451Mopar
Well-Known Member
Last week my daughter and her 14 year old son came over so I could show them how to change the oil on their car.
To me no big deal, just need the oil and filter...
Thinking of a list of items that they would be needed for them to do this, I realized that they have no basic tools, no drain pan, no funnel, no shop towels, no jack, and no general automotive knowledge.
They had no idea about which weight oil the car needs, or the quantity, or even how oil is specified. No idea on how to look up the oil filter part number, and to make it worse the car model could have different filters depending on options.
They went to the parts store, and the counter person got them the correct oil, and both filters because they didn't know which was correct.
They come over to the house and I have them pull the car up to the garage.
1. have them set the emergency brake
2. put wheel chocks behind the rear wheels
3. pop the hood - they knew how to do that !
4. Used my floor jack to lift the car for access.
5. Show then where the car can be lifted from
6. put jack stand under car for safety.
6-1/2. Sort of mentioned eye protection and gloves, and that the oil will be hot because they just shut off the engine
7. Grab combination wrenches, shop towels, oil filter wrench, and drain pan
8. Show them where the oil drain plug and oil filter are located
9. Figure out what the correct wrench size the drain plug is.
9-1/2. Quick refresher on which way to turn wrench to loosen oil plug for right hand threads.
10. Show them how to double-wrench the combination wrenches for leverage because the drain plug was pretty tight.
11. Tried to show them how different oil filter wrenches / cups work, and dang new car has super small filter that dosen't fit any of my stuff.
12. Decide to use the large channel lock plyers and show them how to adjust the jaw opening size for the filter. Also mention other methods for removing really tight filters.
13. Get the filter off, show how to drain the oil out of the filter, and then match it to the correct new filter.
14. Show how to clean off the filter mounting plate, inspect it, make sure the old filter seal is in the filter and not stuck to the mounting plate. Mention that some cars use a cartridge filter and not the spin-on type like we were using.
15. Pre-fill filter with some oil, and lube the filter seal
16. Spin-on the new filter and talk about how tight it should be installed.
17. Inspect and clean the drain plug. Notice the washer stuck to the oil pan.
18. Get flat blade screwdriver to pop drain washer loose from oil pan.
19. Talk about inspecting and when to replace the oil drain plug washer.
20. Talk about how long to let the oil drain, and at which temperatures.
21. Clean off oil pan and re-install the drain plug. talk about how tight it should be.
22. Remove the oil drain pan and tools from under the car.
22-1/2. Talk about the need to remove the oil drain pan from under the car before lowering the car, and the time I forgot that and spilled oil all over the driveway.
23. jack car up to remove jack stand, and lower the car.
24. Identify the oil fill cap and oil dip stick.
25. Wipe off fill cap and remove, inspect cap and clean if needed.
26. Grab the oil fill funnel, wipe it out and make sure it is clean.
27. Show how to use the funnel and pour the oil in without over flowing the funnel or splashing oil everywhere.
28. Talk about how much oil tp put in. mention this is also in the owners manual, show how to check the oil level on the dipstick and explain that it will change after starting the car and the filter is fully filled.
29. Remove funnel, replace cap and dipstick.
30. Start car, talk about how the oil light should go off, and to kill the car if it dosen't.
31. With the engine running, Show how to check for oil leaks.
32. stop engine, re-check oil level, go through how to add the correct amount of oil so the oil level is close to the full mark.
33. Show how to put the oily funnel into the old oil bottle, replace oil cap and dipstick.
34. Show how to check other fluids (brake, radiator, transmission, power steering) and inspect air filter, fill windshield washer bottle.
35. Talk about the "sponge count" practice of making sure you have removed and accounted for all your tools and supplies from the car before closing the hood.
36. Remove wheel chocks, remind them the emergency brake is set.
37. Record service in the service log of owners manual, and re-set the cars oil change reminder.
38. Refer again to the owners manual on how to reset the oil change reminder.
39. Show how to pour the old used oil back into the used oil bottle.
40. Clean up the tools and put back where they belong.
41. Return the old used oil, and the un-needed oil filter back to the auto parts store.
Maybe I should call this "How to change your oil in 50 easy steps"
Just something I think most car guys don't even think twice about. We just say, change the oil, it's easy. I didn't realize that we just used about $300+ worth of tools to change the oil.
