Changing your own oil

[~MRVIBE2006~]

Ok, after reading and seeing how easy it is to change the oil in the Vibe, I thought "Why not, give it a shot." The drain plug and the oil filter are in obvious places but I have just one question. Is there a manual out there to tell you where to get to all the grease fittings? I mean, if I'm going to do it, I might as well do it right. I was planning to use Mobil 1 and a K/N oil filter. What about lube? Is there a lube out there that is better than the others or is a generic Walmart brand ok? I know I will be money ahead by doing this but just want to make sure I do it right the first time.

[Mavrik]

I use mobil 1 5w30 synthetic oil.there are no grease fittings. Everything is factory packed and sealed.

[djb383]

M1 0W-30 here, and like Mav says, no fittings, all factory sealed.

[zionzr2]

no one sells Mobil 1 0w-30 arround here any more. I untill now used it durrirng the winter months and use 5w30 the rest of the year.

[djb383]

Yeah, that's a bummer, I have to call around a bit to find who has it. No problem finding 0W-20 for our Saturn Vue (Honda engine), go figure.

[joatmon]

Quote, originally posted by ~MRVIBE2006~ » just want to make sure I do it right the first time.no matter who does it or how many times you have done it, double check, and check again the next day, the next week, etc to look for leaks, make sure the oil level is correct, stuff like that, simple things to do, but maybe the time you don't double check the person who changed the oil (even if that is you) might be the time that checking would save the engine. Don't be intimidated, just follow up and double check.

[KNINE]

Does the Vibe has a Low Oil warning light?

[zionzr2]

Quote, originally posted by K-NINE »Does the Vibe has a Low Oil warning light? Not really IT has a Oil Warning light. mostly related to oil pressure. Usually if this light comes on when things have gone to far and serious damage may have already occured. thats why its recomedned to check oil level everytime you fill your gas tank. Most of time you should be fine, but it helps identify issues before they do cause any damage.

[~MRVIBE2006~]

I just don't understand that there isnt any grease fittings to worry about when you change your oil. Am I wrong or IS there grease fittings to worry about? Just want to make sure to do it right and not forget anything.

[ColonelPanic]

Nope, there are no grease fittings anywhere to be found. You don't have to worry about greasing anything. GM started this back in the early 90's I think it was, called it "lubed for life suspension." Nowadays you'd be hard pressed to find actual grease fittings on a car...On the Vibe, you just need to lube the parking brake cable, that's it.

[~MRVIBE2006~]

So I could change my oil with full synthetic (Mobil 1 and a K/N filter) for around $32 bucks or so? Hmmmm....sounds like someone is going to change their own oil from now on. Just curious, how much oil does the Vibe hold?

[joatmon]

Quote, originally posted by ~MRVIBE2006~ »So I could change my oil with full synthetic (Mobil 1 and a K/N filter) for around $32 bucks or so? Hmmmm....sounds like someone is going to change their own oil from now on. Just curious, how much oil does the Vibe hold?I use castrol gtx 5w30 and purolator pureone filter, costs me about $15/change. capacity is in the owners manual, I have a base, and use a gallon.

[zionzr2]

Quote, originally posted by ~MRVIBE2006~ »So I could change my oil with full synthetic (Mobil 1 and a K/N filter) for around $32 bucks or so? Hmmmm....sounds like someone is going to change their own oil from now on. Just curious, how much oil does the Vibe hold?Yep! Mine holds exactly 4 quarts! the GTs hold slightly more but less than 5.

[kcorona]

3.9 qts. for the 1zz4.7 qts. for the 2zzat least for 03 & 04s

[Cougar Vibe]

There haven't been serviceable grease fittings on a car since the early 80's...I don't know why these crooked lube shops continue to advertise it as part of their oil change package.If you want to use Mobil 1, that's fine...but IMO it's not worth the $23/jug they're selling it for now that it consists of Group III base stocks. When it was a full synthetic (PAO), it was a great oil...up there with Amsoil or Castrol 0W30 (German made). Now it's just overpriced and you can get the same Group III protection for $18 with Pennzoil Platinum or even 5W30 Castrol Syntech (Wallyworld).Also, you can run an oversized Pure One filter (PL14477) and make that an even 4qt oil change. They're the same price as the smaller PL14476. I'd skip the K&N filter...for the money, there are better options (Amsoil, Mobil 1...even the cheaper Pure One & Wix filters have better Beta ratios than the K&N).BTW: If you under warranty and doing the 3 month/3K thing, you could do $6.50 oil changes (4qts Chevron Supreme 5w30 & a SuperTech filter) and see the same results as that $32 oil change. The only reason to use full synthetics and high-end oil filters is if you're doing extended OCI's. Otherwise, you're just dumping money down the drain and your car isn't getting any real benefit (in terms of wear, gas mileage, start-up damage, or performance). The quality of the additive packs and TBN ability of almost every major oil brand is so high these days that the advantages of synthetics are moot...unless you do extended OCI's.

