How to Change the Oil in Your Car or Truck

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If you've poured in enough oil, the dipstick should read anywhere from half to a quart over full. The oil filter holds the extra, so don’t worry. Now start the engine, watching to make sure the oil light goes out and/or the oil pressure gauge rises to normal after a few seconds of running. Let the engine run for a minute and check for leaks. Assuming there are none — and there shouldn’t be if you’ve been careful — turn off the engine, wait a minute, and check the oil level. Top off as needed. And that’s it, except for recycling the old oil, which you can usually do for free at your local auto parts store. You’re done … until the next change, that is.

When to Change Your Oil

How often should you change the oil? Basically, follow the automaker's recommendations, but on anything built in the last dozen years or so, an interval of 3,000 to 5,000 miles is appropriate if you're using standard oil.

Synthetic oils, however, can extend the interval to as much as 10,000, even 15,000 miles on some cars. How? Synthetics lack the volatile organic compounds of regular oil, so they don’t break down the way regular oils do, leaving acids and contaminants in their wake that wreck the oil’s lubrication qualities.

Some people choose semi-synthetics, which combine the two types to give longer service life than standard oil, but without the expense of a full synthetic.

So how do you know if your oil’s dirty? As a rule of thumb, the oil should be translucent on the dipstick, except on diesel engines, which tend to blacken the oil quickly.

For a tip on changing oil in small engines, read Do-it-yourself Oil Extractor.

Richard Backus is the editor of Motorcycle Classics, Gas Engine and Farm Collector magazines. In previous lives he’s been a brewer, an auto parts salesman, an import auto mechanic and a garage foreman. When he’s not trying to figure out why his buddy’s 35-year-old Norton won’t run, he keeps busy working on his own old, decrepit machinery … of which he has far too much.

Why do you change your own oil? Share your experiences in the comments section below.

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