The Worst Oil Change Ive Ever Done

Nuje · Aug 18, 2017

IIRC, that included shipping and import into Canada, but still...

I think they were designed / marketed more as a portable solution - like to bring out to days at the track to do quick/easy wheel changes.

Mike_04GolfTDI · Aug 18, 2017

Bob S. said:
At that price, $400/pair, one is well on their way to purchase a residential grade lift.

Or this: https://www.quickjack.com/

Nuje · Aug 18, 2017

Damn - that looks slick.

It is safe to work under the car with the quickjack, though? Like, is there a non-hydraulic "lock" once it's the car is in the air?

jason_ · Aug 18, 2017

I'm not at the shop., not sure when I'll be back.

It's. Identical, except not pretty round and casted. And has 4 corners instead of round. And sleeved square tubing with holes to raise it.

It's still big enough to slip a floor jack under car and jack the car with the puck sandwiched and able to slide it under floor jack, and set it down.

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Mike_04GolfTDI · Aug 18, 2017

Nuje said:
Damn - that looks slick.

It is safe to work under the car with the quickjack, though? Like, is there a non-hydraulic "lock" once it's the car is in the air?

Yes, there's a bar that you move into a notch or something.

On their website they have a video where they take the 5000lb model and put 12,000lb of steel on it.

If it were me working under the car with a quickjack, I'd still use jackstands, or at least put something thicker and tougher than myself under there with me. If the car falls it will sit on top of that instead of me.

adjat84th · Aug 19, 2017

Mike_04GolfTDI said:
Or this: https://www.quickjack.com/

I just found my Christmas present to myself ?
I just moved, and my garage is two cars deep so does not have a ton of room on the sides to get a jack under nicely. This would be perfect.

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jason_ · Aug 20, 2017

Mike_04GolfTDI said:
Or this: https://www.quickjack.com/

I got all excited too, until I realized what little room there is left after a gearbox is sitting on top of a transmission lift...

I'll keep driving 1hr to my shop, with a full walking pit that's under a full floating 10k# hoist.

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adjat84th · Aug 20, 2017

jason_ said:
I got all excited too, until I realized what little room there is left after a gearbox is sitting on top of a transmission lift...

I'll keep driving 1hr to my shop, with a full walking pit that's under a full floating 10k# hoist.

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I can somewhat agree with that. With my jack stands at their highest setting, I still had to pull the gearbox off the transmission jack and then slide it on cardboard out from under the car. Not the worst thing to have to do, though I definitely needed an extra hand from above getting it attached back to the motor.

740GLE · Aug 22, 2017

What do people think there is any chance of someone making a new oil filter housing that has a drain valve on it rather than just that plug?

I know its small fries in the big picture but it'd be one more little thing to put the cherry on top of the oil change.

Viz · Aug 22, 2017

Quote:
Originally Posted by jpljohn

.......
By the way, There are two oil filters with the same part number. 03N 115 562. I had the wrong one when I went to install it. I'd post pictures that show the difference, if I could.

Viz said:
Sorry to resurrect an old thread/post, but can anyone shed some light on this comment? Are there in fact (2) different oil filters with this part number? (And if so, why? ***?)

I just bought a couple, genuine VW, and was surprised that they are shorter than the one for my MKIV 1.9L. Did I get the wrong filter?

Viz

Bump. Can no one answer my question ? Are there 2 different oil filters with the same part number ?

dervdave · Oct 28, 2017

Viz said:
Quote:
Originally Posted by jpljohn
.......
By the way, There are two oil filters with the same part number. 03N 115 562. I had the wrong one when I went to install it. I'd post pictures that show the difference, if I could.

Bump. Can no one answer my question ? Are there 2 different oil filters with the same part number ?

03N115562 is the correct VW oil filter and will only be one with that number, could the wrong filter have been put in the box ?
The mk6 Golf GTD oil filter is 03L115562

Ol'Rattler · Oct 28, 2017

Nuje said:
Speaking of lifting the car...
Jackpoint jack stands FTW!
Heard someone talking about these on a tech podcast (of all places?!), and looked online.

