[Dutch]

I have to say that doing my first oil change on the Volt was even easier than I expected. In fact it's easier than doing my Jeep.

Tools

• 10mm Socket
• Funnel
• Filter Wrench
• Oil catch container
• 4qt of DEXOS 5W30 full synthetic oil
• Oil Filter
• Towels

oh, and a set of Rhino Ramps which are a far better idea than jacking the car up.

Basically I then just followed my own car knowledge, and the specific details from the FAQ (see this post) and had at it.

After a quick "Engine powered" test drive, I double checked that the drain plug was back at 124 lb in of torque and then DONE.

One note: The specs say 3.7qt of oil with a filter change. I found that 3qt seems to actually be the right amount in my car.

 

[somms]

One note: The specs say 3.7qt of oil with a filter change. I found that 3qt seems to actually be the right amount in my car.

Ditto. 3 quarts will get my Gen1 right to the midpoint of the 'acceptable range' on the dipstick following oil & filter change and I have stopped there the last 2 oil changes. Not sure why folks really want to overfill the oil with almost another full quart!?

 

[Sean-a-Tron]

The only thing that really makes doing your own oil change sucky is when the filter is in a stupid location. Good to know that the Volt's oil filter is easily accessible. My old impala had it stuck above the front passenger wheel hub and that was a true pain-in-the-ass to replace.

 

[llninja]

Although I am fully capable of changing my oils, I'm having the dealership change the oil until the powertrain warranty is done. A close friend of mine blew an engine in his Chrysler Conquest and Mopar wouldn't honor their 100k drivetrain wattsnty citing the car blew the engine because of a low oil condition. He couldn't produce records of regular oil changes since he had sloppy record keeping and a combination of jiffy lube and doing it himself. My dealership charges something like $70 per oil change for the volt (despite their regular oil change price of $26). Since I've only had to do it 3 times so far at 78k miles, it's still a bargain compared to the days when I changed my oil every 2500-3000 miles. But the day my powertrain warranty is exhausted, I'll be with you in the garage changing my oil and using Mobil 1.

Funny thing about Mobil 1, why is it that walmart's prices are about $10 lower than everybody else's?

Plus, what is everyone's favorite filter brand, and why?

 

[Dutch]

Although I am fully capable of changing my oils, I'm having the dealership change the oil until the powertrain warranty is done.

Understandable. I'm a records keeping fanatic so I'm pretty sure I'll be okay.

My dealership charges something like $70 per oil change for the volt (despite their regular oil change price of $26).

Mine was advertising $30 oil changes but when I brought the Volt in they said "oh, thats full synthetic, that will be $72.99. I looked at the service representative and said "you know there are laws about bait-and-switch? and left there furious enough to chew wire and spit nails.

Funny thing about Mobil 1, why is it that walmart's prices are about $10 lower than everybody else's?
Plus, what is everyone's favorite filter brand, and why?

Yeah I noticed that myself. In fact I took photos of the bottles so I could compare them, but it's the same stuff.

I'm sticking with the AC Delco PF65 (OEM filter) for now although I've read in several places that the FRAM XG3387A (Ultra Synthetic) is supposed to actually be an excellent filter

(NOTE: I am NOT talking about the standard FRAM PH3387A “Extra Guard” which is a pretty piss-poor filter).

 

[somms]

Understandable. I'm a records keeping fanatic so I'm pretty sure I'll be okay.

The my.chevrolet.com site for the Volt has a convenient self-entered service history in order to track my annual owner performed oil&filter changes which makes any type of documentation paper trail a non-issue!

 

[El Dobro]

My guess for the Mobil 1 difference in price is because dealers don't buy Mobil 1 in bulk like Walmart can. As for synthetic prices for the Volt, Dexos 1 has been full synthetic at the dealer I go to for over half a year now and the prices went up very little after the switch. If you go to the Chevrolet website, you can print out oil change coupons.
http://www.chevrolet.com/content/da...vy-site-print-all_spring_oil_4_withRotors.pdf

 

[alfon]

I have been changing oil in my cars since I was 16 years old, now I'm 66. Back when I was a kid oil cans were metal and had to be opened with a can opener. Also oil needed to be changed quite often. In my 61 Ford Falcon, strait 6 cylinder, manual with three speed on the steering column, anybody remember that, I changed oil every 2,000 miles with a new oil filter.

