Guilty of a Cold Oil Change today.....

[UNC201]

With a newborn on the mix, allocating time is a bit hit or miss.....

Had a 45 minute window, so I decided to do a oil change on the wife's ride.
It's been forever since I've done a oil change cold...

Some observations -

Much thicker when cold. Noticable in both flow coming out, if not the remainder of oil that remains on the top of the oil filter housing. When I do a hot oil drain, nary but a smigen of oil is left in the oil filter housing

 

[simple_gifts]

Wait I thought 5w was too thin at startup..... lol

 

[Srt20]

Most of the time I do them cold. Not a big deal.

 

[UNC201]

It was always my impression, that the crud in suspension in hot was better than how it drained out the pan when cold. I took a couple rags to get some of the extra oil in the oil canister, but did not spend much time soaking it all out.....def much more than if I had done it hot.

It's def. thicker - noticable enough for me to notice it....
Aside from the 3-5% extra oil that I did not drain out, me wonders how much was in the bottom of the pan that did not come out, as opposed to if I had done a ~hot~ oil change

 

[RooflessVW]

I've got a three year old and she helps me with oil changes or any task that is short or has enough visually stimuli, such as the oil draining and the "yucky" old cartridge. I let her put the new one in and she tells mommy she fixed the car. Sometimes she has a picnic in the yard next to the garage while I work.

For the longer tasks I just wait until everyone is asleep and then crank the music in the garage.

 

[WiskyBadger]

I have always done oil changes cold except for maybe 2 or 3 times. None of my vehicles have ever blown up. I think you'll be ok.

 

[RooflessVW]

Originally Posted By: chefwong
It was always my impression, that the crud in suspension in hot was better than how it drained out the pan when cold. I took a couple rags to get some of the extra oil in the oil canister, but did not spend much time soaking it all out.....def much more than if I had done it hot.

It's def. thicker - noticable enough for me to notice it....
Aside from the 3-5% extra oil that I did not drain out, me wonders how much was in the bottom of the pan that did not come out, as opposed to if I had done a ~hot~ oil change


You do get more oil out, and more contaminants put with hot oil. It also drains faster.

I keep a suction gun around for oil filter housings. If I forget to crack the one on the 4.2 and let it drain for a while, it holds about 1/2 quart!

 

[kohnen]

Originally Posted By: chefwong
With a newborn on the mix, allocating time is a bit hit or miss.....

Had a 45 minute window, so I decided to do a oil change on the wife's ride...


Good call! - Given the choice between changing oil & changing a diaper, you'll ALWAYS find me in the garage under the car!

 

[3800Series]

I do mine cold 95% of the time. I might give the car 2-3 mins to warm up some but gone are the days I change oil on a car at or close to operating temp. Burnt myself to many times doing that I just give the car a little longer to drain. That and my Rhino ramps put the drain plug at a good angle.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

I do oil changes cold too

 

[Nick1994]

Nothing wrong with a cold oil change. IMO you might get more out. If you just turned off the engine and changed the oil, there's still a lot left in the top end. When it's cold, almost all of the oil is sitting in just the pan.

 

[BrocLuno]

Run it long enough to get up the ramps, then drain. I hate hot oil everywhere. Let it drain while you mow the lawn or something... It'll all come out.

 

[OptimusPrime]

I usually get the car to operating temp then have two beers, then drain. Last change, ( I ran the car about 5 mins) then drained

 

[barkingspider]

I have done both hot & cold oil changes. The vehicles can't tell the difference and neither can I

 

[demarpaint]

Any oil change is better than no oil change. I wouldn't worry about it, consider it done. Worry about something more important now.

 

[supton]

I thought it was the filter's job to catch crud.

0Wxx oils are water thin you know--so cold changes mean it comes out nice and fast.

 

[Sonic]

I always do the oil changes after the oil has cooled, like two hours after the car has been driven. I get a lot more of the old oil out. With my van that holds 5 quarts I'll get pretty close to 5 out of it. But if I do it hot I get about 4.25 quarts out. Not a huge deal but why not drain as much as you can?

 

[Old Mustang Guy]

I think the approved BITOG way is to drain it hot, pour some Super Tech through it and let it drain until the next day.

 

[FCD]

Since i run a 20w50 i usually take the car for a drive , then let it sit for a while and then drain it, i have done a cold oil change in winter and it took noticeably longer for it to drain out, if i'm changing it during the summer though like a do most times it will come out easy even cold, but i still warm it up a bit

 

[dareo]

I like to get the car good and hot and let it sit on ramps for about 30-60 mins then drain it. I used to change my cummins cold and let it drain overnight.