Not cheap, but solves the problem of lifting via the pinch weld, but then having no place to put the jack stands. I really like them.

Why does it surprise me they are being shilled by Jay Leno? I can just imagine some of the early marketing drafts for Pitching these.

Jay: "One day I was out in the back yard lighting the grill with $100 bills when it occurred to me that there must be a better use for this money. Then it hit me. What the world needs is some everyday piece of shop of equipment that is at least 10 times as expensive as what's available now. Seriously, we could pitch it to people with way more money then sense".........................

And if you have a Smart Phone you could use them with your $4000 Bluetooth enabled floor jack.

Trade Wind · Oct 28, 2017

Worst oil change ever... I have 2.

First one, I bumped the oil sensor on a 85 Caravan when the wrench slipped. That caused the check oil light to go on, but no leaks etc. I figured I'd pick up a new sensor during the week and replace it next weekend, no problem. Picked up the sensor on Wednesday night, almost went out and put it in that night, but it was late, figured I'd wait till weekend as planned. Friday night as my wife was driving home, the diaphragm in the sensor gave way, dumped all the oil on the freeway at 70 mph. Since the check oil light was already on, my wife never had a chance to pull over until the engine seized. Yup, $2,500 for a new engine...

Second one, the fillter gasket stayed on the block of another minivan. The new one did not seal, 4+ quarts of oil on the garage floor before I figured it out. What a mess to clean up that much oil. Car started knocking but in the end was not damaged.

Always check your old filter to make sure the gasket is on it.

Yup, all the money saved in all the years of DIY maintenance, and then some, out the door with that first one...

laminated · Oct 30, 2017

be glad they didnt put behind the transmission,, I guess.. surely to god when mocking up the car someone didnt say wait a min,

jason_ · Oct 30, 2017

Not the first and never the last.

Did u joints in my buddies f250 front axle.

I was amazed seeing a 8 bolt wheel going onto a 5 bolt spindle.... :/.....

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laminated · Oct 31, 2017

When you see all the car reviews, you never see someone looking at stuff like that, I talked to a Mercedes tech last yr for instance, he said those low end cars they make ate the worst, and people get one and the first time they need work and get a 3k quote,, it breaks them,

Ol'Rattler · Oct 31, 2017

Trade Wind said:
Second one, the fillter gasket stayed on the block of another minivan. The new one did not seal, 4+ quarts of oil on the garage floor before I figured it out. What a mess to clean up that much oil. Car started knocking but in the end was not damaged.

Always check your old filter to make sure the gasket is on it.

Yup, all the money saved in all the years of DIY maintenance, and then some, out the door with that first one...

A guy posted that he was far from home driving his 2015 after doing an oil change and the oil light came on. Wonder what could it be? He reported here that there was oil all over the engine and he checked the drain plug and it appeared O.K.

After a very expensive tow to a dealers and some major inconvenience it turned out that the "O" ring was above the groove in the cap. Saved $25 on that oil change but it probably cost something like $1000 to do it.

Something I ALWAYS do without fail is to run the car and check for leaks, but to go on a long trip without even verifying there are no leaks first............. Ah no Mildred, not everyone should do their own maintenance.

jerryfreak · Dec 12, 2017

was about to do my first oil change, im only at 8K miles since last change (by dealer before i bought car used)

im only changing it early because im getting oil dilution from high blends of biodiesel

im spoiled with the 15 minute changes on my other VWs, i dont have 2 hours to figure this out right now, im jsut going to pump the oil out of the top with my Pela and change the filter another time

since ill probably be decreasing my oil change interval (pending analysis by blackstone), is it ok to go a little longer on the filter? like say change oil at 6-7K and change filter every other time? i see no reason a filter cant go 14L if youre changing 80+% of the oil at 7K

local dealer is $74.95 for oil change.