I never had to change oil with our Volt. Our first Volt, a 2014, was purchased back in Oct. 2013. Had a free oil change, and traded it for our new 2016 Volt, before the oil had to be changed.

With our 2016 Volt I plan on using the best, in my opinion, synthetic motor oil you can buy, Mobil One, 0w20 Extended Performance, Dexos 2, approved. I remember back in the 1970's Mobil Oil came out with their first synthetic motor oil for cars. As far as I know Mobil was the first and had many decades to improve on their formula more so than any other brand.

Maybe its me but there is a certain amount of pride when you change your own oil. It also gives you a little time to check all the fluids etc. in your engine bay. With our Volt I would imagine 20,000 miles or more between oil changes will be the rule. As we have over 50% oil life left and 15,500 miles on the odometer...

 

[El Dobro]

I remember Arco's response to Mobil 1, nasty looking stuff.

 

[Raymondjram]

I have changed engine oil since 1967 and I still do. I began using Mobil 1 in all my vehicles since 1981 when they were sold in polished steel cans at Mobil gas stations. My present 2009 Chevy Equinox has a tall ride height such that I need no jack, stands, or ramps to get at the filter or the drain plug. And the PF-47 oil filter is perfectly vertical, so removal and replacement is quite easy.

One item I learned to do (if the oil filter is vertical) is to prefill the filter with almost a pint (500 ml) of the engine oil before installing it. This prevents any dry running of the engine which can happen for the first ten seconds after an oil change if the filter is installed empty. My two previous cars lasted over twenty years each with no engine repairs. I improved the protection after they passed the ten year mark by adding a can/jug of STP Oil Treatment into the fill hole before pouring the new oil. It does work and I recommend STP for older gas engines to compensate for increased part clearance due to normal wear:
http://www.stp.com/products/oil-additives/oil-treatment

 

[Cheburashka]

The my.chevrolet.com site for the Volt has a convenient self-entered service history in order to track my annual owner performed oil&filter changes which makes any type of documentation paper trail a non-issue!

I'd be cautious about whether that constitutes "documentation." I've been maintaining my '10 Suzuki at home, and the maintenance log is now three times its original thickness because of stapled-in receipts. From what I've heard, you need documentation that you purchased the new oil. With something as expensive as engine failure, I'm not going to trust the warranty folks to take my word for it.

 

[Dutch]

I have been changing oil in my cars since I was 16 years old, now I'm 66. Back when I was a kid oil cans were metal and had to be opened with a can opener. Also oil needed to be changed quite often. In my 61 Ford Falcon, strait 6 cylinder, manual with three speed on the steering column, anybody remember that, I changed oil every 2,000 miles with a new oil filter.

I'm with ya. Pushing 50 here and I've been working on mechanical stuff since I was 10 (farm boy).
LOL, I have one of these hanging on the wall in my garage for "old times sake".

 

[turboguy327]

Understandable. I'm a records keeping fanatic so I'm pretty sure I'll be okay.

Mine was advertising $30 oil changes but when I brought the Volt in they said "oh, thats full synthetic, that will be $72.99. I looked at the service representative and said "you know there are laws about bait-and-switch? and left there furious enough to chew wire and spit nails.


Yeah I noticed that myself. In fact I took photos of the bottles so I could compare them, but it's the same stuff.

I'm sticking with the AC Delco PF65 (OEM filter) for now although I've read in several places that the FRAM XG3387A (Ultra Synthetic) is supposed to actually be an excellent filter

(NOTE: I am NOT talking about the standard FRAM PH3387A “Extra Guard” which is a pretty piss-poor filter).

All fram filters are terrible. The media comes apart. They don't make oil filters. They make filter media encased in metal.

