Oil Change Question
 

I was involved in a discussion with a fellow that doesn't have access to work on his car. He claims that he can change oil by pumping in out of his dipstick rather than draining it from below. I told him I thought that this wouldn't be as good since he would have to be leaving some residual oil and dirt behind.

He actually claimed that this is what some dealers do. Is this true?

It is true.

The "residual oil" is less than one pint.

True.

MB have been designed that way for years. Works great.
It's been discussed to death on this forum and others.
Do a Google search on "Oil Extraction Topsider" .

I haven't removed an oil drain plug on my MB's in years.

Steve

Time for you to come on over here and remove the drain plug and also remove the oil cooler lower fitting to get the last remaining pint out of the cooler.

.......no more of this clean, top of the engine approach........you think you're a dealer now??..............;)

I don't think that I would feel comfortable syphoning out an entire crankcase full of oil. I have heard that the vacuum can damage the seals in your engine.

The vacuum is applied to the oil, not the entire crankcase. No affect on the seals or gaskets.

Make it $.04. Unscrewing a drain plug just isn't that hard.

There is a drain plug, because MB realizes that some people will not own a vacuum extractor. It also has a drain plug, I assume, to allow draining all the oil before R&R or oil pan.

The comment about removing drain plug not being that hard is a vast over simplification.
In order to get to the drain plug you must jack up the car and slide in jack stands. Then you will need to slide in oil catch pan. Then you get to lie on your back and get oil on your hands and arms. You may also manage to drop the plug in the oil (be honest).
At the end you get to removal all of the above.

Contrast that with pumping a Topsider 40 times, and sticking the tube down the dipstick. When it's done, cap up the container and take it to McParts for disposal.

Neither method is hard, but one requires a lot less effort. This is not to say that the extractor method is faster. It's not. However, it makes me smile every time I do it.

Steve

Suck, baby, suck!
 

("Blow is just a figure of speech")

I could see the suction method being good for our new-to-us 124 car, since it has belly pans that must be removed to get at the underside. Since I already own an oil removal pump, I'll give it a try next time.

I've always worried about how to know whether the tube is really at the bottom of the oil pan but I suppose I could measure the oil as it comes out. If I get almost 2 gallons, then most of it is out, right?

Easy to tell when tube hits the bottom of the pan. Also easy to tell when it's done. Starts sucking air and the tube jumps around.

Steve

lazyness, less effort... its all the same Softconsult, im actully moving to Johnson city next year to attened ETSU. My best friend grew up thier until freshman year of High school......... Man what i wouldnt do for a Pals burger right now

There is another factor involved. Age! At 20 there are no aches and pains.

Deciding to attend college is a good thing. I would offer up an observation from an old guy to a young guy. In 3 lines of writing you have 10 errors in spelling and/or grammar. I don't know much about ETSU, but I wouldn't think that will fly. At least I hope not.

The errors are:
lazyness - laziness
Its - It's
im - I'm
actully - actually
Johnson city - Johnson City
attened - attend
thier - there
i - I
wouldnt - wouldn't
right now - right now.

Good Luck,

Steve

It's not hard, but it's a PITA if you have a lower engine cover like most modern cars have. To change the oil in my TDI, I have to remove 12 or so little Torx screws to get the lower engine cover out of the way. It's absurd that they didn't provide some type of access hole for the drain plug.

StcBenz83 -

No, it was simply my reaction to what you wrote. It was your use of the word laziness, and your intention to go to college.

The in-attention to detail when writing the english language will hurt you in college and later in your work life. Spell check and grammar check, if there is such a thing, are not the answer.

I will concede that growing up in this area could not have been conducive to the proper use of English. I'm not originally from here, but am just about a native after 15 years here. I have never gotten used to the "I done this", and "I seen this" thing.

That's all, I just think it is sad that you don't understand.

Steve

Many big ticket ocean yachts have big ticket diesels which all have the oil removed by suction. No access to the drain plugs which set too far in the bilge.
I still crawl underneath my cars as I get a chance to see what else may need tending to as well.