5 ms·

Everyone should learn how to change the oil in their car, though.

by jff 13y ago

glhaynes 13y ago
I don't see why.
- saltyknuckles 13y ago
  It's cheaper and fun. Just unscrew the bolt on the oil pan underneath the car. Drain. Change screw on filter. Close bolt. Add new oil (usually 4 quarts for a 4 cylinder). Don't dump oil on the road or grass but I'm pretty sure I didn't have to mention that.
  - 8ig8 13y ago
    It's not that much fun and, if you value your time, it's not cheaper. Factor in the time to buy the oil and the new filter. The time to clean up the funnel and pan. The time to properly dispose of the waste oil. Consider the busted knuckles trying to open the drain. Consider the stripped drain plug. My neighborhood shop charges about $30. They use some kind of suction device that I think does a better job of getting the gunk out than gravity does anyway.
    - saltyknuckles 13y ago
      I pay 90$ for 5 quarts of synthetic oil. Everyone is different.
  - Anechoic 13y ago
    Just unscrew the bolt on the oil pan underneath the car Getting to that point on many cars (I'm looking at you VW/Audi) can involve many more steps - on my last car, before you can even get to the oil pan, you have to remove the belly pan which involves three different types of fasteners, 6 of which are hard to reach unless you have a 90-degree screw driver (which I do). Getting to the oil filter requires removing the coolant tank (and disconnecting the coolant tank sensor) and scraping your knuckles while trying to position the filter wrench. From all accounts, the procedure looks to be worse on my Jetta. While I am someone that loves to DIY auto maintenance, I can perfectly understand the decision to let someone else handle it.
    - saltyknuckles 13y ago
      I have a VW its a pain in the ass to get to things. I was aiming that comment towards Japanese and American car owners lol
- jlgreco 13y ago
  Because it is trivial to do, and regularly required? Would you say they don't need to know how to change a tire too? Add more windshield fluid? Wash their windows by hand? Open their glovebox?
  - glhaynes 13y ago
    Being able to change a tire is a great skill to have because it may be very beneficial for safety. The rest are blatantly obvious things that nobody has to learn nor devote time to doing while they could be doing something else. Well, except maybe for adding windshield fluid… but they do that for me when they change my oil. :)
    - jlgreco 13y ago
      I suppose we have different perspectives on what the general public is capable of. To me, changing your oil yourself is somewhere on par with being able to connect to wifi yourself. Sure, you'll often just get other people to do it for you when you are having other more extensive work done on the car, but having to get somebody to do it for you seems sort of like having to call "Geek Squad" to connect to your home wifi. Far more prevalent than you would hope or expect.
      - glhaynes 13y ago
        I suppose we have different perspectives on what the general public is capable of. Who's talking about capability? I'm sure the vast majority of people are capable of it. Likewise, I'm sure you're capable of performing lots of the services you pay for. Nevertheless, we all decide differently which things we want to do ourselves and which things we like specialists to do for us.
        jlgreco 13y ago
        Who isn't talking about capability? The claim was "Everyone should learn how to change the oil in their car, though.", not "Everyone should change the oil in their car, though." The inability to change your oil is frightening on the same level as the inability to connect yourself to wifi. I don't give a shit if you get your oil changed at the shop, or if your work computer automagically connects to corporate wifi out of the box, but you should be able to do either yourself.
8ig8 13y ago
Maybe change a tire, but I see no good reason _everyone_ needs to know how to change their oil.
- rm445 13y ago
  It's a US thing. They change their oil every 3,000 miles whether it needs it or not (it doesn't).

Everyone should learn how to change the oil in their car, though.

by jff 13y ago

Everyone should learn how to change the oil in their car, though.

glhaynes 13y ago

I don't see why.

saltyknuckles 13y ago
It's cheaper and fun. Just unscrew the bolt on the oil pan underneath the car. Drain. Change screw on filter. Close bolt. Add new oil (usually 4 quarts for a 4 cylinder). Don't dump oil on the road or grass but I'm pretty sure I didn't have to mention that.
- 8ig8 13y ago
  It's not that much fun and, if you value your time, it's not cheaper. Factor in the time to buy the oil and the new filter. The time to clean up the funnel and pan. The time to properly dispose of the waste oil. Consider the busted knuckles trying to open the drain. Consider the stripped drain plug. My neighborhood shop charges about $30. They use some kind of suction device that I think does a better job of getting the gunk out than gravity does anyway.
  - saltyknuckles 13y ago
    I pay 90$ for 5 quarts of synthetic oil. Everyone is different.
- Anechoic 13y ago
  Just unscrew the bolt on the oil pan underneath the car Getting to that point on many cars (I'm looking at you VW/Audi) can involve many more steps - on my last car, before you can even get to the oil pan, you have to remove the belly pan which involves three different types of fasteners, 6 of which are hard to reach unless you have a 90-degree screw driver (which I do). Getting to the oil filter requires removing the coolant tank (and disconnecting the coolant tank sensor) and scraping your knuckles while trying to position the filter wrench. From all accounts, the procedure looks to be worse on my Jetta. While I am someone that loves to DIY auto maintenance, I can perfectly understand the decision to let someone else handle it.
  - saltyknuckles 13y ago
    I have a VW its a pain in the ass to get to things. I was aiming that comment towards Japanese and American car owners lol
jlgreco 13y ago
Because it is trivial to do, and regularly required? Would you say they don't need to know how to change a tire too? Add more windshield fluid? Wash their windows by hand? Open their glovebox?
- glhaynes 13y ago
  Being able to change a tire is a great skill to have because it may be very beneficial for safety. The rest are blatantly obvious things that nobody has to learn nor devote time to doing while they could be doing something else. Well, except maybe for adding windshield fluid… but they do that for me when they change my oil. :)
  - jlgreco 13y ago
    I suppose we have different perspectives on what the general public is capable of. To me, changing your oil yourself is somewhere on par with being able to connect to wifi yourself. Sure, you'll often just get other people to do it for you when you are having other more extensive work done on the car, but having to get somebody to do it for you seems sort of like having to call "Geek Squad" to connect to your home wifi. Far more prevalent than you would hope or expect.
    - glhaynes 13y ago
      I suppose we have different perspectives on what the general public is capable of. Who's talking about capability? I'm sure the vast majority of people are capable of it. Likewise, I'm sure you're capable of performing lots of the services you pay for. Nevertheless, we all decide differently which things we want to do ourselves and which things we like specialists to do for us.
      - jlgreco 13y ago
        Who isn't talking about capability? The claim was "Everyone should learn how to change the oil in their car, though.", not "Everyone should change the oil in their car, though." The inability to change your oil is frightening on the same level as the inability to connect yourself to wifi. I don't give a shit if you get your oil changed at the shop, or if your work computer automagically connects to corporate wifi out of the box, but you should be able to do either yourself.

8ig8 13y ago

Maybe change a tire, but I see no good reason _everyone_ needs to know how to change their oil.

rm445 13y ago
It's a US thing. They change their oil every 3,000 miles whether it needs it or not (it doesn't).