You have to take the wheel off? To change the oil?! 2019 Ranger

BTW - the king is some mid-1970s Pontiacs.

Pontiac engines were designed in the mid 1950s as a "one size fits all" engine.  A 287 was the same size externally as the later 455.  It had a spin-on oil filter tacked onto the passenger side for expedience.

The GM chassis in question, if I recall right (A-body?) was generally designed for fours and inline sixes in the late 1960s.

As emissions regulations started coming down, GM found it easier to just use larger engines that made less power in order to stay clean.  (Ah, 150hp big-blocks and 100hp small-blocks)  As the gas crunch arrived, they tried making smaller cars more palatable, so you got V8s in the smaller cars all the time instead of just as high performance options.  Then 1975 happened with the mandate for catalytic converters, which limited options as far as exhaust routing went.

You had to drop the exhaust system to remove the oil filter.

IIRC, there was a class action lawsuit that resulted in no labor cost for the oil change if you took it to the dealer.

Knurled. said:

You had to drop the exhaust system to remove the oil filter.

IIRC, there was a class action lawsuit that resulted in no labor cost for the oil change if you took it to the dealer.

^ That's hysterical. Ah, GM.

I owned a NA Miata for six years, this oil filter nonsense doesn't sound like any more of a pain than that stupid BP engine. Have been spoiled by BMW canister filters for the most part ever since. 

And it's all moot for now, too - when my Ford truck needs an oil change (2018 F150) or my last Ford truck needed an oil change (2011 F150) I'd take the newest "cheap oil change" coupon the dealer sent me, go over there whenever worked, and drink their coffee/work remotely while someone else got dirty. Not very GRM of me but the convenience is unparalleled.

I'm honestly surprised that the NA Miata doesn't have more of a reputation for it's awful oil filter placement, given how popular the car is with enthusiasts. Being a generally pretty easy car to work on, I was honestly shocked by what a PITA it was to get to that filter when I had mine.

New F-150s (and Expeditions) with the Ecoboost aren't much fun, either, though I have it down pretty good now. Big ole skid panel behind the engine has to come off or be moved to get to the drain plug, and the filter is up above the diff where you can barely see it, so  you mostly have to operate by feel. The main skid plate under the engine has two little rubber cover things that you have to remove to let the oil drain, but it never completely drains, so the truck always leaves spots for a day or two after a change.

The worst I ever had, though, was a 1990 Subaru Justy with the 3-banger. I'm not even sure that car had an oil filter. 3 different quickie lube type places tried and couldn't get to it. They all said to go to the dealer. I sold the car instead. 

E30 BMW filter placements are the greatest.  Front and center at the tope of the engine.

A buddy of mine bought his daughter a rental-spec Dodge Avenger.  Smart move because she's regularly plays bumper cars with it.  Stupid move because when things break it's a PITA to fix.

Starter died.  Took forever to access the bolts.  Eventually realized the only way to remove it is to remove the wheel and inner fender liner.  He probably should have checked Youtube before starting.  

Battery died.  Realized the only way to remove it is to remove the wheel and the inner fender liner.  

yupididit said:

I haven't done my own oil change on any of my running vehicles in years. If I bought a 2019 vehicle I certainly wouldn't be doing it on that vehicle either lol. 

Ford dealership oil changes + coupon + military discount. Yeah, I'll just keep paying lol. 

 

One time I went to my Ford dealer and bought brakes for our ford fusion. Went home and did them on my own. Checked the mail and the dealer had sent me a brakes special coupon. All pads and rotors + labor was cheaper than I bought the brakes for from the parts department. 

I'm with you on this. By the time I buy an OE filter and the fancy oil for the 135, it costs $15 in labor for my guy to do the oil change and have him just poke around under the hood for a sanity check. 

So for $15 I'll take not having to crawl around on the garage floor, pull out the jack, remove all the undertray stuff, then when it's done, don't have 7 quarts of dirty oil to take somewhere to be recycled. 