thats literally the same price i paid for oil and filter at napa today. while i hate to wait around the dealer for an hour or more its better than swearing at my car

turbobrick240 · Dec 12, 2017

The filter itself will be fine, but you'll be leaving some of the possibly diluted oil behind. Maybe 1/3-1/2 quart. It might be worthwhile to do a used oil analysis to see if the oil really is getting diluted.

jerryfreak · Dec 12, 2017

when i refilled to middle of dipstick it was 4.5L, so top of dipstick would prob be 5L, which would mean leaving 1/2L behind. so im satisfied reducing dilution by 90%

im wondering if im better off just using rotella T6 and replacing it twice as often at the same cost of oil

i have to see what the analysis looks like before i make that call. also need to do some research into the additives that apparently help with dilution and what an acceptable limit is

turbobrick240 said:
The filter itself will be fine, but you'll be leaving some of the possibly diluted oil behind. Maybe 1/3-1/2 quart. It might be worthwhile to do a used oil analysis to see if the oil really is getting diluted.

paperthin · Jan 28, 2018

A3 2015 tdi

I found this thread and it was very useful and felt I should contribute. I was lucky enough to snag a 2015 after my 2009 jetta was bought back. Now at 40k kms I had to do my first oil change (bought used from dealer @25k km). I wanted to reassure others that may try this that it really isn't that bad. I looked at it on Saturday (yesterday) and closed it up because i was so intimidated.

I ended up crawling back underneath today and did it smoothly in 2hrs in a very relaxed state. I went in thinking I would do a dry run by getting at the filter, and come back another day for the rest, I ended up doing it very easily and continued on. I did not need to zip tie anything, merely hold it to the the side with one hand. If did this in oil change in a proper sequence i could easily cut it down to maybe 90 minutes. I was prepared with a water bottle that had the bottom cut out to act as a funnel if i needed it when draining and removing the filter )but i didn't need it. I attached a picture for reference because there is a lot more junk under there than other DIY pictures/tutorials that i have tried to look up. The filter is quite hidden in the picture I think this is because us Canadians have the block heater? I am honestly not sure.

I ended put in 5.5L as the manual states and after repeatedly checking the dipstick, hopefully i didn't do too much. I measured just a hair over 5L taken out and this was after about 17k kms (I was over due).

I know this is the MK7 forum but the A3 forum isn't kicking like this one, more like a ghost town.
Cheers!

740GLE · Jan 29, 2018

That's def the coolant heater you lucky SOBs get.

Also if you over fill the MFD will yell at you, the oil level temp sensor is pretty smart, no real need to pop the hood unless you like wasting napkins/paper towels.

paperthin · Jan 29, 2018

740GLE said:
That's def the coolant heater you lucky SOBs get.

Also if you over fill the MFD will yell at you, the oil level temp sensor is pretty smart, no real need to pop the hood unless you like wasting napkins/paper towels.

Not sure what you meant about your comment popping the hood. I have to pop it to fill oil.

I always thought the engine block was heating the oil, not the coolant, my bad assumption. To add one after the fact should be easy physically, is there any VCDS coding required? Asking for a friend.

Good to know about the MFD. After the commute this morning all is great!

740GLE · Jan 29, 2018

paperthin said:
Not sure what you meant about your comment popping the hood. I have to pop it to fill oil.

I always thought the engine block was heating the oil, not the coolant, my bad assumption. To add one after the fact should be easy physically, is there any VCDS coding required? Asking for a friend.

Good to know about the MFD. After the commute this morning all is great!

As for popping the hood, I meant for checking the oil level in between oil changes. Some people are old school and check every other fill up.

VW has used coolant heaters for a while in Canada I think since 2009. It does the same thing as an old school block heater, but I think is more efficient as the coolant will circulate with natural convection. Old school methods were actual oil heaters.

There is an oil cooler that I believe is on the other side of the that filter housing, it has a coolant loop, at least that's where they were on previous gens.