[djb383]

But you can't get the 0W-XX in anything but synthetic, and 0W-XX provides far better engine wear protection when you need it most, at cold start-ups.

[Cougar Vibe]

Unless you live in Canada or the most northern extremities of the United States, 0W20/30 is overkill. It may be a bit better for cold weather start-ups, but the difference in pour points between 0W and 5W PAO's are pretty marginal (at least in the VOA's I've seen at BITOG). You'd have to be in a really cold location for the difference between those synthetic weights to effect start-up wear. IMO, it would be better for your engine and far more economical to put an aftermarket oil sump heater on your Vibe and run a high quality 5W30 dino oil (ie, GTX). 0W30 German/Belgian Castrol Syntech is not cheap...not to mention, not easy to find.

[djb383]

Yeah, I thought the same way as you until I joined BITOG and was enlightened by the writings of Dr. Haas. 0W-XX is too thick but it's as thin as they currently make.http://63.240.161.99/motoroil/101.html

[Cougar Vibe]

I'm not exactly a big Haas fan on BITOG...he tends to fall into the "blowhard" category, IMO. Anytime these "ultra successful" types...with mutliple PhD's or a PhD and an MD...who own Bentleys, Lambo's, multiple Porsches...well, lets just remember it's the internet and everybody is just super.He might have some correct arguments about 0w30 oils, but as you are aware, BITOG moves in a herd when something is held as "the gospel" (ie, Fram). Very few people over there are using those oils, so I have to think that the jury is still out with regards to what this Haas guy is putting forth as fact.

[djb383]

I respect your opinion but the facts are, over the years, automotive manufacturers have required lighter motor oils to be used in their engines, not heavier oils and this goes right along with what Dr. Haas has been testing and writing about for a while now. Most of us had never heard of 5W-20 until Ford and Honda started using it in 2001 (and now Chrysler). I think in the next 5 years 0W-XX will become more common and available as more refiners gear-up to produce it, especially if 0W-XX becomes available in dino oil. Again, the trend is toward lighter motor oils and the way the good doctor explains it seems logical, IMO, based upon his published findings.

[Cougar Vibe]

The reason that Ford and Honda went to 5w20 was to meet CAFE targets and increase gas mileage. I don't think any car manufacturer in the coldest climates of Canada or the U.S. send vehicles out with 0w20/30 oils. Now honestly, it's not in their best interests for engines to have long lifespans; they only need an engine to function through the warranty (which amazingly enough used to be successfully done with 10w30/40). It seems that people are wasting a lot of money on synthetics for vehicles on short OCI's and for which they will trade or sell before they reach 100K miles. BTW: I would hope that an MD like Haas wouldn't be using the term "Dr." in public unless it references the medical universe. It's sort of ethical issue if he's calling himself "Dr. Haas" when talking about automotive lubricants. BTW: I couldn't find any reference to him being a PhD nor could I find links to any published papers in Tier I-III journals on NexisLexis or Google Ed. I'm not saying he isn't a bright individual with good opinions and data to back it up, but I don't give him a free pass just because he's an MD or donates money to BITOG.

[joatmon]

The last vehicle I had that took 5w30 had 250K miles on it when it was totalled against a deer, and even then still had no significant eninge wear related issues. The non-standard oil weights might be better, I don't know, but I certainly wouldn't use them if I still had a warranty, and I don't see how they can be better enough to justify the extra cost.. Assuming no maintenance negligence, I think almost everybody here will sell, trade, or total their Vibe long before the difference between 0w20 and 5w30 would cause any noticeable difference in engine wear. But I am only at 125K miles on this engine, still way too soon to see if my choice of using the manufacturer's recommended oil weight will cause premature engine failure.

[~MRVIBE2006~]

So I guess the consensus looks like its a matter of personal choice on changing the oil, interval of changing the oil, and the brand of oil and filter. t also looks like that using a high quality Dino oil (GTX, et. al.) is also just as good. I have used GTX in the past and have been very satisfied with the results. Is their a connection between synthetic oil and better gas milage? Also, are there any other "oversized" oil filters out there other than the Pure One? That is something that I never thought of. Now that I know there are no greaseable fittings, that's one less thing to worry about. Will have to do a little more research on oils and filters and make my decision then. Going to start changing my own oil after 10,000 miles. Thanks for all the responses.