 

[turboguy327]

If you want a true synthetic skip Mobil 1 hype and go for amsoil. It allows me 20,000 mile intervals in my deleted 2012 cummins. Verified by blackstone. And i use all 1100ft lbs.

 

[llninja]

I have changed engine oil since 1967 and I still do. I began using Mobil 1 in all my vehicles since 1981 when they were sold in polished steel cans at Mobil gas stations. My present 2009 Chevy Equinox has a tall ride height such that I need no jack, stands, or ramps to get at the filter or the drain plug. And the PF-47 oil filter is perfectly vertical, so removal and replacement is quite easy.

One item I learned to do (if the oil filter is vertical) is to prefill the filter with almost a pint (500 ml) of the engine oil before installing it. This prevents any dry running of the engine which can happen for the first ten seconds after an oil change if the filter is installed empty. My two previous cars lasted over twenty years each with no engine repairs. I improved the protection after they passed the ten year mark by adding a can/jug of STP Oil Treatment into the fill hole before pouring the new oil. It does work and I recommend STP for older gas engines to compensate for increased part clearance due to normal wear:
http://www.stp.com/products/oil-additives/oil-treatment

Why wait to the year 10 mark on the car, why not start from the first oil change?

 

[TheBlueFlash]

Is that oil additive stuff safe to use in the Volt engine? I bet GM would not recommend it. Otherwise, wouldn't they recommend in the maintenance schedule, "hey go ahead and add a few cups of STP oil additive with each oil change."

 

[Barry]

I'm a real DIY guy, and I do a lot of minor maintenance and minor repairs on my cars, but I have never gotten into doing oil changes. Considering the trouble, mess, having to deal with the used oil, and the cost of the supplies, it just seems like a great deal to get it done at a garage, especially with a coupon.

 

[Raymondjram]

Why wait to the year 10 mark on the car, why not start from the first oil change?

I did this on my second oil change in my Chevy Equinox (after the free changes at the dealer) and I now do it once a year. I mentioned this because I didn't research the benefits of STP until my previous cars were older. STP increases the viscosity which helps in older vehicles with worn parts but it will reduce the MPG in a new vehicle, such as the Chevy Volt. If GM allowed it, it would have been in the owner manual, wouldn't it? That is why "TheBlueFlash" is asking.

 

[llninja]

I'm a real DIY guy, and I do a lot of minor maintenance and minor repairs on my cars, but I have never gotten into doing oil changes. Considering the trouble, mess, having to deal with the used oil, and the cost of the supplies, it just seems like a great deal to get it done at a garage, especially with a coupon.

I like to do my own oil changes (after the powertrain warranty is expired) and tire rotations (which I have stopped doing altogether) because I hate how the meatheads in the service department just take an impact wrench to everything and torque way beyond the specs. It's easy to strip the oil pan plug and on more than one instance, after they touched the tires, I had warped rotors shortly afterwards. Maybe it was a coincidence, but I think it is more likely they overtorqued causing the warp. One time they forced a nut onto the threads crooked and kept torquing to the point that i couldn't get the bolt off (this was on an older Deville) even with a 1/2 inch 6 sided socket, a breaker bar, and a 4 foot pipe as leverage.

I've even gone so far as to take 4 wheels and tires off the car to get new tires then bolt them onto the car myself because I didn't want them to touch my car.

 

[Dutch]

Is that oil additive stuff safe to use in the Volt engine? I bet GM would not recommend it. Otherwise, wouldn't they recommend in the maintenance schedule, "hey go ahead and add a few cups of STP oil additive with each oil change."

From everything I have read the best I can say is that it's not "un-safe", however with a modern and low run-time engine like the Volt's I can't see why you'd spend the money.

Now as to some of the older and high mileage vehicles (like my Jeep) there might be some actual benefit to additives. I know my Jeep likes to "drink" about 1/2 qt of oil every 3,000 miles so about once a year I like to replace that 1/2 quart with marvel mystery oil for about a week and then do my oil change. Does it actually help anything? I don't know for sure except that I'm at 260k miles with astoundingly clean internals on my engine whereas a lot of Jeeps with the 4.0 get pretty sludgy as they age.