There are a lot of ways to save money floating around the interwebs, some common (like using coupons) and some not so common (like buying cloth rags to use instead of toilet paper). Today I am going to tell you about one of my personal favorite saving money tips, which is changing my own motor oil. One of the reasons that I do it is I just like to go out side and get a bit dirty, do some work that I can get positive, semi-immediate results from, and there’s something at least a tiny bit manly about being able to work on your own car. I didn’t always know how to change my oil though so there are a few things that I have learned on the way. (Materials Pictured Above from left to right: Socket wrench, socket wrench extension, oil drip pan, oil, oil filer, filter wrench, funnel)
Changing your own motor oil saves some money. The amount saved depends on how much you drive your car. If you’re like me and drive a lot, you can save quite a bit of coin over the course of a year. If you don’t drive as much, the savings will be slightly less (~$120/yr).
- Make sure to use the proper tools. You can’t get something done right if you don’t have the right equipment
- Make sure you have a spot for the waste oil. Here at sustainable life blog, we don’t like to waste anything. Depending on where you live, you can probably call the city or county, and they will tell you how you can dispose of it. My county (and most of them around here) will collect the used oil. Some recycle it, and some burn it for heat, but it’s always used.
- Check and Double Check Yourself.
Alright, after we’ve got that out-of-the-way, let’s get dirty! First, you’ll need to figure out what kind of motor oil and filter your car has. To do this, you’ll need to look in the owner’s manual that (hopefully) came with your car. Once you do this, you need to take the car that you’re going to change the oil in and head over to your local auto parts store and get some new oil, a new filter, a drip pan (if you don’t have one), and an oil filter wrench. The first time you pick all this up, it will probably run you about 30 (which is what jiffy lube charges). Simple cheap stuff, and once you buy it all, you’ll only need a new filter and oil, which will run you about $10/trip.
Get Ready to get Dirty
Once you’ve got all your stuff back home, it’s time to get down and dirty. Get out your owner’s manual and look for an engine diagram (or there could be a how to change oil guide in there) and find the Oil drain plug. Get a torque or crescent wrench, and slowly loosen the bolt. (Dont forget to keep the bolt out of the oil when you remove it completely) Oil will start to leak on you a bit, and it should be warm (unless your trip to the parts store took a while, then give it some cooling time). Just make sure you have your drip pan ready to try to catch it when you remove the screw completely. While the oil is draining, you can grab your oil filter wrench and locate your oil filter. It will be round, and sticking off of the engine somewhere. If you can’t locate it right away, go back to your owner’s manual and find an engine schematic that will tell you where it is. Once you find it, take your filter wrench and loosen the oil filter slowly. Some oil will start leaking out of here as well, don’t worry about it. Once you get it off, you can set it aside.
Replace what you took out
Now, it’s time to replace what you’ve taken off. Get the bolt, and screw it back into where you took it out of. Then get your new oil filter and rub a bit of oil around the rubber seal. This will make it much easier to get off the next time, and I can tell you that there’s nothing worse than a stuck oil filter. Then screw it back where the old one came from. There is no reason to tighten these things down as hard as you possibly can get them, either. Remember, you’re going to be the one taking them off next time. So get the snug and give them a bit more and call it good.
Now, you’re almost done, but you need to grab your oil, pop open the hood, and put back the required amount of oil! Fire up the car, make sure everything works and you’re good to go!
Now, that wasnt so hard, was it?
Here’s a cost breakdown. This will probably take about an hour of your time, and assuming you drive as much as the normal american (12,000 miles/year) you’ll save about $60 during the first year (due to costs of oil drip pan and wrench), and about $80 every year after that. Of course, the better you get at it, the less time it will take you. I change my oil about once every 6 weeks, so I can stand to save a bit more than that. I wouldn’t trade less driving
But I can guarantee you’ll feel good after having changed your own oil, because there’s nothing like the feeling of a job well done.
Repeat process each time you need to change date and time stamp. Oil Pans
You’re right, that’s something I forgot to mention. It’s important to note when you changed the oil and when you are up for a new oil change again.
I used to do this when I had an older car; it was cheaper than doing it at the garage. However, now that I have a newer car and no garage, I do it at the dealership whenever I go to do maintenance. However, sometimes I miss going out and doing things like that, it can be fun every now and then!
Good tips! I WISH changing oil cost more than $50-60 bucks for my Moose, but alas, it doesn’t, hence i get someone else to do it for me.
If it cost like $200 a pop, I’m changing for sure! 🙂
@ Kevin. I completely agree. My old car was 25 years old, and that’s what got me started. Before that, I never knew how to do it and certainly didnt know it was that easy. I always thought it was complicated but it’s not. I also try to do work myself, but Its a new car and still under warranty, so I havent had much work to do. I do it because I think it’s fun
@ Sam I definitely hear that. There have times where I should have taken it in, but didnt. Some things are just easier to pay for. It just depends on the person.
Great tip! It never occurred to me to change my own oil. It certainly doesn’t sound as complicated as I’d imagined!
I’ve become a mystery shopper at a local garage and get paid to get my oil changed. Can’t beat that! They top off all my fluids – be sure to do that if you’re doing your own oil, as it’s easy to forget and important to keep your car running at its happiest.
@ Saved Quarter Thats the nice part about changing your oil — It’s not as hard as they make it sound, so if you’re not afraid of getting a bit dirty and can follow directions, it’s easy.
However, getting paid to have someone change my oil would be great! And topping off your fluids is very important, I guess I forgot to mention it, which is not good.