Oil Change
Here is some info on my first oil change fiasco.
Surfing the web and NAM everybody talking about how easy it is to change your oil. Tops 10-15 minutes in and out of your shop or some quick lube places. That all might be all fun and games, but getting the correct oil filter is a bit of a challenge. In between the '07 and '08 model year substantial changes have occured in the design of the oil filtration system. Wix, Purelator, Bosch and my least favorite off all Fram oil filters may be purchased at your local parts store or garage for all model years leading up too 2007. In the part books the 2007 model year lists a 1600cc turbocharged engine that is compatible with these filters.
The 2008 model year has a completely different filter. The filter is about 0.5" smaller diameter and also features a better filter element design. One can not install the older model oil filters because they do not fit in the oil filter cap housing that tops off the oil filter port. Trust me I tried. Even after wedging the filter into the cap there is not enough ample room for the oil to exit the filter. So what can one do for getting this special oil filter? After searching the web and not purchasing the filter from the dealership I found the correct filter at
www.minimania.com. Basically the money that you would spend on a single filter at the dealership you can get two filters made to spec. from minimania right to your front door.
Then there is a topic of what oil to use. Mini recommends using Castrol 5W-30 or 5W-40 weight oil. Mobil makes just as good of a product in the same weight. Now what about a better oil. Both these manufactures have 0W-30 and 0W-40 weight oils. The 0W category of oils give you better performance in the winter time but i recommend this oil mainly for daily stop and go traffic and "aggressive" driving condition. The price range of these oils vary between 5 and 7 dollars but it is defenitly money well spent. If you want to go to the creme of the crop of oils there is AmsOil which will cost you about 10-12 dollars a quart.
Now on how often should you change your oil. When I first bought my mini in late March the dealership was telling me that I should not worry about changing my oil for a year and then they would change it. After talking to several mechanics in my area that deal with high performance import cars, they told me that this was not the right oil change interval. Do to excessive carbon build up in the crank case and valve train, which occurs with any kind of oil, especially these days with Ethynol being added to our gasoline, severe engine damage can happen if the oil is not changed regularly. I mean we are talking about piston, rings and cylinder heads going bad. Not a cheep fix.
So to insure that you are preventing hard core ware on your motor it is vital that you change the oil ever 3000-5000 miles depending on how much stop and go and "aggressive" driving you do.
The tools for the oil change are rather simple.
- A set of car ramps to access the oil pan plug
- A 8mm hex key to unbolt the oil pan
- A 27mm socket and ratchet with a short extension for unscrewing the oil filter resevoir cap.
- A 8mm socket for unbolting the cooling resevior to acces the oil filter resevoir cap.
- And of course a pan to catch the oil.
After warming up the engine to operating temperature, let it cool down for 5 minutes. Then Loosen the coolant resevoir located at the right hand side of the radiator. Directly underneath it is the oil filter compartment. A black cap with a 27mm bolt casted ontop of it. This is made out of plastic so be very careful unscrewing it. Also the torque specs on how to tighten the cap is marked on it. After loosening the cap wait a couple of seconds so that the oil can recede out of the compartment.
then remove the filter.
Next loosen the drain plug from the oil pan. Loosen it enough so that there is a steady stream of oil comming out. Once this streem deminishes you may remove the bold. I also like the pull out the dip stick and top filler cap so I remember to fill oil back into the motor.
Tighter up the drain plug, clean the oil filter compartment and cap with a lint free cloth and reinstall the oil filter and tighten the cap to the correct torque specs.
Fill the correct about, (quantity is listed in owners manual),of oil into the filler cap located on the top of the Valve cover. Lower your car onto level ground and measure the oil level. It might be low at first but once all the oil is circulating throughout the motor it will measure up to the top mark of the dip stick.
Warm the engine up and check for any leaks, and check the oil level again.
Well I hope some of this info was helpfull,
Happy Motoring
