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Oil change, DIY vs shop (lemmy.world)
submitted 1 week ago by to c/dadsplain@lemmy.ca
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If you read any manual on changing your oil, it's going to tell you to let that thing drip for 15 to 30 minutes to clear out as much of the old oil as possible. Meanwhile, your average oil change place is advertising that they will have you in and out of there in 15 minutes from start to finish. Which means there's no way they're letting it drip the minimum of 15 minutes.

The soil change was so overdue. There is a difference between the service interval and abuse interval of oil. I definitely got into the abuse range on this occasion. I just didn't have the money for the oil and the filter.

And while you're taking care of your own oil change. Make sure to check your brake fluid engine coolant and washer fluid and top them off as necessary.

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[–] 6 points 1 week ago (7 children)

Do you have to do the blinker fluid alongside every oil change?

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  • [–] 2 points 1 week ago (3 children)

    I was told by two different places that trying to change any of the other oils is more likely to cause a problem if there isn't one to begin with. I wanted them to do a whole kit on the whole car, but it's not a good idea according to then.

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  • [–] 2 points 1 week ago*

    I was told by two different places that trying to change any of the other oils is more likely to cause a problem if there isn’t one to begin with.

    There's likely vehicle model specific variability here though. I had a first gen Honda Civic Hybrid with the first gen CVT. When maintained engine-to-transmission power was glassy smooth. However the CVT fluid would "wear out" and create a sound/feeling described as "judder". The fix was to change out the CVT fluid more frequently that the book listed maintenance interval. It was annoying effective. A fluid swap would immediately return it to glassy smooth and silent power delivery.

    Doing a slightly more frequent CVT change wouldn't normally bother me but fluid would only last 20k-25k miles before the judder would start to return (slight at first) and the CVT fluid was Honda specific available only from dealerships and it was expensive. It look slightly less than 4 quarts and was about $7/quart when I had the car. I just checked the price today and it costs $16/quart! So that would be a minimum of $64 for a single CVT fluid change on top of regular oil/filter changes.

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  • [–] 2 points 1 week ago

    I'm gonna have to disagree with them. There is no such thing as lifetime oil. Even gear oil should be replaced eventually. Not too often though. Every 5 years is more than enough for diffs and manual transmissions IMO.

    When there's already a problem, it's too late to change the fluid. One exception: auto trans fluid + filter change can cure a transmission that's shifting harsh or flaring during shifts, because ATF actuates the clutches and brakes. But it's still better to do it before you have problems.

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  • [–] 2 points 1 week ago

    There is some truth to it. Sometimes it's better to just top up and keep chugging along on older vehicles that haven't been well maintained.

    A lot of the shops use pressurized system to flush and refill coolant, power steering, brakes. That can pop leaks in old hoses/lines, blow seals etc. It's much safer if you gravity drain and skip the pump they use in almost every shop.

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