After reading this quick ‘how-to’ guide you will be able to change your car’s oil, and depending on what make and model your vehicle is, save anywhere from 10-20 dollars on your usually very expensive oil change.
Every 3000 miles it is important to completely drain out and replace the oil in your vehicle. Today, we’re going to learn how!
First off, when changing the oil on your car you need to prepare with some supplies.
You will need the following: Jack, the correct size wrench or ratchet, oil filter, oil, short bucket, rag, funnel, and a big piece of cardboard.
The first thing you need to do is warm up your vehicle. Drive around the block once or twice, which will heat up your engine a little bit.
A vital part of changing oil. The oil must first be warmed up otherwise you will have trouble getting it out.
Then, jack up your vehicle, being sure to follow all safety precautions. Make sure to find a strong point on the bottom of your vehicle before jacking it up.
An axle is the best place. After making sure everything is secure you are ready to get down and start the dirty work.
We’ll start by draining out all the old oil. Look under your vehicle and locate the oil drain, which is usually one of the only ‘plugs’ in view.
Generally, this plug will be located right around the middle of the engine. Place your big piece of cardboard under the vehicle, which will keep you off the ground and also serve to catch any oil that drips.
Grab your short bucket or container and place it under the vehicle, just below the oil plug. Once the bucket is in place take your wrench or ratchet and unscrew the oil plug slowly, letting the oil drain.
Remember when you are doing anything with oil that has been warmed up it may be extremely hot.
Give the oil time to drain into the bucket, waiting till it comes out in slow drops. Then, carefully unscrew the oil filter.
As you remove the filter, a short stream of oil may come out. Be sure to catch this in the bucket while not burning yourself.
After you have drained all the oil out of your engine you will need to replace the plug and add the new oil filter.
Once you’ve finished that, be sure to clean up any messes that were made with your cleaning rag.
Once the clean up is done, it’s time to put in the new oil! Find out how many liters of oil your vehicle takes and pour it in with the funnel through the spout labeled for oil on top of your engine, beneath the hood of your vehicle.
Use the dipstick to check and make sure the oil level is high enough. Once the tank is full put all caps back on and close the hood.
Be sure to properly dispose of all the old oil and the oil filter. You’re all done! You’ve saved about 10-20 dollars for only 10-15 minutes of work.
