Ok, I'm a little curious about what others have to say about how they change their oil. Most people drive the car around to get the oil temp hot, stop the car and try to drain the oil before the motor cools off. My guess is that most people pull the plug within 10 minutes of turning the car off.

My brother, has one hand on the wrench and the other on the ignition switch. I mean, he probably breaks the oil plug loose before he turns the car off, then turns the car off and gets that bolt out withing a minute. Tried that a time or two, really didn't like the burning feeling I get from the 190 degree oil.

I have move to the, pull the plug with 30 minutes method and usually leave the plug out for about 15 minutes.

Here is my thing... I think most people try to get the plug out fast because they want to get all of the dirty oil out and they have some fear that if they don't get the oil out fast, some dirt, contaminates, etc., will be left in the motor. Now, I have had magnetic oil plugs in the past, as well as using good mann filters. Why should I still need to burn myself with hot oil when it's time to change it? If a motor is at it's peak operating temperature, wouldn't it be possible harmfull to the pistons, etc. to pull oil away from a 190 degree engine? Wouldn't it be safer for the engine to drain the oil out of a cold engine, or at least a cooler engine? I'm not saying park the car for 3 days before drianing the engine. But I think it might be easier on the motor to drian the oil from a motor that hasn't been run for 30 minutes.

What do you guys think? I'm thinking drain the oil if the car has been driven or run with 4 hours. The oil will still be warm.

 

Wow...nothing like a spammer with a month old membership!!
Well, I'm not quite so **** as some, I guess. I do like the oil warm put not into deep frying my arm. Things I do? I remove the oil fill cap and lay a rag over it. I pull the dipstick, wipe it off and insert it half way. Then I dump the oil. On the 760 and the V8, I have oil coolers so I pull a hose and get a pint out that way. Dump the oil, replace the drain plug, replace the cooler hose and fill 'er up. I figure leaving the fill cap off may help the oil drain more completely. The dipstick up just allows me to get a good read without wiping it off. Meh...the big deal is to actually change the oil rather than how it's done. The 2 most over looked maintenance items on US vehicles are tire pressure and oil changes.

 

Hard to believe the 2 most over looked items. I'm on those 2 all the time. I check my tire pressure monthly.

 

Firestone and Ford lost untold millions with the early Explorers rolling over simply because people were running low tire pressure. There was nothing wrong with the tires, nothing wrong with the Explorers...just people switching from Civics to high profile vehicles w/ 5 kids, a dog and 18-22 psi in the tires...

 

The temperature range the oil is exposed to in most vehicles can be wide, ranging from cold temperatures in the winter before the vehicle is started up to hot operating temperatures when the vehicle is fully warmed up in hot summer weather. A specific oil will have high viscosity when cold and a lower viscosity at the engine's operating temperature.

 

I read your post and it is quite knowledgeable for me. Temperature range effects widely to the oil and it also depends on the viscosity of the oil.It will have a high viscosity at low temperatures and low viscosity at high temperatures.

 

I too like the 30 minute methods as it proves to be more secure than the others. The oil just after the run is quite hot and should have taken the appropriate measures to ensure the safety too at the same time.

 

While I like the 30 minute method, I'm also a fan of the "do it first thing in the morning" method. I figure that having sat all night, the oil has had time to drain out of the top of the engine and settle into the oil pan. I'll jack the car up and let it sit for a few minutes to let the oil collect at the back of the pan, then open the fill cap and pull the drain plug. I go back and forth between these two and have yet to have any sort of oil issue.

 

The concept of changing it right after its been running is because you want to CHANGE your oil, meaning get the crap out. When the engine sits the sediment (aka crap) will settle to the bottom of the pan. Hot oil is thinner than cold oil and you have a better chance of getting most of it out when hot than with cold. I dont think you should to it in the morning...unless you just drove it.

Change it while its hot and right after it has been ran before the sediment settles. Put on gloves, protect yourself and be careful then go for it. Thats my moto and my 2 cents.

 

Good points. I have two hopes when it comes to crap.
1. The oil filter should catch/trap crap.
2. If crap settles on the bottom of the oil pan, is should have a better chance of getting sucked out by the drian.

I could be wrong, just my thoughts.

 

I would hope my filter catches all the crap, and that the crap would settle and go out the drain. haha whether it's hot or slightly hot or cold.