It has become obvious to me that more and more men consider themselves incapable of working on their cars. The constant refrain I hear when a friend visits me in my garage is “How do you know how do this stuff? I wouldn’t even know where to start.” This comes as if I have some advanced engineering degree or have been building racing engines from raw ore since I was seven rather than being the hack hobbyist mechanic that I am. The truth is I was not taught by my father how do this, or have been doing it for long. Pretty much every project I embark on is new to me and teaches me something. Anyone can do a custom Porsche backdate or outfit a motorcycle for off-roading, you just have to start by picking up a wrench, watching some YouTube videos, and being willing to be wrong or break things. And it all starts with learning how to do a DIY oil change.
We’ve teamed up with AutoZone to walk you through how to do an oil change on literally any production vehicle (I’m daring you to point out some obscure Citroen on our Facebook page, and yes I’m aware of Tesla)
When do to an Oil Change:
The common rule of thumb is to change your oil every 3 months or 3000, whichever comes first. For most modern cars, this is simply no longer true. Many cars produced since 2000 can go 7000 miles or more without a change thanks to synthetic oils. Check your cars manual or simply google when your car’s scheduled oil changes are, but you can’t go wrong assuming 3 months and doing it early.
What you’ll need:
How:
Here the process is always the same. Simply –
Why:
Doing your own oil change is the first step towards mechanical proficiency. Yes, it will likely cost you the same amount of money and time as it would to just take your car in to a oil change stand, but the sense of accomplishment, bragging rights, and empowerment are certainly not the same. There are generally only two reasons I hear for not tackling an oil change yourself – lack of desire and fear. While I can’t help with the first one, the latter should certainly be solved by the list above.
To further help nudge you along, AutoZone is hooking up FactoryTwoFour readers with a sweet coupon to save you some cash on this project, as well as giving away a $100 gift card!
Coupon:
$7 off a purchase of $30
Now until April 29th
Just head to http://auto.zone/btGl2
Gift Card Giveaway:
Head over to our Facebook page to enter to win!
This post is brought to you by AutoZone; the opinions are all mine.
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