You have a dilemma on your hands: should you change your own oil filter or take the car to the shop? The Pleasanton auto parts team at Rock & Roll Auto Recycling wants to make your decision easier, so here’s our quick guide to filter replacement.

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Oil filters are super cheap. At most, they should only cost you $10. But when should you change the filter? That simple question is quite a loaded one! The answer depends on how frequently you drive, the condition of your vehicle, what types of roads you typically drive over, the performance and quality of your engine, and, of course, the owner’s manual’s recommendations. If you drive a lot on dusty roads, idle a lot, carry heavy loads, or go on lots of short trips, change your filter sooner than later.

The Tools

You will need a bunch of tools for the job, including: newspaper and rags, your new filter (of course!), blocks of wood, new oil (one quart should be enough), gloves, a flashlight, and possibly a ramp or other surface to elevate the automobile.

The 7 Simple Steps – Actually Changing the Filter

1. Your first step: park the vehicle and set the brakes (for obvious reasons).
2. Next, set the wood blocks in front of and behind one of the back tires, so that the car does not move. Let the vehicle cool off, or the filter might burn you.
3. Next, find the filter (your manual should help you locate it) and extract it. That’s where the gloves come in!
4. Drop the yucky, oozy filter on the newspaper and wipe the old filter off with your cloth rags. Unscrew it, being careful not to spill the old oil all over your clothes. Even if you’re wearing your “work in the backyard” clothes, it can feel nasty to get warm oil all over your clothes and body.
5. Toss the old filter and replace it with the new one.
6. Follow the steps in reverse.
7. You’re done!

Ultimately, it’s a super simple job, especially if you have the right components.

Unfortunately, many car owners get surprisingly intimidated. They wind up spending a tremendous amount of money. Save yourself some cash, and purchase quality used auto parts instead. Rock & Roll Auto Recycling has a huge inventory of used auto parts, including great oil filters for a diverse catalog of vehicles, to help you fix up your car and enhance its performance. We ship auto parts all over the US, even Hawaii.