Do you have to drain it oil?

conman1395

conman1395

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I know next to nothing about how cars run, but I know how to change my oil. My girlfriend says when she changes her oil she just pours it in and doesn't drain it. She said her oil is low and needed a funnel to just pour it in. That's not good is it?
 
Yeah, that's going to be a problem. She's either leaking or burning oil if she regularly needs to top it off. As for the funnel, I think most people use a funnel to avoid having a mess to clean up. Using a funnel has nothing to do with how low the oil level is in her car. To answer your question, though, yes you need to drain all of the old oil out of the oil pan, as well as remove the oil filter and allow that oil to drain. You should replace your oil filter with every oil change.
 
Okay thank you. I wasn't very clear on my statement about the funnel, I use one too.

That's what I figured, thanks.

She said she just added oil at the beginning of the summer, so it would be too early to have to add more if the engine didn't have an issue of some sort.
 
This is what I do...

1. Drive up my lift ramps or lift the car up
2. Open oil cap under the hood (this helps when the oil is draining)
3. Climb under the car
4. Position a oil pan/oil container under the oil tank where you think the path of the oil flow will land
5. Take off drain plug. Some people replace these every oil change. I have a fumoto valve which makes oil changes a breeze. Goggle fumoto valve.
6. let the oil drain all the way until it stops. Replace the drain plug
7. Move the oil container under the oil filter and unscrew it. It will drain more into the bucket.
8. Replace the oil filter with a new one.
9. Triple check that you replaced the oil filter and drain plug. Otherwise you get a big mess.
10. Place a funnel in the oil cap hole that you unscrewed in step 2 (under the hood) and start filling. The car's manual will always tell you how much to use. Or, you can check by pulling out the dip stick, wiping it clean, putting it back in, then pulling it out again. I always wipe it clean first because it is more accurate.
11. Screw the engine oil cap back on and close the hood.
 
conman1395 said:
She said she just added oil at the beginning of the summer, so it would be too early to have to add more if the engine didn't have an issue of some sort.
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The amount of oil a vehicle uses has a lot to do with how many miles and under what conditions it's driven. Just because she has used oil since the beginning of the summer doesn't mean anything is wrong. In addition, due to efforts to reduce friction in engines, what is considered "normal" oil consumption is something that is hotly debated.

At one time GM was saying something like only if you were using more than a quart every thousand miles was anything wrong. What make/model/year/how many miles?
 
How many miles are on the car and how many miles are on the oil since it was changed? Unless the car has a lot of miles or she's driving a crazy amount of miles she shouldn't need to add oil. Also, if she doesn't have the filter changed it is probably just bypassing. Changing the filter is more important than changing the oil IMO.
 
Whats the year, make, model and amount of miles on the car?
 
It's a '98 Carolla with over 220,000 miles. She drives around 15,000 - 17,000 miles a year.

The car has had all sorts of issues. She keeps a hammer in it so she can bang the starter or something every now and then. There's been power steering problems too. I don't think the past owners took good care of it.
 
It's not unheard of for someone to think their vehicle is low on oil because they can't see it in the hole in the valve cover when they remove the fill cap.

You'd be surprised how much oil an engine can hold when you fill it up to that point. Seen it a few times. I facepalmed so hard my hand went right through my head.
 
conman1395 said:
It's a '98 Carolla with over 220,000 miles. She drives around 15,000 - 17,000 miles a year.
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Never had a Toyota, but at that mileage it wouldn't surprise me if it used a quart every 1000 miles--so she'd be adding more than once a month. I've certainly heard the theory that it's not worth changing the oil if you're adding that much--but as previously noted, you gotta change the filter, and once in a while get the sludge out of the bottom of the pan (by draining).

*Note: I am NOT advocating the "no change" method!

Damonsfcd said:
It's not unheard of for someone to think their vehicle is low on oil because they can't see it in the hole in the valve cover when they remove the fill cap. You'd be surprised how much oil an engine can hold when you fill it up to that point. Seen it a few times. I facepalmed so hard my hand went right through my head.
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Yow!
 
If you can hit the starter with a hammer it should be easy to replace then lol.
 
conman1395 said:
It's a '98 Carolla with over 220,000 miles. She drives around 15,000 - 17,000 miles a year.

The car has had all sorts of issues. She keeps a hammer in it so she can bang the starter or something every now and then. There's been power steering problems too. I don't think the past owners took good care of it.
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Ok, it's not unusual for a car with higher miles to use some oil, both burning it and leaking it, especially if it hasn't been taken care of.

The hammer is a good idea. I always carry one incase my truck won't start. Usually after the hammer it will only start one more time though.
 
Hi Conman,

I used to drain the oil pour it into a 35 gal drum, change the filter, pour in new oil every 2000 mi.

It's not worth the effort. Disposing of old oil, environmentally, safe is challenging & the work is definitely not fun.

Follow your owners manual for frequency of "oil changes" keep in mind short trips equal "severe service" term you may find in owners manual. When the time comes, take it to a reputable, place for changing. Follow this procedure religiously & your ride will last, longer than not following this procedure.

Also should you opt for the more expensive "synthetic" oils, interval changes, can safely be extended.

Forget the hammer when it won't start, reach for the cell phone. Chances are excellent that the hammer will make, the problem more complicated than need be.

Remember the old add: You can pay me now, or later? Still applies
 
Shoot, you can get an oil pan with a lid. Any major chain auto parts store like autozone or orileys will let you dump your used oil free of charge.

Better be free cause they turn around and sell it to an individual or company that recycles it.

If you get an oil pan with a spout and a 2-3 gallon oil container you don't have to make as many trips.
 
Yes some/most oil change shops will recycle your used oil. And many will dump it down the storm drain, instead of schlepping it off to a recycler.

All around it's easier, nearly has cheap to have it done than do it yourself. Cost of DIY gas to & from for parts, your labor, gas to & from schlepping, the used oil around town, cost of tools. etc.

You want to change your own oil GR8. It's my experience, trying both ways, one is just more convenient, than the other.
 
Several companies in my area actually pay for used oil. They use it to heat their shops with waste oil furnaces. We typically get a couple hundred gallons of used oil a year on our farm and just give it to a local business because they come and pick it up and give us good pricing on the products they sell. Obviously the demand won't be very high in warmer climates, but it is in the North.

I can definitely see where messing with changing their own oil could be more of a pain than a benefit for the average driver though. Especially with some of the oil change specials the big chains offer sometimes.
 
Ricorocks said:
Forget the hammer when it won't start, reach for the cell phone. Chances are excellent that the hammer will make, the problem more complicated than need be.
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NEVER HIT THE STARTER WITH YOUR CELL PHONE :laughing:

Nah you can't hurt the starter heck it's needing to be replaced anyways. The hammer taps help set the spring loaded (worn) brushes set against the armature. Like posted above it works only for awhile... beats waiting on and forking out for a wrecker, then the price of the starter motor too.
 
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