Trying to change my own oil: big FAIL

[stinkynuts]

Thought I'd change my own oil from now on and save a few bucks.

Bought all the equipment: several large containers of oil, three oil filters, filter pliers, oil pan, rhino ramps, 17 mm socket.

Changing the oil filer was easy. Off to a great start

I scraped my body on the hard asphalt, wiggling under the car, and ended up with numerous cuts. On top of that, microscopic pieces of glass became embedded in my skin, and stung like crazy. Then when it came to unscrew the drain plug, I couldn't. It was mounted on the side of the well, not on the bottom, so was very awkward. I used WD-40 to try to lubricate the drain plug, and almost ended up with it in my face. Because I used such force trying to twist the wrench, it almost flung and hit me in the face. Had it done so, I could have ended up with broken teeth or severe injuries

Put the old oil filter back on and drove to Canadian Tire. Went and bought a breaker bar for $30, and it didn't work, not enough clearance from the ground. I noticed oil was dripping from the engine. I opened the hood, and there was oil everywhere. I did not screw the oil filter on tight enough. The entire street in front of my house was covered in oil. It began to rain, and there was a rainbow colour of grease all over in front of my house on the street. I'm sure the neighbours were not happy.

When it stopped raining, I tried again. I got oil all over my body since the street was covered in oil (I have no paved driveway to do it on). I tried using a hammer, then a mallet to hit the wrench, no use. By this time, about a dozen tools were covered in grease, including multiple wrenches, hammer, mallet, scewdriver, filter wrench, oil pan. I also went in the house, and touched door knobs with greasy hands. Had to spend half an hour cleaning up the greasy mess on tools and in house.

Then the worst thing happened, the check engine light went on as well as the low oil warning. Not only did I not tighten the oil filter, I put it in incorrectly. I think I may have damaged the engine. Oil was everywhere, and I used a hose to water it off. My enitre driveway and street is covered in oil, my fingernails and hands have black remnants of dirty oil, my tools are still greasy, my skin stings from the cuts and embedded glass, and I'm out a few hundred dollars.

I thought about getting an oil extraction pump, but my car (BMW) doesn't have a dipstick, and it cannot be drained with a pump.

Worst of all, the jackstands could not be used because the rhino ramps did not lift my car hign enough. If the ramps failed, I would have been dead. I used them after the rain, and I believe they were very dangerous because they were slippery.

Totally not worth it.

.

 

[Damondean]

Thought I'd change my own oil from now on and save a few bucks.

Bought all the equipment: several large containers of oil, three oil filters, filter pliers, oil pan, rhino ramps, 17 mm socket.

Changing the oil filer was easy. Off to a great start

I scraped my body on the hard asphalt, wiggling under the car, and ended up with numerous cuts. On top of that, microscopic pieces of glass became embedded in my skin, and stung like crazy. Then when it came to unscrew the drain plug, I couldn't. It was mounted on the side of the well, not on the bottom, so was very awkward. I used WD-40 to try to lubricate the drain plug, and almost ended up with it in my face. Because I used such force trying to twist the wrench, it almost flung and hit me in the face. Had it done so, I could have ended up with broken teeth or severe injuries

Put the old oil filter back on and drove to Canadian Tire. Went and bought a breaker bar for $30, and it didn't work, not enough clearance from the ground. I noticed oil was dripping from the engine. I opened the hood, and there was oil everywhere. I did not screw the oil filter on tight enough. The entire street in front of my house was covered in oil. It began to rain, and there was a rainbow colour of grease all over in front of my house on the street. I'm sure the neighbours were not happy.

When it stopped raining, I tried again. I got oil all over my body since the street was covered in oil (I have no paved driveway to do it on). I tried using a hammer, then a mallet to hit the wrench, no use. By this time, about a dozen tools were covered in grease, including multiple wrenches, hammer, mallet, scewdriver, filter wrench, oil pan. I also went in the house, and touched door knobs with greasy hands. Had to spend half an hour cleaning up the greasy mess on tools and in house.

Then the worst thing happened, the check engine light went on as well as the low oil warning. Not only did I not tighten the oil filter, I put it in incorrectly. I think I may have damaged the engine. Oil was everywhere, and I used a hose to water it off. My enitre driveway and street is covered in oil, my fingernails and hands have black remnants of dirty oil, my tools are still greasy, my skin stings from the cuts and embedded glass, and I'm out a few hundred dollars.

I thought about getting an oil extraction pump, but my car (BMW) doesn't have a dipstick, and it cannot be drained with a pump.

