X66
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I am writing this article after I wrote the last article on "Things you need to know about car insurance" & "Things you need to know about car servicing".
With the recent high COE prices, I am definitely hanging on my car till it is 10 years old. Gone were the good old days where Singapore drivers would change their vehicles when their cars reach 5 years old. Hence, it is important to protect my car engine to ensure my car last till the 10th year.
Car servicing is usually done every 10,000 km. However, my engine starts to be "nosier and not so smooth" after 5000 to 6000km. Changing engine oil would usually solve the problem but it will be too earlier and costly to get the car service before the 10,000 km is up. Hence, I have decided to DIY change my engine oil when it reaches 5,000km. I started doing this 2 years ago and help a few close friend change their engine oil too. They suggest to me that I should share how I do it and hopefully it can be useful to you.
There are 3 items needed for changing engine oil. Engine oil, the oil extractor and a small empty mineral water bottle.
I use this full synthetic engine oil from Giant supermarket because it is affordable. You are free to use the engine oil of your choice. There are online forums stating that this is a low quality engine oil and rumoured that its viscosity drop after 7000 km. I have no intention of using this for more than 5000 km. In fact, I have been changing engine oil with these few models: Jazz, Fits, Accord, Mazda 3, Volvo S60 (8 years old) and Mercedes CLC180 (3 years old).
Do note that I do not get commission for stating this brand and this guide is not meant for you to skip car servicing!!!
Most cars that are less than 1600cc will use less than 4 litre of engine oil and hence 1 bottle is than enough for most cases. For car more than 1600cc, they usually use more than 4 litres and hence you should be getting 2 bottles. Check your car manual, mechanic or online for the engine oil needed for your vehicle.
This oil extractor is to suck out the dirty engine oil from your engine. It can be purchase at some hardware store near Lavender for around S$100.
Let's get our hands dirty by changing engine oil!
1) Let you car cool down for 20 minutes if you have just started the car engine. Locate the dip stick (yellow in the picture) for checking engine oil level and remove it.
2) Set up the oil extractor with one end pushing into the dip stick. Do note that you should not push the whole suction pipe into the engine. You should measure the pipe with the dip stick and this would give you an indication of how much to push the suction pipe in.
3) Take note of the amount of engine oil pump out. This would give you an indiction of how much new engine oil you should put in. This would also gives you an indiction if you engine "eat black oil" especially if you last put in 4 litres but only pumps out slightly above 3 litres in the picture. (Note: every ring/section is 1 litre)
4) Locate the engine cap and unscrew it to open. This cap usually has an oil logo on it.
With the recent high COE prices, I am definitely hanging on my car till it is 10 years old. Gone were the good old days where Singapore drivers would change their vehicles when their cars reach 5 years old. Hence, it is important to protect my car engine to ensure my car last till the 10th year.
Car servicing is usually done every 10,000 km. However, my engine starts to be "nosier and not so smooth" after 5000 to 6000km. Changing engine oil would usually solve the problem but it will be too earlier and costly to get the car service before the 10,000 km is up. Hence, I have decided to DIY change my engine oil when it reaches 5,000km. I started doing this 2 years ago and help a few close friend change their engine oil too. They suggest to me that I should share how I do it and hopefully it can be useful to you.
There are 3 items needed for changing engine oil. Engine oil, the oil extractor and a small empty mineral water bottle.
I use this full synthetic engine oil from Giant supermarket because it is affordable. You are free to use the engine oil of your choice. There are online forums stating that this is a low quality engine oil and rumoured that its viscosity drop after 7000 km. I have no intention of using this for more than 5000 km. In fact, I have been changing engine oil with these few models: Jazz, Fits, Accord, Mazda 3, Volvo S60 (8 years old) and Mercedes CLC180 (3 years old).
Do note that I do not get commission for stating this brand and this guide is not meant for you to skip car servicing!!!
Most cars that are less than 1600cc will use less than 4 litre of engine oil and hence 1 bottle is than enough for most cases. For car more than 1600cc, they usually use more than 4 litres and hence you should be getting 2 bottles. Check your car manual, mechanic or online for the engine oil needed for your vehicle.
This oil extractor is to suck out the dirty engine oil from your engine. It can be purchase at some hardware store near Lavender for around S$100.
Let's get our hands dirty by changing engine oil!
1) Let you car cool down for 20 minutes if you have just started the car engine. Locate the dip stick (yellow in the picture) for checking engine oil level and remove it.
2) Set up the oil extractor with one end pushing into the dip stick. Do note that you should not push the whole suction pipe into the engine. You should measure the pipe with the dip stick and this would give you an indication of how much to push the suction pipe in.
3) Take note of the amount of engine oil pump out. This would give you an indiction of how much new engine oil you should put in. This would also gives you an indiction if you engine "eat black oil" especially if you last put in 4 litres but only pumps out slightly above 3 litres in the picture. (Note: every ring/section is 1 litre)
4) Locate the engine cap and unscrew it to open. This cap usually has an oil logo on it.