[Cougar Vibe]

Any of the filters (Pure One, Premium Plus, Napa Gold/Select, Wix, Amsoil, Toyota/Denso OEM, etc.) that correspond to the 2ZZFE engine will work fine on the 1ZZFE engine. My Vibe has only had a couple of the shorter filters on it, and one of those was from the factory. Mainly they've been the longer PL14477 (Pure One) or Toyota/Denso 90915-YZZF1 filters...If in doubt, just ask the parts counter guy where you buy filters for the one that corresponds to the 2ZZFE engine. BTW: I've heard that Wix only makes one filter for the 1.8l Corolla/Matrix/Vibe engines. Can anyone confirm that? I'm thinking of trying one out...

[joatmon]

Quote, originally posted by Cougar Vibe »BTW: I've heard that Wix only makes one filter for the 1.8l Corolla/Matrix/Vibe engines. Can anyone confirm that? I'm thinking of trying one out...http://www.wixfilters.com/filt...=2003 says 51394 for 1ZZ, 51396 for 2ZZ

[~MRVIBE2006~]

Now that I have decided to do my own oil change at 10,000 miles, I still have a couple of questions. 1. Do you have to use some kind of "engine flush" if and when you change to synthetic oil (decided to go with either Mobil 1 or Castrol Syntech)?2. I have decided to go with the Pure One oil filter (part #PL14477, part number for the Vibe GT). Is there an advantage to using this oversized oil filter or should I stick with the standard filter?

[cmhj2000]

Using Mobil one 5W-30 with the pure one GT filter #PL14477.Next oil change will be with the Amsoil filter and Amsoil 0W-30.No grease fittings and no engine flushing is needed when changing over to synthetics.Many, including my self, suggest to not do a full mileage extension on the first synthetic oil fill due to oil residual from the previous dino oil.

[~MRVIBE2006~]

Ok, is there any relationship between synthetic oil and better gas milage? I know I saw someone talk about it in here but forgot where to look.

[~MRVIBE2006~]

Ok, just saw a sale on Mobil one syntheic oil for $19.88 a gallon. Is this a good deal? If so, I think I might go buy me a few jugs of it, along with the corresponding number of Pure One oil filters.

[kcorona]

No proven relationship between syn vs. dino and gas mileage. 19.88/gal is a pretty good price for Mobil 1.

[cmhj2000]

There is a minor difference between mileage with dino versus synthetic oil. However, in many cases the difference is very minor if even noticeable.Much has to do with air/road temperature, long versus short trips etc.In my case my driving is almost all highway and usually in warmer weather. I've seen at best .5 MPG gains. IOW the difference seen, if any really did exist, isn't enough to make one switch to synthetic.However, my wife does a lot of short trip driving, 5-10miles. In her case nearly 1.5 MPG was gained. Keep in mind she was using 5W-30. I switched her car to 5W-20.I've seen cases where after a car has been well broken in gains of nearly 8% were obtained after 2 changes with synthetic. Gains of this magnitude are usually seen in winter, plus most of the driving is short trips and where a heavier than needed oil was initially used.So the bottom line is yes, gains can be made by switching to synthetic but don't expect miracle numbers as there are many variables to take into consideration.

[VivaVibe]

So what's the secret to removing the drain plug on the oil pan? It doesn't want to budge at all. Does it loosen counter-clockwise as most American bolts? or is it opposite with the Toyota engine? Trying to get this oil change done today. Can anyone help?

[kevera]

It's the normal way.Lefty loosey,righty tighty.lol.It will be on real tight,put some muscle on it.

[VivaVibe]

Thanks Kevera. I did manage to drain the oil pan. However, I can't get the old oil filter off. The space is too narrow for a typical filter wrench to swing freely. So, I purchased the kind that goes on the end of the filter and works with a socket. See pix. It fits the PureOne filter I bought, but is slightly too big for the old one; and I can't find a smaller one. The old filter is a Firestone TF-4477; perhaps I have to go to a Firestone shop? Any suggestions?

Attached files

[Atomb]

The first time i had to take off my oil filter is was on REALLY tight (from the dealership). I have one of those plastic caps which uses the socket wrench also and it just wasn't working.I have a pair of vice grips with the large curved jaws...clamped around the filter and managed to get it off that way.Since then i've had no issues as i'm the one putting it on!

[djb383]

Put a couple of wraps of tape on the filter and this will make it slightly larger in diameter to fit tighter in the filter end wrench.

[VivaVibe]

Quote, originally posted by cmhj2000 »Using Mobil-1 5W-30 with the Pure One GT filter #PL14477.This is the combo I'm using, and I'm satisfied it is a good choice. Just did a oil and filter change and the color was only slightly darker after unintentionally going 9,000 miles. I missed the normal change interval because of an unexpected 2,500 mile trip. Those extra miles were all interstate, so I don't think it will be an issue. I don't intend to go that long between changes.