Oil Change Mystery

[ChrisJ]

I've done this before, not my brightest moment.

What I've found is if you unscrew the plug while putting pressure at the end, so now your pressure is keeping the oil from comming out, once you are sure its totally unthreaded you can pull the plug away all at once and keep your hand out of the super hot oil.

Or, sometimes you mess up drop the plug and the oil gets all over your arm, you sit up fast from the surprise of the hot oil on your hand and bang your head on the hot exhaust pipe and then just lay there feeling sorry for your self with a burn mark on your forehead.

 

[Bogus]

My first oil change on the Sonic I was cheap and got the least expensive oil catch pan. The drain cap didn't even fit and I never checked it. Went inside while it was draining and came back out to a pool of oil down my driveway.

 

[ChrisJ]

My first oil change on the Sonic I was cheap and got the least expensive oil catch pan. The drain cap didn't even fit and I never checked it. Went inside while it was draining and came back out to a pool of oil down my driveway.

And this is why you dont need cough medicine.
Its ok, last weekend I decided to skim my steam boiler and went to eat breakfast while it was skimming and forgot about it. An hour later I remembered and went down only to find the bucket overflowing and water all over the floor.

 

[Paradox]

read on: page 10-9 and 10-10

If the engine has been running
recently, turn off the engine and
allow several minutes for the oil
to drain back into the oil pan.
Checking the oil level too soon
after engine shutoff will not
provide an accurate oil level
reading.

{WARNING
The engine oil dipstick handle
may be hot; it could burn you.
Use a towel or glove to touch the
dipstick handle.}

2. Pull out the dipstick and clean it
with a paper towel or cloth, then
push it back in all the way.
Remove it again, keeping the tip
down, and check the level.

Appreciate it! Just the answer I was looking for:banana:

 

[gdideric]

Yup,

Again it does not state that the engine must have been running recently. All it says is, IF it was, allow it to set for a few minutes for oil to drain back down into the pan.

When someone says, "check the oil when it is warm", they don't mean, "wait until July"...they mean, after it has been running recently...

 

[klb1.8]

Way over thinking a typical oil change just change add 5quarts done

 

[$ub$onic]

You can never be to careful with a oil change. Its what keeps all the mechanical things happy. Witch keeps you happy

 

[Bogus]

Way over thinking a typical oil change just change add 5quarts done

5 quarts is too much.

 

[$ub$onic]

The 1.8 is 4.8 quarts I always put in 5 but I never let the bottle drip in ( I collect it all later and reuse) so its not quite 5 that I'm putting in

 

[Bogus]

Will that extra .2 quarts hurt anything? I'm too OCD to not measure the exact amount.

 

[$ub$onic]

No, I have had a few engines that I always ran a extra half a quart ( aprox)in for versus reasons


Think of the size of your oil pan, a extra .2 over that size equals a very very small increase in fluid height

 

[RoXXXanne13]

I just dump 5 quarts in and be done with it. A LITTLE extra normally doesn't hurt

emphasize A LITTLE

 

[rondoman]

OT a bit but I work with a complete moron who never changes his oil.

He bought a brand new Sunfire a few years back and it died at 33,000 miles due to not changing the oil once. Now he drives a ****ty mini van that knocks like crazy and all he does is add oil. I honestly dont know how that van is still running it's been knocking badly for about a year. He also has a semi flat tire that he refuses to put air in.

I seriously want to punch him in the face when he says he has money to buy a different car so who cares. He is like 40 years old too.

 

[GeneralZod]

Many people treat those same vehicles the same way. You can't blame them, how much fun can life be if you drive a Sunbird?

Had a friend that owned one and I always shot bottle rockets at it, and one time dumped all the recycling(beer cans of course) in it and drove it to the curb... I miss college.

 

[rondoman]

Yeah the guy I work with is a complete slob too.

His whole minivan is full of empty Gatorade bottles and Red Bull cans.

This guy also showers about once a week. He has been sent home twice in the past for stinking. Yeah, he works on the factory floor and got sent home for stinking. Do you realize how bad you have to smell to get sent home? Disgusting.

 

[$ub$onic]

Dang that's bad

 

[Bogus]

There was a guy like that at my construction job lol it was bad.

 

[Papasonic]

Capacities: Oil Change With Filter

1.4 - Turbo 4.2 US Quarts - 4.0 L
1.8 - 4.8 US Quarts - 4.5 L

I typically check my oil cold, after setting overnight. I also sometimes check it hot during a fuel stop; after fueling and window cleaning. This allows the oil to return to the oil pan for a more accurate reading. Checking hot usually will provide a slightly higher reading due to thermal expansion.
I notice that it is easier to determine the oil level on the 1.4 because of the flat steel dipstick vs the round profile cable type dipstick on the 1.8.

I attempt to maintain the level at the full mark at all times: Too much oil can cause oil aeration, excessive crankcase pressure, engine seal failure/leaks, and excessive intake plenum and intake valve deposits.
Too little oil can cause catastrophic engine failure.

 

[$ub$onic]

I thought the sonic was designed to be checked when it was hot right after shutdown ?

 

[Papasonic]

I thought the sonic was designed to be checked when it was hot right after shutdown ?

That is the method the owners manual says to use.

Checking cold will give you a similar reading, and is the method used since time began.

Cold checking for me is the most accurate for me as the results can be duplicated time after time; unlike checking hot, where you seldom get the same reading twice in a row.