Worst of all, the jackstands could not be used because the rhino ramps did not lift my car hign enough. If the ramps failed, I would have been dead. I used them after the rain, and I believe they were very dangerous because they were slippery.

Totally not worth it.

.

Maybe you should asked a female to do it for you! They are better with dishes and these things! )

 

[Robert Mugabe]

Thought I'd change my own oil from now on and save a few bucks.

Bought all the equipment: several large containers of oil, three oil filters, filter pliers, oil pan, rhino ramps, 17 mm socket.

Changing the oil filer was easy. Off to a great start

I scraped my body on the hard asphalt, wiggling under the car, and ended up with numerous cuts. On top of that, microscopic pieces of glass became embedded in my skin, and stung like crazy. Then when it came to unscrew the drain plug, I couldn't. It was mounted on the side of the well, not on the bottom, so was very awkward. I used WD-40 to try to lubricate the drain plug, and almost ended up with it in my face. Because I used such force trying to twist the wrench, it almost flung and hit me in the face. Had it done so, I could have ended up with broken teeth or severe injuries

Put the old oil filter back on and drove to Canadian Tire. Went and bought a breaker bar for $30, and it didn't work, not enough clearance from the ground. I noticed oil was dripping from the engine. I opened the hood, and there was oil everywhere. I did not screw the oil filter on tight enough. The entire street in front of my house was covered in oil. It began to rain, and there was a rainbow colour of grease all over in front of my house on the street. I'm sure the neighbours were not happy.

When it stopped raining, I tried again. I got oil all over my body since the street was covered in oil (I have no paved driveway to do it on). I tried using a hammer, then a mallet to hit the wrench, no use. By this time, about a dozen tools were covered in grease, including multiple wrenches, hammer, mallet, scewdriver, filter wrench, oil pan. I also went in the house, and touched door knobs with greasy hands. Had to spend half an hour cleaning up the greasy mess on tools and in house.

Then the worst thing happened, the check engine light went on as well as the low oil warning. Not only did I not tighten the oil filter, I put it in incorrectly. I think I may have damaged the engine. Oil was everywhere, and I used a hose to water it off. My enitre driveway and street is covered in oil, my fingernails and hands have black remnants of dirty oil, my tools are still greasy, my skin stings from the cuts and embedded glass, and I'm out a few hundred dollars.

I thought about getting an oil extraction pump, but my car (BMW) doesn't have a dipstick, and it cannot be drained with a pump.

Worst of all, the jackstands could not be used because the rhino ramps did not lift my car hign enough. If the ramps failed, I would have been dead. I used them after the rain, and I believe they were very dangerous because they were slippery.

Totally not worth it.

.

It was mounted on the side of the well, not on the bottom, so was very awkward. I used WD-40 to try to lubricate the drain plug, and almost ended up with it in my face.
Next time use an acetylene torch.
If it works out maybe I can get you to work on my car.

 

[corrie fan]

I had a '79 Impala. I needed a new hanger for the exhaust. Miserable place to get at. The bolts had to go in from the top of the frame. There was not enough clearance to use a ratchet so I had to use an open end wrench. Could only get about !/6th of a turn at a time. I got the sucker tightened up and tried to put the Ubolt into the hanger. One of the holes was drilled too small. There was not enough clearance above the floor to get a drill in there to drill the hole bigger. After much thought I realized the only way out was to take the hanger off and drill the hole out. Took a good 20 mins. to get the hanger off, 2 seconds to drill the hole bigger, another 20 mins. to put the hanger back on.

 

[Damondean]

Really guys, there are many, many good mechanics in this city. At all price ranges. So why try to change oil by yourself?

 

[stinkynuts]

I had a '79 Impala. I needed a new hanger for the exhaust. Miserable place to get at. The bolts had to go in from the top of the frame. There was not enough clearance to use a ratchet so I had to use an open end wrench. Could only get about !/6th of a turn at a time. I got the sucker tightened up and tried to put the Ubolt into the hanger. One of the holes was drilled too small. There was not enough clearance above the floor to get a drill in there to drill the hole bigger. After much thought I realized the only way out was to take the hanger off and drill the hole out. Took a good 20 mins. to get the hanger off, 2 seconds to drill the hole bigger, another 20 mins. to put the hanger back on.

Sounds like you went through a lot too, but at least you succeeded!

What I learned is that little things such as unscrewing a bolt make an otherwise straightforward job very hard. A mechanic has all the tools and resources (other experienced mechanics), in addition to their training. Had the drain plug been located on the bottom of the car, it would have been over and done with a long time ago.

 

[Robert Mugabe]

Thought I'd change my own oil from now on and save a few bucks.

