Does oil change have to be done on flat ground? (1 Viewer)

[newbielx470]

Hi friends,

I understand that oil change should ideally be done on perfectly flat ground surface. But for those of us who live in a city and don't have garage access, it's hard to find flat ground to do the job safely. So I'm wondering, is it ok to do oil change on a slightly sloped (less than 10 degrees) driveway? I once watched a video tutorial that claimed it's actually beneficial to raise the truck's front slightly to better drain the old oil. Is that true?
And if the answer is no, but the difference in terms of completely draining the old oil is only a few percent, can we compensate the non-flat surface with doing more regular oil changes/shorter intervals? (And the benefit of DIY oil change still outweighs the risk of having a random lube shop to do the oil change?)

 

[Mike NXP]

I don't see anything wrong with doing oil on uneven surface as long as your aware of what's going on and obviously not doing it on a big fill.

The drain plug is to the rear of the engine at the lowest point. Having the front end higher will be OK, but having the front end lower may not allow all of the oil to drain, so keep the front end uphill.

Fill it with 7- 7.5 quarts and just check the dipstick when its back on flat ground, top off accordingly.

No need to compensate with more oil changes or whatever you were asking at the end there. Skip the quick lube shops, it's easy to reach under and do the oil on our trucks without any jack stands or lifts.

 

[newbielx470]

I don't see anything wrong with doing oil on uneven surface as long as your aware of what's going on and obviously not doing it on a big fill.

The drain plug is to the rear of the engine at the lowest point. Having the front end higher will be OK, but having the front end lower may not allow all of the oil to drain, so keep the front end uphill.

Fill it with 7- 7.5 quarts and just check the dipstick when its back on flat ground, top off accordingly.

No need to compensate with more oil changes or whatever you were asking at the end there. Skip the quick lube shops, it's easy to reach under and do the oil on our trucks without any jack stands or lifts.

Thank you for the advice! Yeah I've also heard horror stories about oil draining out after random lube shops did the oil change due to drain plug not tightened properly. So I've been thinking about DIY the oil change even if I have to do it on non-flat surface.

 

[TexLexican]

Buy a fumoto drain valve if you want to DIY. No mess and no paranoia if you tightened the drain plug or not.

 

[Mike NXP]

Thank you for the advice! Yeah I've also heard horror stories about oil draining out after random lube shops did the oil change due to drain plug not tightened properly. So I've been thinking about DIY the oil change even if I have to do it on non-flat surface.

Either way it's good to get used to where your drain plug and filter are. This is one thing you could and should learn to DIY but if you chose to have a lube place do it just take the time to check your plug , filter , and oil level after a day or so to make sure it's all dry and up to level.

Learn to check air filter as well. Some quick lube places can rush that and not seal our air box properly.

Mobil 1 oil is cheapest at Costco

 

[OEMGUY0720]

So I'm wondering, is it ok to do oil change on a slightly sloped (less than 10 degrees) driveway?

Completely okay, the more old oil you can get out means the more newer fresh oil you can replace it with. If you increase the purity % of new unburnt oil circulating in your engine, the better. We have to remember that the engine oil is still the primary cooling component of the engine to reduce friction on those moving parts inside.

I once watched a video tutorial that claimed it's actually beneficial to raise the truck's front slightly to better drain the old oil. Is that true?

Yes gravity wins. This applies as well when doing drain and fill for the ATF.

And if the answer is no, but the difference in terms of completely draining the old oil is only a few percent, can we compensate the non-flat surface with doing more regular oil changes/shorter intervals? (And the benefit of DIY oil change still outweighs the risk of having a random lube shop to do the oil change?)

Regular drain will leave approximately 20% of old oil in the system (around 3/4 quart). Now on the next drain and fill on the same new oil, it drops to approximately 10% of old oil in the system. Repeat the process and you get the picture. I know this because I recently did this procedure and I used roughy around 4 gallons of the cheapest generic mineral oil I could find in Walmart, I repeated the process until the oil coming out was as bright when I put it in. It was super easy because of the Fumoto drain valve - look this up as well. The final lubricant of choice I put in (I am guilty for splurging a little bit but I have a good reason) is the 300V by Motul double ester formula. Been using this oil since my early days of racing in my 20s and on my R1200GSA adventure bike. If you research more on what the oil is, you’ll have an idea what it does and what I mean. Now you may be wondering why I did this, the cruiser now has 260k miles on the clock and since ownership 4 yrs ago (@ 230k), it hasn’t received that well-deserved lube refresh considering it’s mileage. And I couldn’t be happier for the outcome, it’s butter.

 

[FrankieJoe14]

Tons of people do oil changes on ramps only. Point the nose up and get wrenching.

