checking engine oil

[KaBar2]

Drain some out

 

If you were to drop the drain plug by accident and every drop of oil ran out, it would cost about $10 or less to replace the oil. If you blow a seal, foul the plugs, etc., etc. it's going to cost a lot more.

 

Most cars take five quarts of oil, but what you need to do is GO BUY A REPAIR MANUAL for your make of car. Haynes manuals are good, Chilton's books are even better.

 

Put a drain pan underneath it, crack the drain plug, drain out some oil, tighten the plug, go check the dipstick. If it's still too full, do it again and again until the oil level is pretty close to the "F" mark.

 

Make SURE the drain plug is tight when you're done. Many drain plugs come with a 3/4" square hole in them. This fits a 3/4" square drive extension or rachet wrench drive. Some older cars' drain plugs will have a 3/4" square extension that can be turned with an adjustable crescent wrench. The kind with the hole are better. Repair manuals come with a page of "torque specifications" which tell you how much torque (using a torque wrench) every nut and bolt requires, including the drain plugs. USE IT.

 

If you are changing your own oil, change the oil every 3,000 miles and the filter every 6,000. Use a filter wrench (cheap--you can get one at any auto parts store.) When you reinstall the new filter, DON'T FORGET TO LUBRICATE THE RUBBER RING SEAL WITH A LITTLE BIT OF ENGINE OIL. If you don't, the friction of tightening the filter will abrade the seal, and the filter seal will leak when you start the engine. Tighten oil filters HAND TIGHT. You use the filter wrench to remove filters, not install them.

 

While you're under there, inspect everything you can see. Most people lube any grease zerks they can see (with a hand-pump grease gun) with lithium-based grease.

 

Changing your oil every 3,000 miles (or more often if you drive in dusty conditions or off-road) will make your engine last a lot longer--thousands and thousands of miles longer. Think of changing oil as a lot cheaper than replacing an engine. It's a good idea to change the gear lube (oil) in your transmission and rear end once in a while, too. I changed my transmission and rear-end differential lube at 57,000 miles and found all kinds of busted-up pieces of metal in it (probably little pieces of chipped-off transmission gears.) Should have checked it sooner.

 

It's a VERY, VERY GOOD IDEA to have MAGNETIC DRAIN PLUGS in all drain holes. Any pieces of metal trash will go there and stick, instead of being washed around and around through your engine's delicate bearings and shit.

 

Owning a car means more than just driving it around mindlessly. Go buy a repair manual, and a copy of "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance." I promise you, you will be enlightened at the feet of the Buddha. (Nah, not really. It has nothing to do with zen, and nothing to do with motorcycle maintenance, but it IS very enlightening.)