Foxy
05-31-2006, 09:03 PM
I noticed that there is no how to do an oil change article. An oil change is a very easy procedure, and will help you begin to get familiar with your car. Even the greenest of novices ought to be able to do one, and hopefully, this guide will walk you through everything you need to know.
I took these photos while changing the oil on a 2000 Grand Am GT. I do not know how the different engines / years look underneath, but they should be similar. Perhaps someone can post pictures?
Things you need:
-Either ramps or a jack and at least two stands
--Chock blocks would be a good idea to make sure your car doesn't roll away
-Ratchet with a 15mm socket
-New oil filter
-4.5 quarts of oil (either 5W-30 for cold weather or 10W-30 for warm; see your owner's manual for more information)
-Oil pan to catch the dirty oil (I bought one at Walmart for like $10)
Nice things to have:
-Latex gloves (probably a bunch, I tend to tear mine)
-Lots of rags/towels
-Clothes you don't mind getting dirty
-Goggles (protect your eyes from splatter)
-Torque wrench (to tighten down the oil drain plug)
-Filter wrench if whoever put your filter on last put it on too tight
-Funnel to help pour the oil back into the engine.
Procedure:
First, warm oil is easier to drain than cold oil. It also holds particulates better, so it'll help clean out crud in your engine better. Go for a short drive. I drive to the Autozone that's about two miles away to get a filter and oil before the change, and that's enough to get the engine nice and warm. Of course, a warm/hot engine is hot enough to burn you, and the oil is fairly hot too. Use common sense.
Get your car up on the ramps, or use the jack and jackstands to get your car up. This may not be entirely necessary, but the GA is pretty low and I can't fit under the car.
If you use ramps, please make sure you're centered on them. The GAGT weighs over 3000 lbs, and if it falls, gravity + steel will triumph over your skull.
If you have a jack, please make sure to use jackstands to help hold up the car - never get under a vehicle just held up with a jack! I've personally had a jack (one of the cheap ones from Walmart) fail halfway through jacking up my car, and it freaked me out. You definately don't want to be underneath a falling car.
For these pictures, I put four stands under the car as I was also rotating tires. You just need the front wheels up. Make sure to chock the rear wheels to keep them from rolling.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300010.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300011.jpg
The areas highlighted in red are safe jacking/jackstand points:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/jackpoints2.jpg
Now look under your car, near the front. There will be a big, flat, L shaped piece of metal. In the crook of the L will be a ribbed piece of metal. This is your oil pan, and the bolt in it is the drain plug. The plug should face the rear of your car:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300013.jpg
Get your oil pan ready. It's about to be messy, so you may want to put on those goggles and lay out some newspaper or rags. Use the ratchet on the bolt. If you've never done it before, the bolt may be on very, very tightly and you may need a breaker bar or impact gun. After you get the bolt finger loose, unscrew the bolt completely.
Remember that the drain hole is angled towards the rear of the car - you want the pan behind the hole, not directly underneath it. Watch all that dirty oil come out! Don't lose the bolt!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300020.jpg
While it's draining, go prep your new oil filter. Fill it with new oil, and lubricate the gasket - simply dip a clean finger into the oil and rub it around the rubber gasket:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300018.jpg
By the time you do this, the oil from the oil pan should be pretty much drained. Put the bolt back in and torque it down. I do not know the torque specs off of the top of my head, unfortunately.
Now, you need to get the filter off. Immediately forward of the oil pan is some sort of crossmember. If you look between that and the engine, you can see the filter:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300016.jpg
If your engine is warm, you probably don't want to stick your arm up there. There's a quasi solution. Immediately in front of the crossmember is a rubberyplastic cover held on by two wing nuts. Simply undo the wing nuts with your fingers and take the plastic off:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300024.jpg
It's not a ton more room, but it is easier to get at the oil filter:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300021.jpg
Twist off the oil filter. Again, it may be on there pretty tight; this is where an oil filter wrench comes in handy. Be careful, some dirty oil will splatter out and the engine is liable to still be warm. Make sure that the oil filter gasket comes off with the filter - if it stays stuck to the engine and you put on the new filter over it, you'll get leaks. Set your old oil filter upside down in your oil drain pan to empty it out, and go get your new filter and put it on. Do it by hand and make it snug, but do not strip the threads.
Make sure your filter is on nice and tight and that the drain plug is in the hole. It's embarassing to have the oil you pour in just come oozing out.
Now, open up your hood and pour in the new oil. Spec is 4.5 quarts, and the funnel helps you from spilling it all over:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300022.jpg
Put the oil cap back on. Lower the hood. Take out the drain pan from under the car. Put the rubberplastic piece back on (there's some tabs, just line them up and screw in the wingnuts). Put away your tools. Lower your car off of the jackstands if applicable. Start up your car. The oil light may come on for a moment, but it should go out immediately. Don't forget to reset your oil change light; instructions are in your manual or in this thread (http://www.gaownersclub.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=92).
Check for leaks under your car. If none, you are good to go. Congrats!