I'm guessing it works both ways as the coolant heats faster with the head design of these and with the larger sump it'll take longer for the oil to get up to temp.

Blue_Hen_TDI · Jan 31, 2018

I’ve done three oil changes on mine so far. First two were easy. Third one was a messy disaster because I had to do it on a windy Saturday because it was supposed to drop about 30 degrees overnight and I didn’t want to freeze doing it the next day.

With the oil dripping from the drain plug and the filter and a stiff wind, oil just went everywhere. I spent a half hour doing the oil change and another half hour decontaminating the bottom of my car and the inside of the passenger front wheel. Black, nasty diesel oil everywhere.

Takeway: do this inside a garage if possible or outside on a very still day

dubStrom · Oct 2, 2018

I posted this oil change in the wrong place. It is for MKVI-A6, not 2015+
My mistake. For MKVI, I have a photo of the flexible rubber pipe block off but I think I posted it in the What did you do to your MKVI ...today thread. I think it was about a 6 inch 2"x1" maybe 5 ". It holds it off the the side for easier access to the filter cap and cap drain plug.

dubStrom said:
Take some time to prepare ahead of time, and you'll be rewarded with a smooth process, along with the confidence that only comes with doing it yourself.

1. Get the socket you need to remove the oil filter cover. I use a universal AND a 6" extension as well, which really makes it easy.
2. Check what size socket (mine is 10mm on the JSW) needed to free the metal tube from the valve cover. Take two of them out to really make it easy to flex out of the way.
3. I use aluminum foil, doubled, to wrap the larger (EGR?) tube with the mesh sleeve. This prevents staining it with oil (chronic dealership snafu).
4. Get a star driver socket kit (Torx) if you don't have one. TWO sizes are needed to remove the splash guard under the engine to get to the drain plug. I am sorry I do not remember the sizes (25 is the smaller one needed, I think).

One more thing... These cars are low to the ground. I actually used a floor jack and set my car on blocks when I changed mine a couple of weeks ago so I had LOTS of room under there to move around. Seems like a lot of trouble until you find out how much easier it is this way! It took about 15 minutes. If you don't have some of these tools, this is a perfect excuse to get them. A nice 3 or 5 ton floor jack isn't that expensive.

btw-I change the oil myself mostly because I want to know that every bolt and screw (and the drain plug) is NOT overtightened or misthreaded, and that there is no oil spilled on the motor. ALSO, when you refill, take the time to remove the rubber flange from the oil fill port. It pulls off easily-CLEAN the dust away carefully so you don't wash it into your crankcase. Do you think a dealership oil change level personnel is going to take the time to do this right? Something to think about!

Oh, and yet one more thing. When I went in for my first oil change on my old 2010 JSW, the dealership left it 700mL low (arguably 500mL low), and the dipstick was barely showing oil at the tip of the stick! My new 2014 JSW takes nearly 4700mL to reach top of hash marks too. I know that mid-hashmark is sufficient, but it is not overfilled at top of hashmark. I like to start there in case it drops in the oil change interval. Here's the thread describing the biffed oil change:
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=300065&highlight=oil+change
Look at post # 4 in that thread (PlaneJob)- eye popping. Yes, mine also said 4 liters used. Needless to say... I prefer to handle this "simple" task myself!

whizznbyu · Nov 11, 2019

tdi90hp said:
One more reason to get to know your dealer and build a relationship with same person as much as possible and set the expectation as to the service. Ya think VW did this to force more people back to dealers? seems pretty weird that they could not find a simpler way to service car. I sometimes wonder in the factories complicate some things to deter the DIY'ers...
Most good dealer techs wont cut corners. They will just figure out quicker ways to do same job. Have a BIT of faith....Its an oil change...not that complicated.

I thought I was the only conspiracy theorist in this forum.
Is there an easier way to undo the clip for this cables/hoses/doodads that cross directly in front of the canister? The way a youtube tutorial showed it, you might break a nail doing it.

The Worst Oil Change Ive Ever Done

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