everyone has to start somewhere. nobody ever showed me how to change oil. I just did it, and learned from it. at least he is here learning and wanting to change the oil. Im just glad to see a new person that is asking questions about maintaining the car. I want to vomit every time i see a "how much boost can i run for drifting yo" thread. Then a few weeks go by and its "why wont it start?"

 

One note of caution that I didnt see mentioned is that there is a heater hose under the oil filter. You want to make sure no oil gets on it when you remove the filter as apparently it will damage and weaken the hose potentially causing it to burst at an inopportune moment and thereby destroying the engine.

Icemark's hole should certainly reduce the risk of spillage but it might still be wise to put a rag over the heater hose just in case.

 

true, heater hoses are often neglected, and they often leak. you may just wanna replace it.

 

Fill the new filter with fresh oil and smear a little on the rubber gasket.

 

You know, I didn't know **** about any cars when I got my 7. Not even how to change the oil. I learned damn quick though. Most likely because of my friends, but most is what I did. But soon after, I learned so much it wasn't even funny. The 7's really are cars that require a lot of attention to detail. You will learn, oh yes you will.

 

hey thats a good question! no im not flaming you or being scarastic... but its a good question look at the post that it brought out. i didn't know that popin a whole on top of the old oil filter would prevent the spillage and also about getting old on the heater hose would cause it to break down unexpectedly... its the little things we miss out on that make the big difference.

 

Oilpan capacity is 6.2 quarts.

 

+1.....i usually do this before i even drain the oil

why would you fill the new filter with oil? you're just gunna flip it upside down to put on the pedestal. to my knowledge the only filters you should prefill are like those giant diesel oil filters that have like a 3/4 quart capacity. and the reason for doing that is because it would take a while for the new oil to pump to the motor if it needs to fill an empty filter along the way.

also, just to add my 2 cents.....make sure when you take the old filter off that the gasket from the old filter isn't stuck to the pedestal when you put the new one on. this will cause a giant mess in your engine bay. double gaskets are a bitch.

 

The Oil Pan Capacity is only 4.7 US qt.

Look here, page 2-3 -

Lubrication System

You'll see that the Total Oil Capacity for a entire motor, filter and cooler is 6.1 US qt.


And thats a good tip for the hole in the filter.

 

it will prevent a dry start up

 

Thanks for the correction.

Thanks for nothing, Autozone computers.

 

Buy OEM filter, your choice of oil (I prefer synthetic).

Pop hood, unscrew oil fil cap, poke hole in top of filter. Unbolt drain plug, drain oil into pan. When done draining put drain plug back in and tighten it up. Go back up, unscrew filter and chuck it. Lube new filter gasket and screw on filter, pour in like 4 litres of oil (I can't remember how much it takes, it says in the FSM or Haynes manual)...start car, idle til oil pressure builds, shut off, check oil level on dipstick add as needed. Low mark means add a litre, half way is half a litre...very hard to screw up.

I recommend a high quality motor oil, Royal Purple, Redline, Amsoil, Lucas, Mobil 1...your choice. Use OEM or WIX filters, WIX filters blow Fram out of the water, theres a thread on here saying WIX is the best.

 

Wow thread a lot longer than I'd expect. I'll summarize:
0. Buy 5 quarts of oil and a filter, see forum FAQ to choose the right kind of oil. Generally any filter except most FRAM aka Quakerstate aka Penzoil is good. PureOne, OEM aka Nippon, Mobil 1 or AMSoil is better. EDIT: MazdaMike says WIX is the best filter.
1. Warm up engine.
2. Jack up car.
3. Place pan under drain plug, remove drain plug. Be careful as the oil will be hot.
4. Puncture old oil filter, wait a little for oil to drain out. Remove. Use your finger to spread oil on seal of new oil filter. Install, tightening by hand only.
5. Wait for oil to fully drain. Replace drain plug, preferably using a new crush washer. You can buy a hundred for like $3. Tighten drain plug to about 25 ft-lbs. of torque (i.e., kinda snug, but not crazy).
6. Lower car.
7. Add 4 quarts of oil. Wait a bit, check oil level, add however much you need. Check level again after driving a bit.

 

QFT!

Spec.

 

no one showed me anything about cars. i honestly started by reading auto repairs for dummies and it helped with basic stuff like an oil change or component identification.

 

#1 Check the dipstick... if it is a golden color don't change the oil yet!!!!
To assure the longevity of your engine, you must wait until a thick black sludge developes on the dipstick. This will aid in coating the internals of the rotary which in return will prevent damage to the engine.
Don't worry about getting a Hayne's manual, you can learn everything you need to know from members like me and helpful posts like the one here.

 

 

When the price of second gens and parts skyrocket i dont want to hear any complaining from you

 

where can you get these from?

 

Um, why use old oil for the filter?

Dip your finger in one of the new bottles of oil and rub it around the seal... unless your scared of touching oil rofl.

 

i've been told by others on this forum that i am too mean and judgemental at times. so this is my attempt at being nice........"g-good luck!". haha, j/k man. but really, i looked at this thread to get a good laugh out of what others might say, but im glad i looked cuz that "hole in the top of the filter" tip is GENIUS!!!! lets talk more about that, maybe do a write-up. haha. really tho, excellent idea. lots of people are gonna save a ton of money on engine degreaser now

 

::Safety precaution::

Use a sturdy hydrolic floor jack and place it under the front cross member (big black bar under the engine going across the front of the car). Jack it up enough to stick a jack stand on both sides of the car. Place the jack stands under the notches on the frame rails under the front seats area (you'll see the 2 big bars going all the way down the center of the car.

With that aside...

You only need to let the engine idle for 2-3 minutes to circulate all the oil around.

Place a sheet of cardboard under the car to protect the driveway from spillage and place an oil pan that can hold at least 6 quarts of oil under the engine. Crawl under there and unscrew the drain bolt. The size varies from car to car as they need to be replaced sometime. Mine have been 14mm, 16mm, and 17mm. You may need a breaker bar or a wrench and a little hammer if it has been awhile since the last change.

Poke a hole in the filter top with a screw driver and hammer. Let it all drain out for 10 minutes or so. When the oil is no longer dripping clean the drain bolt off with a rag (to remove debris from the threads) put the bolt back onto the oil pan. Tighten it fairly well, but not so tight it will strip the bolt.

Remove the old oil filter. Sometimes they can be stuck so you may have to get creative with grippy gloves or something. Dip your finger in oil (new or old will work...) and run it around the rim of the new filters seal letting it soak in around the entire seal. Screw the filter on as tight as you can get it by hand (you'll know when to stop).

Now fill the engine with about 5 quarts of oil. Clean the dipstick off with a rag and check the level on the dipstick. You want it right at the FULL mark. Add oil if necessary.

Your ready to drive!





Most people on here like to run Castrol GTX 20w50 oil.

 

Castrol Syntec Blend 10-50
Castrol GTX 20-50

 

It's also been recommended to me by a few rotor heads not to use high mileage oil. Too much sulfur I believe?

 

Funny, I use 10w30 like the factory service manual tells me to.