3.6L Oil Change Pictoral

[louiefl99]

With about 1800 miles on the clock, I figured it was time to change my oil for the first time. Had 83% oil life left on the DIC, but wanted to get any break-in debris out. Since the dealer wants $74.60, I thought I would give it a shot. I’ve done all my own routine maintenance, the occasional water pump, etc, seems like a no-brainer. By the way, the dealer suggests letting the oill life getting down to 20 to 25% not the 0% in the owner's manual.

I bought a 5 quart jug + 1 quart of Mobil 1 and a Napa Gold 7090 filter for a total of $33.50. Other filters I found were Purolator L25274, AC Delco PF2129, and Fram CH8765.

The filter canister is removed with either a 24mm or 15/16” socket. I expected oil to pour down the side of the engine when I unscrewed it, but the canister was dry inside, not a drop spilled on the engine. The filter element stayed attached to the canister cover.

The drain plug is 13mm and is best accessed from behind the front passenger tire. I used a long extension and didn’t have to jack up the car or crawl under too far.

Wiped up the bolt and flange on the pan; tightened it using a short open end wrench (didn’t want to over tighten . I wiped the filter cover and reinstalled the filter - it appears that the new element is symmetrical, and either end snugly fits into the cover. Added 6 quarts of oil, ran around the block, let everything drain back and needed another ½ quart to hit the top of the full hash mark.

This is the simplest (and cleanest) oil change I have ever done. Plenty of room around the filter, no drips; oil pan drain doesn’t cascade over any portion of the frame or exhaust system. I used one paper towel and my hands were pretty clean. Total time 30 minutes including pictures, next time will be about half that.

Hope this helps some of the do-it-yourselfers out there.

[odysseus]

The 3.6L oil change is clean! The 3.2L has the filter underneath on the drivers side. Since it's upside down from yours, it's full of oil, but has a small drain plug in the center to empty it before removing the filter. The oil drain is about 6" further forward from the 3.6L, right NEXT to the cross member in your first picture. It's much trickier to get off.

It's a relatively clean oil change, but not as clean as the 3.6L!

[dwassenaar]

Hey, thanks. I have 1300 on mine and have been eyeing the filter housing. You make it look really simple. Did you use 5W-30 or 10W-30? I am in S. Cal. and am leaning towards the 10W.

I have been doing my own for 30 years and haven't given up yet. My 2002 Corvette is a little tight and needs ramps. But I still enjoy the delights of taking care of my own!

Dave

[louiefl99]

I used 5w-30 and live in south Florida, not expecting weather below freezing until the next ice age. I previously owned a Ford that used 5w-20, I believe part of their thought process was that they could squeeze an extra mpg to help corporate CAFE averages. I'll stick with the 5w-30 for the time being while the engine is relatively tight and maybe switch to 10w-30 after 50K miles or so.

[Coreyn]

Why wouldnt you wait till 6K plus your DIC told you to had 83% oil life. I would have waited...

[louiefl99]

When the powertrain plant does final assembly, they use cleaned parts, fill, and run the engine on a test stand to collect data. They drain and send to the vehicle assembly plant for installation in the car, fill again and run the engine some more. Through all of this there exists some risk that there are contaminants either built in or dislodged during the initial run time.

Also, final assembly on my car was Sept '04, the car more or less sat idle for 5 months. Probably not much of a chance to have any condensation in the engine to create any oxidation, but once up and running, additional debris may have been dislodged.

During the initial 500 to 1000 miles rings continue to seat, bearings wear in, etc all generating small bits of debris that is presumably caught by the filter. During my inspection of the used filter I actually noticed a very fine black oil / powder emulsion on the filter, and the oil was darker than I anticipated.

Old school theory was to change your oil on a new car religiously at the first 1000 miles, but that was when engines had larger build tolerances and there was a lot more wear intially.

From what I remember reading, the oil life indicator will give a life somewhere between 3K and 12K miles, depending on what the computer algorithym has determined makes sense. At 1800 miles and 83%, that would be a projected life of about 10,500 miles. My driving profile is 75 miles round trip to work, mostly highway.