But this is our local indy guy that works on everything from BMWs to Ferrari's and Lambo's. So I trust him to do the work. But even when I used quik change places I've never had a problem in nearly 21 years and multiple vehicles. 

Most Hyundai/Kia's are really awesome. The filter faces up, so no mess and it's right next to the drain bolt so one pan covers both easily. The Theta's, Gamma's Alpha's and Beta's are all that way. 5 minute oil change on the garage floor. 

In reply to z31maniac :

I've noticed even with my E36 M3boxes its it's che to have the kwik lube guys do it. Honestly though, I always hope to become one of the kwik lube horror stories so I get a new vehicle out of it, but never had a problem.

Mazdaspeed miata - Oil filter out of sight and just about out of reach.  Not to mention it is impossible to unscrew it without dumping oil everywhere.

WRX Subaru - exhaust manifold surrounds it.

Honda Odyssey - filter dumps oil on chassis brace.  I made a sleeve out of a milk carton to re-direct the oil to a drain pan to avoid this.

Ford Edge - take off the bottom splash guard to get to filter, 8 screws at least.  Easy after that. 

Nissan Altima - take off splash guard to get to filter or take off right front wheel - your choice.   Horizontal filter so watch for spills.

1997 Ford Ranger with 4.0 liter - I love this one - filter and drain plug easily accessible and you can drain both at the same time. 

Honda CRX - oil filter that a person with large hands could never get to.  At least it mostly drained back to the pan if you let it set overnight. 

And lets not even discuss all the engines with spark plugs in tight places...

bobzilla said:

Most Hyundai/Kia's are really awesome. The filter faces up, so no mess and it's right next to the drain bolt so one pan covers both easily. The Theta's, Gamma's Alpha's and Beta's are all that way. 5 minute oil change on the garage floor. 

our '14 Mazda 6 with the 2.5 is this way. 2 screws and the little cover in the belly pan pops out, vertical filter and drain plug are right there. The only PITA is the full belly pan and low clearance mean you really have to use ramps because getting a jack AND jack stands under it is problematic. And really, the ramps are much easier than jacking, but you do have to pony up the $ for a set of long low-angle ramps.

My only problem with honda oil filters on b and d series cars was how messy oil changes are, apparently there is a tool that makes it cleaner, but my drain pan is always slightly off and the oil coming out of the filter area sometimes doesnt go right where I predict it. 

AnthonyGS said:

 Auto makers would be happiest if tools were banned for sale to the public. 

I KNEW IT!
 

Knurled. said:

Try getting to the oil filter on a final-gen pushrod 2.2 Cavalier with an automatic.   You can see the thing, but the only way to access it is either with reed-thin arms

This is exactly why I had to have my wife help me with oil changes on her car. I couldn't get my arm in there much past my wrist. I eventually used an extension and oil filter wrench to break it loose, then used one of those old-person grabby things to finish up.

bobzilla said:

Most Hyundai/Kia's are really awesome. The filter faces up, so no mess and it's right next to the drain bolt so one pan covers both easily. The Theta's, Gamma's Alpha's and Beta's are all that way. 5 minute oil change on the garage floor. 

Except for the cars and SUVs in 2015. Do they really need 18 bolts too hold plastic on?

What is the oil change interval on this with synthetic? Good chance this is a once a year ordeal. 

My favorite so far has been the 3.0 Diesel in a 2008 Grand Cherokee:

Cartridge filter right on top of the engine, and it had enough ground clearance that I didn't even have to jack it up to drain it. 

artur1808 said:

My favorite so far has been the 3.0 Diesel in a 2008 Grand Cherokee:

Cartridge filter right on top of the engine, and it had enough ground clearance that I didn't even have to jack it up to drain it. 

Exactly.  My TDI VW's have had similar filter access, and my current BMW 335D does as well.  I'm amazed something with fleet sale potential wouldn't have something like this as a selling feature.  

In addition the BMW's even give you a little quarter turn window door in the bottom shielding so you don't have to remove the skid plate plastic cover underbody things to change the oil.  There may be German over-engineering in many other aspects, but this is so simple it hurts that it's not implemented more often.  

