tax. This would include, Synthetic Oil and New Filter, all fluids topped, visual under-hood inspection, tire pressure check, and oil change reminder maintenance light reset, as stated for about $55. My shop is in a pretty upscale neighborhood, and we work on a lot of high-line vehicles. Even still, plenty of places around here are charging less for oil changes, but I can't speak on behalf of their quality.

In between oil changes, I suggest checking your dipstick at least once a month, perhaps more frequently if you have a much older car and notice oil in your regular parking spot. It's simple and anyone can do it, ladies should not be scared of this. Most dip sticks have a bright yellow hook handle (some honda's are orange), for most cars, the transmission dipstick is red, in case you have 2 and are not sure which is which. To properly check your oil :
-Run the car for at least 20 seconds to let it build up proper oil pressure
-Shut off the car
-Take the dipstick out, and with a rag clean all the oil off the bottom of it.
-Put the dipstick back in, and make sure it goes in entirely, then pull it out. Slowly rotate the dipstick and look at both sides of it carefully, sometimes the oil on one side of the stick can get moved around from the dip stick tube giving you a false reading. On at least one side of it there should be a clear straight line where you can see the oil is filled to. The dipstick will either have a "checker board" style pattern, 2 holes punches out, or some sort of marking indicating the desired level. Ideally you should be right in the middle of this level, being slightly higher or completely full to the top of that mark won't hurt either.

[lathia]

Just adding to Militant's post and giving my 2 cents. I'm not really sure if all Euro cars have cartridge filters but VWs are notorious for having them.

DO NOT trust Jiffylube, Wal-Mart, or any car shop with your filter. People underestimate the importance of changing the filter. Especially during this scorching summer, you may have some melted filter parts depending on your type of filter with out realizing it. Invest a few minutes of your time and find out what the actual difference is compared to a generic tin filter. Most importantly, find out if the shop actually has the filter you need. Then, if you can't change your oil and you take your car to any shop ask them to show you the filter. Compare and most than likely be ready to give them a shit storm. I can proudly say I have once caught a Jiffylube's employee showing me a fake oil filter for my Jetta's oil change. Not only did I get the guy scared as fuck, but also got a free oil change and some coupons for my "next" visit. I have always done my own oil change, but that day I was looking for cheap service lol.

[Militant]

I was headed down to the beach one morning with a friend and he wanted an oil change, and since we were short on time, we went to some instant oil change place, he too had a volkswagen. When the guy was done he showed us a canister filter and I said "you know this car has a cartridge right?" Luckily for that place, there was an autozone and a strauss auto within 30 seconds walking distance so the manager went and got the appropriate filter and had it changed. Even then, I doubt the guy underneath in the pit changed the washers which you are also supposed to change and come with the filter "kit".

[jmc]

Just gotta chime in on the $95 synthetic oil changes......yea, your getting hosed. No VW "needs" it, only time I would see it used would be if the oil needs to be supplied to a turbo like others have said.

As for prices.... I do my changes myself on my WRX. $50 for a oil change.... 5 quarts of royal purple, and $6 for a Subaru oil filter.

[Militant]

This too, unless your VW has a turbo, it really doesn't need synthetic oil, so there is even more money to be saved. If your car is the turbo model though, then yes, synthetic is the way to go, but 55-60 is a more realistic price for you.

[Ksandra]

you guys are missing the part where it's a lease and they require it. :/

Also, I maybe getting hosed, but I think socal in general is just expensive. I could do some price shopping but I only need one more change before the lease is up anyways (gotta go for a different car, I love my bug to death but it's not exactly family-friendly lol ;_; )

[jmc]

you guys are missing the part where it's a lease and they require it. :/

Also, I maybe getting hosed, but I think socal in general is just expensive. I could do some price shopping but I only need one more change before the lease is up anyways (gotta go for a different car, I love my bug to death but it's not exactly family-friendly lol ;_; )

Well, learn from mistakes for your next lease.

Either agree to terms to get a standard oil change, or if they want the synthetic have them pay for it.

[Omniyoji]

Jeebus 2-1/2 years w/o changing the oil... and that's not the only thing. S/he probably hasn't changed the tranny oil, coolant, tires etc O_o

[Furionstormrage]

2 1/2 years without an oil change? This is why drivers license tests should include a section on understanding the workings of a combustion engine. ><

Luckily, you're not hurting anyone except yourself (And anyone who buys your car, if you don't blow it up first).

If I were you, I would go get some oil and a filter, and a can of Sea Foam. Pour the Sea Foam in where you fill your oil, run it for 20 minutes, let it sit for 10, and change the oil and filter. The Sea Foam should hopefully break down some of the piles of sludge that have no doubt accumulated in every crevice that it can settle into.

If it matters, so you know I'm not some backyard redneck mechanic, my professional credentials are 16 years general automotive experience, ASE Cylinder Head machinist, ASE Parts Specialist, 9+ years as a professional Counterman, 4 years as a Cylinder Head machinist. Non professional credentials, I've built high performance engines ranging from Small Block Chevy and SR20s to blown Hemis and RB25s.

[Zeb]

Not going to comment on the dumbass OP. I just want to say I replaced my drain plug with a fumoto valve 2 years ago on my Subaru and I love the thing. Seems like all drain plugs are made with tin and start to get stripped every other oil change, so I said fuck that and replaced it. Decent investment I think. $20-25

[Haruk]

you guys are missing the part where it's a lease and they require it. :/

Also, I maybe getting hosed, but I think socal in general is just expensive. I could do some price shopping but I only need one more change before the lease is up anyways (gotta go for a different car, I love my bug to death but it's not exactly family-friendly lol ;_; )

not positive on this, so probably would want a second opinion, but you'd probably be able to get away with just using dino oil and simply switching over before the lease ends.

I use synthetic too though on my naturally aspirated high mileage civic... no particular reason but I like being able to wait a bit longer between changes, paying $90+ for synthetic is definitely rape though, if anything i'd probably just try and find a friend with a garage to use to get it done for $30

[fishstix]

I was young and dumb, and the diffusion of responsibility hit my family hard, everyone was always thinking someone else would do it. Well, we destroyed 3 engines by not changing the oil over the years. We buy used cars a lot and it ended up not being worth repairing the car due to costs. Like you, when we get lazy, we check the oil and add more as needed, but eventually, we'd get even lazier and don't even check. It's annoying, but changing your oil has to be done.

[Icari]

One thing you should check for after an oil change especially from the quick lube places, make sure your car is not leaking more oil then "normal" from under the car. It is POSSIBLE to have the oil filter changed and not get the old seal taken off and get a "double seal" which will make your oil leak faster and could ruin your engine.

[Eaglestrike]

You guys are making me feel relieved that I got some extra warranty deal from my dealership, which gives me $8 oil changes(filter cost) for the life of my vehicle, lol.