I know that this is very basic... but im kinda a noob when it comes to mechanical stuff (im good with electronics...)

however, when changing the oil all you do is:
1 unscrew plug, let it drain
2 undo filter
3 rescrew plug
4 fill up new filter with new oil and lube the seal
5 screw new filter in
6 fill engine back up..

also is there anything else i have to look out for, i have read from searching that the plug tends to be a bastard to get out...

cheers guys

All is right except, You don't usually fill the new oil filter up with oil before you screw it on, just lube the seals with engine oil (thats what i do), when you fill it up with oil, make sure you don't over fill & when it looks right, run the engine for 10 seconds then check again as the oil hasn't ran through the filter yet...

1 unscrew plug, let it drain <--take the oil cap off the top to let the oil flow out faster

I made an oil change DIY with photos for the Focus forum
http://www.fordforums.com.au/showpost.php?p=2837030&postcount=16

I know you don't have a Focus but the principles are the same

yea exactly what he said, you don't need to fill the new filter with oil, just lube the seal, also make sure you don't overtighten the sump plug

Change the oil immediately after the car has had a run. The oil will be hot and any sludge will be mixed throught it. Hot oil flows out faster and drags more rubbish that may be in the bottom of the sump. Be careful not to get burned though. If you drain the oil with the car lifted at the front that gets more old oil out of the sump too. The Magna sump drain hole is very high and leaves 0.4lt behind.

It is a good move to almost fill the new filter with oil. This reduces the time it takes to get full oil flow to the engine vitals. The Magna filter sits vertical so its easy to fill before fitting.

Cheers,
Alan

make sure you wear gloves if you do it Alans way as HOT OIL is not very nice at all

yeah mate, i fill the filter, as it reduces time that the engine has little oil trough it on start up, never herd of draining it when hot, but ive done it once after a short cooldown period and oil was still hot, personally i change every 5000kms so i shouldnt have any sludge built up.
make sure you dispose of the oil properly, dont chuck it in the bin or down the drain. there are places that collect used oil

You'll need a 24mm Spanner/socket to get the sump plug out and a good angle to get to it. Bolt head's pretty shallow so try and find a relatively flat sided spanner (if using a spanner) to do it with, otherwise you might have trouble getting it undone without it jumping off the bolt head continually.

If you are going to do this job regularly, invest in a single hex 24 mm socket and torque wrench, and a spare sump plug - you will need them!

well the oil change is now complete.. and jesus has it made a difference..... a few ticks and rattles that were in the car when i bought it are now gone! (even the normal magna tick:woot:)

the oil was changed by midas at morphett vale SA about 2000kms ago and it barely made a difference when they did it. and the oil was still really brown after they completed it they just said because my oil was so bad it will take a few changes to fix but WTF are the on about... if you do a proper change that you let it drain for over 45mins and use really good oil you will be amazed

and thankyou to the people that bothered to post their help in this thread

/thread.

If you are going to do this job regularly, invest in a single hex 24 mm socket and torque wrench, and a spare sump plug - you will need them!

I'll agree there a merits in investing in a torque wrench, but a torque wrench for a sump plug?...never seen anyone go to the trouble...

Is it worth the trouble to get one of those magnetic sump plugs??

Is it worth the trouble to get one of those magnetic sump plugs??

save your money, if you want to do it, stick some magnets on the top of the oil filter.
but then again thats what the filter is for

I'll agree there a merits in investing in a torque wrench, but a torque wrench for a sump plug?...never seen anyone go to the trouble...

Mitsu sump plugs seem to weld themselves in if overtightened, then you end up destroying them. Waste of time and money fixing that problem. I do 3 oil changes a year, (on 3 different cars) so its worth my while to bring out the torque wrench. Also useful for other jobs, like wheel nuts - I have never had to get brake discs resurfaced due to brake wobbles. Not to mention engine rebuilds, like I've done 8 so far. Need I go on? I wouldn't start any job on my cars without first looking up torque wrench settings and gathering the sockets and wrench.

Is it worth the trouble to get one of those magnetic sump plugs??

Not really. They only catch iron and nickel based alloys, better used in an auto or man trans to stop bits floating around.

The sump plug is sealed with an o-ring, not the threads or the head of the bolt. As such it only needs to be nipped up, one hand on the ratchet and nip it up, no more.
Do that and you won't have any problems removing it next time.
Buy a stack of o-rings and change it each time and it won't leak.

Torque wrenches are an invaluable tool and absolutly necessary for an engine rebuild but IMHO not required for a sump plug.

True - 42Nm isn't very tight at all, but they sure tighten up between oil changes! Must undo mine with the wrench next time just to see how much.

Change the oil immediately after the car has had a run. The oil will be hot and any sludge will be mixed throught it. Hot oil flows out faster and drags more rubbish that may be in the bottom of the sump. Be careful not to get burned though. If you drain the oil with the car lifted at the front that gets more old oil out of the sump too. The Magna sump drain hole is very high and leaves 0.4lt behind.

It is a good move to almost fill the new filter with oil. This reduces the time it takes to get full oil flow to the engine vitals. The Magna filter sits vertical so its easy to fill before fitting.

Cheers,
Alan

Ditto. Have always drained my race bikes oil straight after a ride and still apply this principle to my cars. Just be careful, hot oil isnt fun when the wind catches it and blows it on your arm!!!

Yep hot oil, remove the bolt with a nice big thick rag, undo it while pushing up so oil doesn't go over you then get your hand out of there ASAP.

or undo it the last bit with a shifter with a nice long handle.