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Today I have been quoted £18.99 for an oil and filter change on the Laguna, Using semi synth oil. It was by those boy's in the blue outfits, does anyone know of any cheaper deals around? This one looks pretty good to me - not worth getting under the car to do it myself at this price.
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Its cheap enough, just make sure that you respond "you've just sprayed WD40 on it" when they say "you're shocks are leaking"
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I read often, only post occasionally
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Is the oil changed by syphoning out through the dipstick tube, or by removing the sump plug?
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National Tyres used to do oil changes for under £20. They used to use Duckhams oil in various grades plus they stamped my service book. It's been a few years since I used them though.
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National still does oil and filter changes at keen prices - I pay £15 for a Duckhams semi-synthetic and oil filter change.
Difficult to buy the oil and filter for that even at a motor factors and you'd still have to do the work yourself and get rid of the old oil and filter afterwards.
National also charges half-price for MOTs. That's all it's cost me for the two tests my car's had since I acquired it in 2003.
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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Is the oil changed by syphoning out through the dipstick tube, or by removing the sump plug?
I didn't actually ask, is there more of a problem with syphoning then? Oil isn't a major problem on this car, has had magnatec in it for the last 12000 and has only used about 500ml to top it up in that time - still very clear on the dipstick as well. I assume syphoning leaves more residue of the old oil and so could cause more problems, but on a 10 yr old car with 110k on the clock is this really an issue!!
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National's oil and filter change is done properly at the depot I go to. It takes around half-a-hour, the staff are very thorough and I even get some top-up oil as only four-and-a-half of the five litres allowed is used.
Actually my VW never needs topping up (as with my previous two VWs), so the spare oil goes to a good cause...:-)
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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Thanks, I will give them a call and see what their prices are like.
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I didn't actually ask, is there more of a problem with syphoning then? I assume syphoning leaves more residue of the old oil and so could cause more problems,
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From what I have read on a MB USA forum, that I unfortunately cannot find, this has been explored.
The sump of a MB was removed to check what was left after both methods were used.
Contrary to what many might expect the draing of the sump via the sump plug left more residue.
All I could find was the DIY detailed, illustrated instructions.
www.mercedesshop.com/Wikka/OilFilter1
And the text
Mercedes engines have been designed to have their oil sucked out through the dipstick tube since the 80s. If you drain the oil by pulling the oil pan drain plug, you definitely will get less oil out than when using the Topsider. I did a test almost 5 years ago to prove it to myself.
From what I understand small boat engines do not have oil changes via the sump plug and IMO their engines are pretty important.
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At the the other end of the scale and, by coincidence, a subject which prompted me to email HJ at the weekend, I was charged £107.79 by an Alfa dealer for an oil and filter change last week. I need hardly add it's the last time they will be doing this work for me. I went there because the car is still under warranty; by avoiding those prices it wouldn't be long before I save the price of an engine rebuild.
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>>I was charged £107.79 >>
Good job you weren't having a full service....:-)
Surely some mistake with that price?
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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Is the oil changed by syphoning out through the dipstick tube, or by removing the sump plug?
I tried siphoning oil out via the dipstick tube to correct an overfill situation and it took an eternity to remove about 0.25 litres. The oil just dribbled out of the siphoning tube. The oil was warm and I had the outlet end of the tube as low as I could get it.
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L\'escargot.
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I'm pretty sure I saw HJ saying in print recently that you should not syphon oil out of a car engine unless there is no other option. That seems intuitively right to me, although the MB evidence is interesting.
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There's all sorts of kit you can buy for DIY use, both manual (vaccuum) and electric (pump). Garages have professional level kit that sucks the oil out pretty quickly.
I've seen the report that henry k mentions too. Smart's apparently don't have a sump plug at all - the only way to change the oil is to suck it out.
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True about smarts. The first service consists of this and little else and you'll pay around £150 for the privilege (the Alfa owner got a bargain!).
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True about smarts. The first service consists of this and little else and you'll pay around £150 for the privilege (the Alfa owner got a bargain!).
Same thing on a C Class Merc is £250. The dealers charge top whack for the oil (fully synth) - typically £10-12/litre. Most 'ordinary' Merc's hold 6.5L, so with VAT you're getting towards £100 just for the oil.
Apparently you can buy the same stuff in supermarkets in France for under 20 Euros for 4L.
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