I always take my car to the dealer for oil changes - granted its a little more expensive but what the heck around 80 dollars - this past weekend they hit me with 140 dollars I almost fainted at the cashier booth - I asked the lady are you sure its for my car a oil change? She said yes - Wow prices shot up , I asked her why - she said like everything else prices rising - I notice new management probably is that the main reason. How difficult is it to do it myself?? I'm not mechanical incline :cry:
Buy oil and oilfilter, remove the bolt at the bottom of the sump, make sure you have something to catch the used oil in, remove the oilfilter, put new oilfilter in, put the bolt back! Dont forget to refill the oil and presto, youre finnished... Should save you a few bucks, leaving the car for an oilchange in Sweden is not an option, 800 dollars last time I asked at a dealer... Fredrik
It's not complicated but it's not all that easy. First off you have to get under the car. Ramps are good but you need the long ones (gradual incline) because of our low clearance. Maybe a 2x4 to start you on the ramp. Then you remove the belly pan (4 to 6 or 8 bolts) then it's like any other oil change. Although I don't know where the filter is 'cause I've never done it myself so I don't know if there are any tips for that. Like using a baffle or rags because the oil draining out of the filter when you remove it will go straight onto the frame rail or something like that... If you've never changed oil before here are a couple of basics. The drain hole and oil plug are usually horizontal. That means that when you remove the drain plug the oil is going to "shoot" out horizontally. Make sure your pan is in a position or long enough so the initial stream doesn't overshoot it. After about the first 1/4th drains it's going to be coming more or less straight down. Be in position and prepared to re-position the pan accordingly. Get the appropriate oil filter wrench. Think about where the oil is going to fall when you loosen and remove the filter. If you haven't done it before there is a high probability that you will make a mess with the used oil. Be prepared for clean up and think ahead. Nothing worse than being wedged under the car and having a pool of hot, dirty, motor oil running into your hair. Note: it take 7 qts of oil. Mobil 1 0w/40 or maybe 5w/40. get the right oil. I think that's why the dealers charge so much. By the way, that's not out of line for an oil change for the SRT8s. Towards the top end but not out of line. My dealership always listed $120 for the last 3 years. Sure, lots of guys get it done for $75 and up but that's not the norm. So price out the oil and filter and your time (and disposal if that's an issue). I thought about this when I bought the car and went for the extended maintenance plan. 5yr-75K and gets you a rental anytime it's in overnight for any reason.
Ouch! Autozone is having a special going on.. 5 qts of Mobil 1 Full Synthetic and a Mobil 1 filter for $29.99. Buy two of those deals you will have 10 qts and 2 filters... Then next time you will only need 4 qts of oil. Dealership has never touched my car, EVER. But then again I never had a warranty for it.
It's actually really simple. Hardest thing is th jack the car up high enough or drive it onto the ramps
Let's back up a bit. What do you mean by "I'm not mechanically inclined"...? 1) You've never changed the oil in a car. 2) You have changed the oil in a car but it was a long time ago. Bonus questions a) You know that you should clean where the oil filter gasket seats against the block and that it's a good idea to take a bit of oil on your finger to lubricate the new gasket on the new filter before installing. b) You know that the drain plug hole and/or drain plug are made of soft metal and you can strip the threads with excessive force. Extra credit bonus: i) You actually used a torque wrench at least once in your life and realized that you had been over tightening everything before that. ii) You know what a helicoil is.
yeah oil changes on HEMI's in general is a ripoff lol... even in my truck oil changes are upwards of $90 for synthetic oil... so...especially with the truck..i just do it myself...yeah its a pain to get the car up in the air...but if you can...its well worth the savings IMO
That's what I do. I drop $60 there everytime they have that sale. I have a couple shelves of 0w40 "European formula" Mobil1....you'd swear I campaigned an m3 or something LOL. Then I take my 7 qts and filter to the dealer and pay them $17.00 labor to change it, spend 30min looking at the "C" on my phone, then take 'er home:future:
My dealer changes my oil for $7 labor plus the waste charge....I supply the oil (10 QTs of Mobile 1). I buy 2 of the 5 qt deals for $60 total and 2 free filters. So tax and all a change runs me less than $85.... Ron...why does Maureen's truck take 11QTs? Should be 10......or do you tell her everything is more than actual measurements??..:shifty:
Haha, that too... but it was the one that blew up that took 11 qts. They'll probably start putting 10 qts in this one.
I'm sure the dealer I go to is a union shop - I notice on the invoice each quart was at 16 dollars - ouch !!!!!
it's 10 1/2 quarts if done properly. lol You think they are going to give the 1/2 quart for free? hahahahaha
Good point though. It's a bit of a scam since they're pumping it out of a 55 gallon drum and the meter on the pump is a lot more accurate than a quart... They're getting about 1 (.95) extra oil change out of each 55 gallon. Charging $16/qt that's $160 each 55 gallon drum. If someone doesn't like their dealer so much they should go back with the receipt and demand that they take 1/2 quart out of the car and take it off the bill. Then you could turn around and say that now it's 1/2 quart low so they must have robbed you the first time and you're going to report it to the state licensing board and the attorneys general.
I've always done all my oil changes myself, however only done TWO on my SRT; third is due @ 9,000 miles, I refuse to change mine every three months like recommended.
