Oil and filter Change

jo.king

Guys,

I’m about to get an oil and filter change in my car as i have been advised that to do this regularly it is good for the car i.e. keeping the engine clean ect.

Are there any other reasons for getting this, should i see a performance increase in the car afterwards?

Thanks,

Jo.

franksm

jo.king wrote:

Are there any other reasons for getting this, should i see a performance increase in the car afterwards?

It's just good for the car - can't really say anything more or less than that. You may see an increase in the engine's willingness to rev, but it'll no doubt be smoother/quieter after a change

Seth Brundle

In theory the engine should run smoother but the main reason is that as oil gets more mileage, it loses its properties and also builds up with crud

jo.king

Thanks guys - is there anything else which is important to get done...eg air filter...

franksm

oil and filter - change every 6,000 miles (or like me, every 3,000 )
air filter - every 12,000 miles
sparkplugs - every 12,000 miles
fuel filter - every 24,000 miles
brake fluid - every 36,000 miles
coolant - every 36,000 miles
timing belt - depends on the car, but normally needs changed every 48K to 60K miles)

You should pop the wheels off and check how much pad material is left on the brake pads.

Hmmm... can't think what else. A Haynes manual, or whatever, will list out the service items in the first chapter.

Plugs and filters should be DIY-able as is the oil change (although in many years of doing so, I still haven't managed the knack of changing oil without spilling any)

junii

I know a guy who had an old renualt. It was a petrol. He changed the oil every 3000 miles. When he got rid of it there was 330,000 miles on the clock and it was still going grand!

jo.king

franksm - just whst im looking for - thanks!

franksm

no probs

I forgot to mention changing gearbox and diff oil. Once introduced to the smell/taste of gearbox oil, you never forget it.

What sort of car are you talking about ? Some are easier than others. Would hate to work on an A-class Merc for example, with the engine buried 1/2 under the car.

jo.king

its an Alfa 156 1.6 - not looking forward to what your going to say next - but i do love it!!

junii

franksm wrote:

no probs

I forgot to mention changing gearbox and diff oil. Once introduced to the smell/taste of gearbox oil, you never forget it.

What sort of car are you talking about ? Some are easier than others. Would hate to work on an A-class Merc for example, with the engine buried 1/2 under the car.

How often do you do the gearbox oil?

franksm

heh heh

Class enough !

Was going to say that the sparkplugs might be "fun" to work on, but according to the DIY pages here, it doesn't look bad at all - just that they are secured under a cover and in some sort of bracketry.

http://www.alfa156.net/

Dunno if there's a Haynes manual for the 156 yet ?

franksm

junii wrote:

How often do you do the gearbox oil?

Can't remember the "proper" duration on my car, but I have been doing it every 48,000 miles - did it for the second time a few months back, gearbox felt notchy before-hand, and like new afterwards. The oil in the diff came out looking fine, so other than checking the level, I'm not sure the diff oil was worth changing. Anyway, it's cheap enough - about 8 euro for oil for the diff, and 16 euro for oil for the gearbox

junii

hmmmm, I might change mine.

franksm

junii wrote:

hmmmm, I might change mine.

What sort of car junii ?

I only know about RWD cars (separate gearbox and diff), here's the procedure for such a car: http://www.miata.net/garage/trans/08.htm

A front-wheel-drive car will be different...

junii

Ahhh well mine is just a 1.4 sunny. I have the haynes manual for it so its probably in there...

Lex Luthor

jo.king wrote:

its an Alfa 156 1.6 - not looking forward to what your going to say next - but i do love it!!

jo...I'll get out my manual tonight and put up the proper service intervals for the 156. Did you not get a manual or service manual with the car? How about service history...???

Watch out for the timing belt change on them....every 40k miles MAX...otherwise you are asking for trouble.

The service interval on the 156 is every 12k miles, so its oil & filter @ 12k, air filter @ 24k, plugs @ 60k cos they are plantinum but not cheap. These are from memory, but I'll get the rest later or just post a scan.

junii

Lex Luthor wrote:

jo...I'll get out my manual tonight and put up the proper service intervals for the 156. Did you not get a manual or service manual with the car? How about service history...???

Watch out for the timing belt change on them....every 40k miles MAX...otherwise you are asking for trouble.

The service interval on the 156 is every 12k miles, so its oil & filter @ 12k, air filter @ 24k, plugs @ 60k cos they are plantinum but not cheap. These are from memory, but I'll get the rest later or just post a scan.

Whats twin spark all about?

mike65

Two plugs per cylinder.

Mike.

junii

mike65 wrote:

Two plugs per cylinder.

Mike.

And what difference does it make?

mike65

Better, cleaner burn which provides more bang for the buck.

Mike.

Guy:Incognito

franksm wrote:

What sort of car are you talking about ? Some are easier than others. Would hate to work on an A-class Merc for example, with the engine buried 1/2 under the car.

Funnily enough, the only car I've done myself was the ex's Aclass earlier this year, it was dead handy. The only thing remotely out of the way was the oil filter thats just down behind the engine block but a socket set with the extention bar reaches it no bother.

Gonna give the clio a go myself soon.

alias no.9

I'm not sure if everything on the 1.6 is the same as the 1.8, if it is, the locations of the varoius things you need are as follows:

Undertray - this is held on by 3 or 4 screws along the leading edge of the bumper, 1 in front of each wheel arch and 1 behind each wheel arch

Sump Plug - rear corner of the sump closest to the gearbox. It's a long reach, but it can be undone with the wheels on the ground. You'll need a good 8mm hex wrench with a long handle. A cheapo one won't do.

Oil Filter - on a housing low down in the engine bay, between the engine block and the radiator (it's the most conveniently located oil filter I've ever changed)

Air Filter - the filter box is just behind the near side headlight. The air ducting between the filter box and air flow meter must come off to change the filter. If any debris falls off the old filter into the filter box, be careful to clean it all out. The filter is tubular in shape and mounted vertically with the air flow from the outside to the inside. Any debris at the bottom of the box is inside the fliter and can get sucked up into the engine and could damage the airflow meter on the way.

The twin sparks are necessary for emissions control.

<edit> An air filter, oil filter and sump plug washer should cost ~€35 from a dealer. Oil should cost aboud the same for decent stuff</edit>

jo.king

This is great info lads - how much should a timing belt change cost? Thanks...

jo.king

...anybody?

Dilbert75

Think it cost one of my mates about €550 with a non-franchise garage on his 2.0 Twin Spark. He had to get the variator done too - don't know if that applies to yours but I understand its very important.

I believe the spark plugs are very expensive from Alfa - he got his from UK, along with a replacement Mass Air Flow sensor, and saved a small fortune on them. He says the performance difference is very noticeable.