To me no big deal, just need the oil and filter...
Thinking of a list of items that they would be needed for them to do this, I realized that they have no basic tools, no drain pan, no funnel, no shop towels, no jack, and no general automotive knowledge.
They had no idea about which weight oil the car needs, or the quantity, or even how oil is specified. No idea on how to look up the oil filter part number, and to make it worse the car model could have different filters depending on options.
They went to the parts store, and the counter person got them the correct oil, and both filters because they didn't know which was correct.
They come over to the house and I have them pull the car up to the garage.
1. have them set the emergency brake
2. put wheel chocks behind the rear wheels
3. pop the hood - they knew how to do that !
4. Used my floor jack to lift the car for access.
5. Show then where the car can be lifted from
6. put jack stand under car for safety.
6-1/2. Sort of mentioned eye protection and gloves, and that the oil will be hot because they just shut off the engine
7. Grab combination wrenches, shop towels, oil filter wrench, and drain pan
8. Show them where the oil drain plug and oil filter are located
9. Figure out what the correct wrench size the drain plug is.
9-1/2. Quick refresher on which way to turn wrench to loosen oil plug for right hand threads.
10. Show them how to double-wrench the combination wrenches for leverage because the drain plug was pretty tight.
11. Tried to show them how different oil filter wrenches / cups work, and dang new car has super small filter that dosen't fit any of my stuff.
12. Decide to use the large channel lock plyers and show them how to adjust the jaw opening size for the filter. Also mention other methods for removing really tight filters.
13. Get the filter off, show how to drain the oil out of the filter, and then match it to the correct new filter.
14. Show how to clean off the filter mounting plate, inspect it, make sure the old filter seal is in the filter and not stuck to the mounting plate. Mention that some cars use a cartridge filter and not the spin-on type like we were using.
15. Pre-fill filter with some oil, and lube the filter seal
16. Spin-on the new filter and talk about how tight it should be installed.
17. Inspect and clean the drain plug. Notice the washer stuck to the oil pan.
18. Get flat blade screwdriver to pop drain washer loose from oil pan.
19. Talk about inspecting and when to replace the oil drain plug washer.
20. Talk about how long to let the oil drain, and at which temperatures.
21. Clean off oil pan and re-install the drain plug. talk about how tight it should be.
22. Remove the oil drain pan and tools from under the car.
22-1/2. Talk about the need to remove the oil drain pan from under the car before lowering the car, and the time I forgot that and spilled oil all over the driveway.
23. jack car up to remove jack stand, and lower the car.
24. Identify the oil fill cap and oil dip stick.
25. Wipe off fill cap and remove, inspect cap and clean if needed.
26. Grab the oil fill funnel, wipe it out and make sure it is clean.
27. Show how to use the funnel and pour the oil in without over flowing the funnel or splashing oil everywhere.
28. Talk about how much oil tp put in. mention this is also in the owners manual, show how to check the oil level on the dipstick and explain that it will change after starting the car and the filter is fully filled.
29. Remove funnel, replace cap and dipstick.
30. Start car, talk about how the oil light should go off, and to kill the car if it dosen't.
31. With the engine running, Show how to check for oil leaks.
32. stop engine, re-check oil level, go through how to add the correct amount of oil so the oil level is close to the full mark.
33. Show how to put the oily funnel into the old oil bottle, replace oil cap and dipstick.
34. Show how to check other fluids (brake, radiator, transmission, power steering) and inspect air filter, fill windshield washer bottle.
35. Talk about the "sponge count" practice of making sure you have removed and accounted for all your tools and supplies from the car before closing the hood.
36. Remove wheel chocks, remind them the emergency brake is set.
37. Record service in the service log of owners manual, and re-set the cars oil change reminder.
38. Refer again to the owners manual on how to reset the oil change reminder.
39. Show how to pour the old used oil back into the used oil bottle.
40. Clean up the tools and put back where they belong.
41. Return the old used oil, and the un-needed oil filter back to the auto parts store.
Maybe I should call this "How to change your oil in 50 easy steps"
Just something I think most car guys don't even think twice about. We just say, change the oil, it's easy. I didn't realize that we just used about $300+ worth of tools to change the oil.