In the future, I plan on changing the oil and filter about every 7,500 miles or with 25% life left, whichever comes first. No real proven theory behind this, just one of those gut feel decisions knowing the synthetic oil still has life in it and the filter isn't running in bypass mode. That and DIY changes are 1/2 price.

[caddydaddy]

How much are the replacement filter elements?

[CTS4me]

Originally Posted by louiefl99

With about 1800 miles on the clock, I figured it was time to change my oil for the first time. Had 83% oil life left on the DIC, but wanted to get any break-in debris out. Since the dealer wants $74.60, I thought I would give it a shot. I’ve done all my own routine maintenance, the occasional water pump, etc, seems like a no-brainer. By the way, the dealer suggests letting the oill life getting down to 20 to 25% not the 0% in the owner's manual.

I bought a 5 quart jug + 1 quart of Mobil 1 and a Napa Gold 7090 filter for a total of $33.50. Other filters I found were Purolator L25274, AC Delco PF2129, and Fram CH8765.

The filter canister is removed with either a 24mm or 15/16” socket. I expected oil to pour down the side of the engine when I unscrewed it, but the canister was dry inside, not a drop spilled on the engine. The filter element stayed attached to the canister cover.

The drain plug is 13mm and is best accessed from behind the front passenger tire. I used a long extension and didn’t have to jack up the car or crawl under too far.

Wiped up the bolt and flange on the pan; tightened it using a short open end wrench (didn’t want to over tighten . I wiped the filter cover and reinstalled the filter - it appears that the new element is symmetrical, and either end snugly fits into the cover. Added 6 quarts of oil, ran around the block, let everything drain back and needed another ½ quart to hit the top of the full hash mark.

This is the simplest (and cleanest) oil change I have ever done. Plenty of room around the filter, no drips; oil pan drain doesn’t cascade over any portion of the frame or exhaust system. I used one paper towel and my hands were pretty clean. Total time 30 minutes including pictures, next time will be about half that.

Hope this helps some of the do-it-yourselfers out there.

Great Post! I already saved it for later use.

[odysseus]

Originally Posted by caddydaddy

How much are the replacement filter elements?

The Purolators are only about $6 at AdvanceAutoParts.

[louiefl99]

I paid $6.99 for the Napa Gold, Fram runs about $8.99, they were out of Purolators but the tag at the end of the empty row was $5.99. I've since seen the AC Delco for $4.99.

[Dirkster]

I didn't even have to jack my car up to drain my oil. And I'm not the slimmest guy around. Use a 6" extension and your good to go.

This car is the the best I have ever owned for changing oil.
I changed mine for the first time at 3300 miles and will change again around 7-8000 miles most likely.

[pjohnesq]

Originally Posted by louiefl99

I paid $6.99 for the Napa Gold, Fram runs about $8.99, they were out of Purolators but the tag at the end of the empty row was $5.99. I've since seen the AC Delco for $4.99.

What about resetting the DIC...Is it automatic once the change is completed or do you have to reset at 100% oil life remaining?

[louiefl99]

You need to reset the DIC manually. Scroll down using the info bar on the DIC until you get to oil life. You need to press and hold the clear button for a longer period than you would for resetting the trip odometer. It will first change to XXX%, then reset to 100%. If you release while it shows the X's it will revert to your old life, I think this is to keep you from accidentally resetting.

[jteolis]

I noticed your oil looks pretty dark. Mine is as well. I have about 5K on my oil and was wondering why it is so dark.

[louiefl99]

I was taken back when I saw it as well, that was after only 1800 miles. If you look at the used filter pic you can see how dark and nasty it was.

I'm at 6K total miles in 3 months, ran out to the garage and checked the oil on the dipstick, looks much lighter than the first change. I'm at 65% life left, I'll probably change the oil again at 25% or 9 to 10K total miles. After that every 7500 or so.