Warming the oil for oil change

[HowAboutThis]

I put my vehicles up on ramps to change the oil, so since I have to start and move it anyway, I take it for a short drive to get it at least partially warmed up before changing. Not so hot I burn myself on the plug and oil, but nice and warm.

Last change I did after 100 miles of freeway at a relative's house. It wasn't nearly as hot as I was preemptively gritting my teeth for.

 

[4WD]

Last change I did after 100 miles of freeway at a relative's house. It wasn't nearly as hot as I was preemptively gritting my teeth for

think once I put a Fumoto on can tolerate hotter and do filter a bit cooler after gathering supplies

 

[redbone3]

I don't think it is necessary to warm up the oil. However, IMHO you should start the car before an oil change to get all the bearings lubricated. When you start the car after an oil change it takes a while to prime the pump and get oil to the bearings.

 

[Kira]

An honest seller of a turboed car said, "It's due for an oil change NOW". He let me use his plates to get the car home.
I put it up on ramps immediately and unscrewed the drain plug. It was easily the hottest oil change I've ever performed.
It drained as I removed and returned his plates.
It felt oddly good.

 

[Dave9]

The most important thing is that the drain plug be pointed west so that earth's rotation causes the oil to leave a trail behind the space time continuum.

The newer engines with oil filters and detergent oil doesn't need to be hot because detergent oil holds stuff in suspension

This is incorrect, if true nobody would have observed sludge in oil pans for decades.

 

[RazorsEdge]

Yes, change oil with the engine warm I let it drain for at least a hour.

I'll let the vehicle drain overnight

 

[JeffKeryk]

I service my engines cold. And my engines are cleaner than yours.

 

[Tikka]

Yes, change oil with the engine warm I let it drain for at least a hour.

Unless you have a Ford Ranger .

ford_ranger-mazda_oil_service_tip.pdf

 

[pghvolvo]

Just did mine today. I ran it for about one minute, pulled it up on the ramps and shut it off. Crawled under the car unscrewed the oil drain bolt. When it stopped dripping oil, I replaced the bolt and did the same for the oil filter letting it drain until it stopped dripping. It was 54 degrees out so I wasn't worried about it being so cold the oil would would thicken up.

How warm is the oil in the bottle when you refilling the engine?

 

[Crash Bandicoot]

I usually just do a short drive. I don’t stockpile oil and filters like there is an upcoming apocalypse so I typically get the engine nice and warm driving to Wally World or Tractor Supply to get the oil and filter.

 

[FordMan59]

I've changed oil when the engine was hot and when it was cold. I usually do it on a cold engine that has been sitting overnight. At least 90% of the time all I've done is started the engine long enough to to pull the car up on ramps then cut it off. Probably a maximum of 1 minute. I usually let it drain until it's a slow drip, somewhere around 5 minutes I guess. While the oil pan is draining I remove the filter, wipe off the filter mounting surface and put the new filter on, By the time I've changed the filter and cleaned up any oil that spills on car parts from it I'm ready to put the plug back in the oil pan and refill the sump.

 

[RazorsEdge]

Just did mine today. I ran it for about one minute, pulled it up on the ramps and shut it off. Crawled under the car unscrewed the oil drain bolt. When it stopped dripping oil, I replaced the bolt and did the same for the oil filter letting it drain until it stopped dripping. It was 54 degrees out so I wasn't worried about it being so cold the oil would would thicken up.

How warm is the oil in the bottle when you refilling the engine?

Room temperature

 

[Brons2]

warming the oil for a change? should I put it on the stove before I pour it in the engine?

 

[02SE]

warming the oil for a change? should I put it on the stove before I pour it in the engine?

New oil shouldn't have any impurities in it. Whereas old oil might.

 

[02SE]

We've had this discussion on here before. I did a little experiment when I worked on cars for a living. Draining oil cold, even overnight, always left some residue behind. Draining it while the oil was at full operating temperature, resulted in a much cleaner oil pan with no residue.

If people want to drain their oil cold, fine. It's their car...

I will continue to drain the oil out of my vehicles while the oil is still at full operating temperature. Any impurities are more likely to be in suspension, and will drain with the old oil.

 

[JeffKeryk]

Personally, I believe using quality oil, like modern synthetics, and maximum 5K intervals is far more important than oil temperature.
That's my process and my engines are really clean.

 

[WylieCoyote]

I used to change the oil after normal drive home from work (19 miles) but more recently I just drive it around the block a couple of times before dumping the oil. This way the oil, plug & filter are warm, but aren't scorching hot. I usually start the process in the evening and let it drain overnight.

 

[justalubetech]

Changing hot/warm oil is cleaner (to me anyways), cold oil will drip around the oil filter base forever and just stay there

 

[gathermewool]

I don't think it is necessary to warm up the oil. However, IMHO you should start the car before an oil change to get all the bearings lubricated. When you start the car after an oil change it takes a while to prime the pump and get oil to the bearings.

How long has it been between oil change and starting the vehicle???

The bearings will have plenty of residual oil (and AW tribal layer, likely) to assuage your concerns.

 

[raburn2906]

I like to warm up my oil with a glass of wine, some soft music, and maybe a little slow dancing before changing it...