Bought all the equipment: several large containers of oil, three oil filters, filter pliers, oil pan, rhino ramps, 17 mm socket.

Changing the oil filer was easy. Off to a great start

I scraped my body on the hard asphalt, wiggling under the car, and ended up with numerous cuts. On top of that, microscopic pieces of glass became embedded in my skin, and stung like crazy. Then when it came to unscrew the drain plug, I couldn't. It was mounted on the side of the well, not on the bottom, so was very awkward. I used WD-40 to try to lubricate the drain plug, and almost ended up with it in my face. Because I used such force trying to twist the wrench, it almost flung and hit me in the face. Had it done so, I could have ended up with broken teeth or severe injuries

Put the old oil filter back on and drove to Canadian Tire. Went and bought a breaker bar for $30, and it didn't work, not enough clearance from the ground. I noticed oil was dripping from the engine. I opened the hood, and there was oil everywhere. I did not screw the oil filter on tight enough. The entire street in front of my house was covered in oil. It began to rain, and there was a rainbow colour of grease all over in front of my house on the street. I'm sure the neighbours were not happy.

When it stopped raining, I tried again. I got oil all over my body since the street was covered in oil (I have no paved driveway to do it on). I tried using a hammer, then a mallet to hit the wrench, no use. By this time, about a dozen tools were covered in grease, including multiple wrenches, hammer, mallet, scewdriver, filter wrench, oil pan. I also went in the house, and touched door knobs with greasy hands. Had to spend half an hour cleaning up the greasy mess on tools and in house.

Then the worst thing happened, the check engine light went on as well as the low oil warning. Not only did I not tighten the oil filter, I put it in incorrectly. I think I may have damaged the engine. Oil was everywhere, and I used a hose to water it off. My enitre driveway and street is covered in oil, my fingernails and hands have black remnants of dirty oil, my tools are still greasy, my skin stings from the cuts and embedded glass, and I'm out a few hundred dollars.

I thought about getting an oil extraction pump, but my car (BMW) doesn't have a dipstick, and it cannot be drained with a pump.

Worst of all, the jackstands could not be used because the rhino ramps did not lift my car hign enough. If the ramps failed, I would have been dead. I used them after the rain, and I believe they were very dangerous because they were slippery.

Totally not worth it.

.

Next time get the wife to do it
Wow! Girlfriend mistakenly puts Cooking Crystal Oil in Her dude Range Rover - YouTube

 

[stinkynuts]

Really guys, there are many, many good mechanics in this city. At all price ranges. So why try to change oil by yourself?

Thought It would be "fun" and I'd learn a new skill so that I can become self-dependant.

I was planning to do my own brakes after this, but I may have to rethink.

 

[stinkynuts]

Next time get the wife to do it
Wow! Girlfriend mistakenly puts Cooking Crystal Oil in Her dude Range Rover - YouTube

Sounds like something I would do.

Seriously, every time I've tried to do something on my car, I've fucked up.

I tried to change my wipers myself, and accidentally let go with the wiper off. The arm hit my windsheild, and left a huge crack. It cost $800 to repair.

The very next time I changed my wipers, I did the same thing. This time I didn't even bother fixing it.

And before that, I tried to change the struts on the hatchback door. I let go of the hatchback door, and it went crashing threw the strut, and all the glass broke. I was lucky because the door could have slammed on my hands.

 

[Twister]

I was reading in one of the car forums, that a guy did it by himself every month and now the car has 1 million kilometers no problems whatsoever..

 

[bazokajoe]

I have no mechanical skills at all.
But my advice is please don't do your own brake work if you can't do an oil change. If not done properly you could kill someone.

Hope your neighbours aren't assholes and call the Ministry of the Environment over the oil on the road and your driveway.

 

[xix]

Cars made in the past 12 years are difficult to do simple things that our grandparent were able to do with 3 tools.

 

[Ref]

Sounds like something I would do.

Seriously, every time I've tried to do something on my car, I've fucked up.

I tried to change my wipers myself, and accidentally let go with the wiper off. The arm hit my windsheild, and left a huge crack. It cost $800 to repair.

The very next time I changed my wipers, I did the same thing. This time I didn't even bother fixing it.

And before that, I tried to change the struts on the hatchback door. I let go of the hatchback door, and it went crashing threw the strut, and all the glass broke. I was lucky because the door could have slammed on my hands.

LOL!

I think something is trying to tell you not to try and repair your car.

Your original post would make a very funny you tube video.

 

[NotADcotor]

Sounds like something I would do.

Seriously, every time I've tried to do something on my car, I've fucked up.

