Oil and Filter Change
Oil Change
Step 1: Drive your car a few miles or enough to get the engine at normal operating temperature.
Step 2: Park car on a flat surface, put automatic transmissions in park, and manual transmissions in neutral. ALWAYS put your emergency brake on. If necessary for ground clearance, use a hydraulic jack pushing on jack points recommended by the manufacturer in the front of the car. NEVER rely on a jack alone, place jack stands on manufacturer recommended jack stand points as well. Place wheel blocks on the rear tires for your own safety.
Step 3: Go under the car and locate the oil drain plug, it will be on the oil pan directly under the engine. Make sure it isn’t the transmission drain plug.
(Oil Drain Plug)
Step 4: Open the oil fill cap on top of the engine. Go back under the car and using either a socket or box-end wrench, loosen the drain plug in a counterclockwise direction. Drain oil in an oil containment pan or bucket. USE CAUTION, oil will be HOT, try to avoid it getting on you while it drains.
(Oil Fill Cap) (Oil Drain Pan)
Step 5: After oil has finished draining, reinstall the drain plug (clockwise) with a new drain plug gasket or washer (if applicable), and torque it to factory specifications, normally around 30 foot pounds. If a torque wrench is unavailable tighten it with a wrench tight enough not to leak and not too tight as to strip the threads.
Step 6: Locate the oil filter, which is cylinder shaped. It will almost always be near the drain plug on the bottom of the engine, but in some cases is may be on the side of the engine on the block, or towards the top depending on the make and model of the car. Using a strap wrench or oil filter ratchet adapter and loosen the oil filter counterclockwise. USE CAUTION, the oil filter still holds hot dirty oil, so place drain pan underneath. Take off the oil filter and clean the oil filter housing’s threads with a clean cloth and make sure the oil filter gasket isn’t sticking to the housing.
(Oil Filter on Engine)
Step 6A: Some cars use a cartridge type oil filter normally with the casing mounted on the top of the engine, unscrew the bolt counterclockwise, and take off the oil filter cap. Remove oil filter cartridge and the O ring gasket for the cap. Place new cartridge inside and new oil lubricated O ring for the cap, and torque the cap bolt to factory specifications (clockwise). If your car has this, ignore step 7.
(A Cartridge Type Oil Filter)
Step 7: Lubricate the new oil filter gasket with clean engine oil and spin the filter on the housing hand tight (clockwise), or enough not to leak. Lower vehicle.
(A New Oil Filter)
Step 8: Using a funnel add oil to the filler on top of the engine. Make sure you use the correct grade of oil and the correct weight oil, for example 10w 30. Fill to factory specifications and constantly check oil dipstick. If overfilled slightly don’t worry, it will go down after the oil runs through the engine and filter. If very overfilled drain some out of the bottom again. If level if fine, close filler cap and start the car, but don’t race the engine or put the car in motion. While car is on, check for leaks, and turn off the car. Recheck oil dipstick and add if necessary. Clean up and you are done!
(The Oil Dipstick)