 

[bmwjnky]

Sounds like someone "needs" a 2-3" lift to be able to do oil changes on flat ground But for real I use drive up ramps all the time for my oil change with no problems. Double check the level on flat ground once you have done the initial fill and let the engine run for a little bit.

 

[shtbrwn86]

Buy a fumoto drain valve if you want to DIY. No mess and no paranoia if you tightened the drain plug or not.

Anyone put one of these on the tranny yet? I am seriously intrigued by this because my transmission fluid hadn't been touched in 250,000 miles so I decided to do a few drain and fills to freshen it up. It's easy enough but since I am trying to MEASURE the amount of fluid coming out it's a pain in the ass to put the drain plug back on while it's still pouring fluid out. Would be nice to be able to stop it as soon as it hits 2 quarts or whatever. I was thinking of changing 2 quarts of ATF every other oil change just to keep things clean in there.

 

[TexLexican]

Anyone put one of these on the tranny yet? I am seriously intrigued by this because my transmission fluid hadn't been touched in 250,000 miles so I decided to do a few drain and fills to freshen it up. It's easy enough but since I am trying to MEASURE the amount of fluid coming out it's a pain in the ass to put the drain plug back on while it's still pouring fluid out. Would be nice to be able to stop it as soon as it hits 2 quarts or whatever. I was thinking of changing 2 quarts of ATF every other oil change just to keep things clean in there.

I believe someone on here put a fumoto everywhere including their diffs.

For the tranny pan would the valve interfere with the belly cover or anything else since it is directly on the bottom?

 

[shtbrwn86]

I believe someone on here put a fumoto everywhere including their diffs.

For the tranny pan would the valve interfere with the belly cover or anything else since it is directly on the bottom?

I don't know? I guess you can get one without the nipple which I would prefer and would make it stand out less. Although I can see how skit plates would be a good idea as hitting something on these could actually really mess up your pan.

 

[TexLexican]

I don't know? I guess you can get one without the nipple which I would prefer and would make it stand out less. Although I can see how skit plates would be a good idea as hitting something on these could actually really mess up your pan.

You should already have at least a belly pan for protection. It is separate from the front skid plate and fiberglass.

 

[FrankieJoe14]

Anyone put one of these on the tranny yet? I am seriously intrigued by this because my transmission fluid hadn't been touched in 250,000 miles so I decided to do a few drain and fills to freshen it up. It's easy enough but since I am trying to MEASURE the amount of fluid coming out it's a pain in the ass to put the drain plug back on while it's still pouring fluid out. Would be nice to be able to stop it as soon as it hits 2 quarts or whatever. I was thinking of changing 2 quarts of ATF every other oil change just to keep things clean in there.

Two things.

1) Be careful with the trans drain plug. It strips SUPER EASILY
2) The drain pan holds about 4qt of fluid. I would save yourself the trouble and just drain the thing whole instead of stopping at 2. You can get a 10qt drain bucket on amazon that is clear plastic and has gradations.

 

[suprarx7nut]

Sloped drive? Totally fine. The 2UZ is so durable you could perpetually change only have the oil and I bet it would be totally fine.

 

[shtbrwn86]

Sloped drive? Totally fine. The 2UZ is so durable you could perpetually change only have the oil and I bet it would be totally fine.

That's true. I doubt the war lords in the middle east obesess over this stuff like we do and they seem to last over there just fine! And I doubt they adhere to the "severe service" use guidelines.

 

[Mike NXP]

That's true. I doubt the war lords in the middle east obesess over this stuff like we do and they seem to last over there just fine! And I doubt they adhere to the "severe service" use guidelines.

Lol so true. Whenever I fear for the longevity of the 2UZ, I watch the below youtube. It's just a vehicle , have fun with it and fix it when it breaks.


I want to ride on two wheels while pounding the rev limiter blowing flames out of my exhaust so ****ing bad it hurts.

 

[shtbrwn86]

Two things.

1) Be careful with the trans drain plug. It strips SUPER EASILY
2) The drain pan holds about 4qt of fluid. I would save yourself the trouble and just drain the thing whole instead of stopping at 2. You can get a 10qt drain bucket on amazon that is clear plastic and has gradations.

That's why I was looking at the valve so I don't have to worry about it stripping out. And I bought a 4 qt bucket but it's pretty unwieldy when it's filled to the top.

 

[shtbrwn86]

Lol so true. Whenever I fear for the longevity of the 2UZ, I watch the below youtube. It's just a vehicle , have fun with it and fix it when it breaks.


I want to ride on two wheels while pounding the rev limiter blowing flames out of my exhaust so f***ing bad it hurts.

Love these videos. I've started rotating my tires like this and it's nice to not have to mess with a jack or jack stands lmao