There's probably less cost in implenting this simple drain plug access door vs. having something with 9 push pins and it's own separate panel or the dealer incurred costs of removing/stripping/replacing 10 belly pan retaining hardware pieces over time.    

I guess I'm just surprised how many people just shrug and say "yeah that's fine", even amongst this crowd when there are such easily implemented better ways to do this.  We've had engines requiring oil changes for what.... 120+ years?    

While I appreciate it when an oil change is easy I can't bring myself to get too worked up over having to remove a panel, turn or remove a wheel or clean up some oil when doing one. 

This seems positively logical  and simple compared to doing *anything* on my Elise.

I used to let the Indy Toyota place do the oil changes on our GX470.  They'd do it for $29, totally worth it vs me getting dirty.  I overlooked the fact that they'd always break the plastic push pins on the engine covers and never replace them.

However one time they literally poured oil all over the front of the engine.  To the point that it was creating a noticeable spot on my garage floor.  When we brought it back to them they wanted to keep the car for an entire day, take off all the front covers, pressure wash it and then check for leaks.  Oh yeah, and charge us for all of that!  When I pointed out they'd just done an oil change, all I got was a shrug.

Oh, F you then!  They weren't that much less than the dealer for service items and the dealer gives us a brand new Lexus to drive.  Now I do the oil changes myself.

xflowgolf said:

artur1808 said:

My favorite so far has been the 3.0 Diesel in a 2008 Grand Cherokee:

Cartridge filter right on top of the engine, and it had enough ground clearance that I didn't even have to jack it up to drain it. 

Exactly.  My TDI VW's have had similar filter access, and my current BMW 335D does as well.  I'm amazed something with fleet sale potential wouldn't have something like this as a selling feature.  

In addition the BMW's even give you a little quarter turn window door in the bottom shielding so you don't have to remove the skid plate plastic cover underbody things to change the oil.  There may be German over-engineering in many other aspects, but this is so simple it hurts that it's not implemented more often.  

 

There's probably less cost in implenting this simple drain plug access door vs. having something with 9 push pins and it's own separate panel or the dealer incurred costs of removing/stripping/replacing 10 belly pan retaining hardware pieces over time.    

I guess I'm just surprised how many people just shrug and say "yeah that's fine", even amongst this crowd when there are such easily implemented better ways to do this.  We've had engines requiring oil changes for what.... 120+ years?    

I'm also noticing how much oil is getting on the door and around it, inevitably attracting a bunch of dirt and grime on the top and bottom of that panel.

The best would be to use the suction things like my mechanic does, don't even have to get the car off the ground. But then I still have to dispose of the oil.

Our Cayenne Diesel has a top mounted filter.  I've tried to use my Griots oil extractor on it but no luck.  I just do it the old fashioned way, which kinda sucks as diesel oil is super dirty!

In reply to xflowgolf :

Except when BMW decided to forgo the dipstick.  I remember hearing from all those people who had to see the dealer every time a sensor acted up.

xflowgolf said:

I guess I'm just surprised how many people just shrug and say "yeah that's fine", even amongst this crowd when there are such easily implemented better ways to do this.  We've had engines requiring oil changes for what.... 120+ years?    

It's not that it's fine. It sucks. But it's nothing new.

Tom_Spangler said:

I'm honestly surprised that the NA Miata doesn't have more of a reputation for it's awful oil filter placement, given how popular the car is with enthusiasts.

The Miata gets away with it because the oil change is the worst job on the entire car. I've learned that when people use the word "difficult" in the context of a Miata, it means more than one tool is required. The second tool required for the oil change is a friend with small hands.

bludroptop said:

I dunno, that's the same procedure used on my '94 Nissan P/U.  

I do the R front wheel on the Mazdaspeed Miata.  I use a disposable diaper to catch the oil that drips out of it, make a little oil catcher out of aluminum foil or just don't worry about it because it really does not make much mess.

What is the problem with this again?  The BMW no dipstick thing was a deal breaker for me.