How to Change Your Own Oil and Save a Bunch of Cash

Some quick-lube places charge $20 to change your vehicle's oil. Most of the time, though, your oil change bill will be $30 or more.

You can do the same thing for usually less than $10.

While it helps to be a little handy with tools, you don't have to be. Changing your own oil is simple. And, since time is money, the good news is you don't have to wait around the quick lube store while you wait for the lube techs to finish 12 other cars ahead of you.

To change your oil, this is really all you need:

4 quarts oil (or 5, depending on your vehicle's specifications)
1 oil filter (again, check your vehicle's specifications)
1 set of ramps
1 socket wrench set
1 broad container that can hold at least 2 gallons

And here's what you need to do:

Warm the car up. If your car hasn't been driven in a couple hours, drive it around the block once or twice. This will heat the oil and allow your oil to drain better.

Drive on ramp. You may want someone to stand in front of you to guide you onto the ramps and signal you to stop. Put the emergency brake on. Be sure to also put bricks or blocks or some other objects behind your rear tires to prevent rolling.

The top holes. Now that your vehicle is off and parked at an angle, pop the hood and keep it open with the brace that's provided (usually folded flat on top of the radiator). Now open the oil cap - this allows air to get into the case, thus allowing oil to drain right. Keep in mind that the oil cap is different from the dip stick. If you've never looked under your hood, look for the cap that has an outline of an oil can on it.

The bottom holes. Now lay on your back and move until you can see the oil pan. It will look kind of like a metal box. Now locate the drain plug. In some vehicles, the drain plug is on the bottom, while on other cars it's low on the back side. Place your drain container under the drain plug. Now find the right size socket wrench and slowly unscrew the drain plug. Once the plug is out, re-position the drain container to catch all of the oil.

Oil filter. Once all of the oil is drained into your container, it's time to change the oil filter. If you're lucky, you'll be able to see - and reach - the oil filter while you're still on your back. In some models, however, you'll need to reach it from above. Place the drain container under the oil filter and unscrew it slowly - there will be a bit of oil coming out. Now invert the used oil filter and set it in your oil drain container.

Replace the oil filter. Open the box to your new oil filter. You'll notice a rubber "O-ring." Remove the rubber, dip it in the spent oil, and place it back on the oil filter. This will help create a better seal when you install the oil filter. Now, it's just a matter of screwing the oil filter back on. You'll want to make sure it's tight with out being overly tight. In other words, don't screw it on as hard as you can.

Replace the drain plug. Like the oil filter, you'll want to screw the drain plug on tight - but not overly tight. Strip the threads on the the oil pan or the drain plug and you're in for a world of hurt, money-wise. And that would defeat the whole purpose of doing it yourself.

New oil goes in. Open the containers of oil and pour them into the open hole that was covered by the oil cap. Let each container the oil drain for a few moments to ensure you've got as much of the oil out of them as possible. Once you've emptied the number of quarts your vehicle manufacturer recommends, replace the oil cap.

You're done. Close the hood, take the blocks away from behind the back tires and back your vehicle off the ramps. You're done.

Now, you may think changing your own oil is overly complicated, but it isn't. You may also think that changing your own oil will take a long time, but it won't. When you change your own oil, it'll probably take you only 15 minutes or so.

Now lets look at the time vs. money saved comparison:

If a quick lube changes your oil for $20 and you can do it yourself for $10, you've saved $10.

It takes 15 minutes to change your own oil.

Those 15 minutes saved you $10.

Given there are four 15-minute blocks in an hour, you have saved at a rate of $40 per hour, or $83,200 per year!

That's not a bad chunk of change!