I tried to change my wipers myself, and accidentally let go with the wiper off. The arm hit my windsheild, and left a huge crack. It cost $800 to repair.

The very next time I changed my wipers, I did the same thing. This time I didn't even bother fixing it.

And before that, I tried to change the struts on the hatchback door. I let go of the hatchback door, and it went crashing threw the strut, and all the glass broke. I was lucky because the door could have slammed on my hands.

And yet you kept trying. Failure is often nature's way of telling you to give up.

 

[Charlie_]

Thought I'd change my own oil from now on and save a few bucks.

Bought all the equipment: several large containers of oil, three oil filters, filter pliers, oil pan, rhino ramps, 17 mm socket.

Changing the oil filer was easy. Off to a great start

I scraped my body on the hard asphalt, wiggling under the car, and ended up with numerous cuts. On top of that, microscopic pieces of glass became embedded in my skin, and stung like crazy. Then when it came to unscrew the drain plug, I couldn't. It was mounted on the side of the well, not on the bottom, so was very awkward. I used WD-40 to try to lubricate the drain plug, and almost ended up with it in my face. Because I used such force trying to twist the wrench, it almost flung and hit me in the face. Had it done so, I could have ended up with broken teeth or severe injuries

Put the old oil filter back on and drove to Canadian Tire. Went and bought a breaker bar for $30, and it didn't work, not enough clearance from the ground. I noticed oil was dripping from the engine. I opened the hood, and there was oil everywhere. I did not screw the oil filter on tight enough. The entire street in front of my house was covered in oil. It began to rain, and there was a rainbow colour of grease all over in front of my house on the street. I'm sure the neighbours were not happy.

When it stopped raining, I tried again. I got oil all over my body since the street was covered in oil (I have no paved driveway to do it on). I tried using a hammer, then a mallet to hit the wrench, no use. By this time, about a dozen tools were covered in grease, including multiple wrenches, hammer, mallet, scewdriver, filter wrench, oil pan. I also went in the house, and touched door knobs with greasy hands. Had to spend half an hour cleaning up the greasy mess on tools and in house.

Then the worst thing happened, the check engine light went on as well as the low oil warning. Not only did I not tighten the oil filter, I put it in incorrectly. I think I may have damaged the engine. Oil was everywhere, and I used a hose to water it off. My enitre driveway and street is covered in oil, my fingernails and hands have black remnants of dirty oil, my tools are still greasy, my skin stings from the cuts and embedded glass, and I'm out a few hundred dollars.

I thought about getting an oil extraction pump, but my car (BMW) doesn't have a dipstick, and it cannot be drained with a pump.

Worst of all, the jackstands could not be used because the rhino ramps did not lift my car hign enough. If the ramps failed, I would have been dead. I used them after the rain, and I believe they were very dangerous because they were slippery.

Totally not worth it.

.

I presume this is a joke?

 

[stinkynuts]

I presume this is a joke?

Sadly, no.

 

[johnd5050]

Don't try to be a doctor if you graduated from Business School.
Sit back and relax. Let a mechanic do what he is trained to do.

 

[Goodoer]

I’ve done lots of oil changes on a number of different cars…. Manly thing to do, right?! I don’t even bother now. Local mechanic makes it so easy since he’ll deal with the old oil and I don’t have to go to a disposal centre and spend more time.

Like most, you probably make more money to hire someone than do it yourself (when you factor all the steps in).

 

[Goodoer]

Avoid Stealerships and find a local mechanic.

 

[Jenesis]

Sounds like something I would do.

Seriously, every time I've tried to do something on my car, I've fucked up.

I tried to change my wipers myself, and accidentally let go with the wiper off. The arm hit my windsheild, and left a huge crack. It cost $800 to repair.

The very next time I changed my wipers, I did the same thing. This time I didn't even bother fixing it.

And before that, I tried to change the struts on the hatchback door. I let go of the hatchback door, and it went crashing threw the strut, and all the glass broke. I was lucky because the door could have slammed on my hands.

Ok I laughed at your OP out of pain for you. I swear. I thought this was a joke leading up to a punch line. Sweetie!!!!! That is a crazy ordeal.

and as for the above, even I have changed those. Strut on hatchback, wipers on numerous cars, although I couldn’t do the back one for one car and needed to go to the dealer

I have done a rad hose replacement in the parking lots of a CT. Then drove to my mechanic to see if I did it right.

I wouldn’t do my brakes myself.

Hell, I changed the gas value (yes I know I shouldn’t have) and thermacouple of the hot water tank at my trailer. And the black water pipe.

You seriously have bad luck with cars. Like seriously bad luck