Take your used oil to an Autozone, Advanced Auto, Checker, Pepboys, etc, to be properly recycled. Do not throw it away in the trash or pour it down a drain.
I took these photos while changing the oil on a 2000 Grand Am GT. I do not know how the different engines / years look underneath, but they should be similar. Perhaps someone can post pictures?
Things you need:
-Either ramps or a jack and at least two stands
--Chock blocks would be a good idea to make sure your car doesn't roll away
-Ratchet with a 15mm socket
-New oil filter
-4.5 quarts of oil (either 5W-30 for cold weather or 10W-30 for warm; see your owner's manual for more information)
-Oil pan to catch the dirty oil (I bought one at Walmart for like $10)
Nice things to have:
-Latex gloves (probably a bunch, I tend to tear mine)
-Lots of rags/towels
-Clothes you don't mind getting dirty
-Goggles (protect your eyes from splatter)
-Torque wrench (to tighten down the oil drain plug)
-Filter wrench if whoever put your filter on last put it on too tight
-Funnel to help pour the oil back into the engine.
Procedure:
First, warm oil is easier to drain than cold oil. It also holds particulates better, so it'll help clean out crud in your engine better. Go for a short drive. I drive to the Autozone that's about two miles away to get a filter and oil before the change, and that's enough to get the engine nice and warm. Of course, a warm/hot engine is hot enough to burn you, and the oil is fairly hot too. Use common sense.
Get your car up on the ramps, or use the jack and jackstands to get your car up. This may not be entirely necessary, but the GA is pretty low and I can't fit under the car.
If you use ramps, please make sure you're centered on them. The GAGT weighs over 3000 lbs, and if it falls, gravity + steel will triumph over your skull.
If you have a jack, please make sure to use jackstands to help hold up the car - never get under a vehicle just held up with a jack! I've personally had a jack (one of the cheap ones from Walmart) fail halfway through jacking up my car, and it freaked me out. You definately don't want to be underneath a falling car.
For these pictures, I put four stands under the car as I was also rotating tires. You just need the front wheels up. Make sure to chock the rear wheels to keep them from rolling.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300010.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300011.jpg
The areas highlighted in red are safe jacking/jackstand points:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/jackpoints2.jpg
Now look under your car, near the front. There will be a big, flat, L shaped piece of metal. In the crook of the L will be a ribbed piece of metal. This is your oil pan, and the bolt in it is the drain plug. The plug should face the rear of your car:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300013.jpg
Get your oil pan ready. It's about to be messy, so you may want to put on those goggles and lay out some newspaper or rags. Use the ratchet on the bolt. If you've never done it before, the bolt may be on very, very tightly and you may need a breaker bar or impact gun. After you get the bolt finger loose, unscrew the bolt completely.
Remember that the drain hole is angled towards the rear of the car - you want the pan behind the hole, not directly underneath it. Watch all that dirty oil come out! Don't lose the bolt!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300020.jpg
While it's draining, go prep your new oil filter. Fill it with new oil, and lubricate the gasket - simply dip a clean finger into the oil and rub it around the rubber gasket:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300018.jpg
By the time you do this, the oil from the oil pan should be pretty much drained. Put the bolt back in and torque it down. I do not know the torque specs off of the top of my head, unfortunately.
Now, you need to get the filter off. Immediately forward of the oil pan is some sort of crossmember. If you look between that and the engine, you can see the filter:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300016.jpg
If your engine is warm, you probably don't want to stick your arm up there. There's a quasi solution. Immediately in front of the crossmember is a rubberyplastic cover held on by two wing nuts. Simply undo the wing nuts with your fingers and take the plastic off:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300024.jpg
It's not a ton more room, but it is easier to get at the oil filter:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300021.jpg
Twist off the oil filter. Again, it may be on there pretty tight; this is where an oil filter wrench comes in handy. Be careful, some dirty oil will splatter out and the engine is liable to still be warm. Make sure that the oil filter gasket comes off with the filter - if it stays stuck to the engine and you put on the new filter over it, you'll get leaks. Set your old oil filter upside down in your oil drain pan to empty it out, and go get your new filter and put it on. Do it by hand and make it snug, but do not strip the threads.
Make sure your filter is on nice and tight and that the drain plug is in the hole. It's embarassing to have the oil you pour in just come oozing out.
Now, open up your hood and pour in the new oil. Spec is 4.5 quarts, and the funnel helps you from spilling it all over:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v306/RiddleFox/cars/gaoilchange/P5300022.jpg
Put the oil cap back on. Lower the hood. Take out the drain pan from under the car. Put the rubberplastic piece back on (there's some tabs, just line them up and screw in the wingnuts). Put away your tools. Lower your car off of the jackstands if applicable. Start up your car. The oil light may come on for a moment, but it should go out immediately. Don't forget to reset your oil change light; instructions are in your manual or in this thread (http://www.gaownersclub.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=92).
Check for leaks under your car. If none, you are good to go. Congrats!
Take your used oil to an Autozone, Advanced Auto, Checker, Pepboys, etc, to be properly recycled. Do not throw it away in the trash or pour it down a drain.