Oil Change

I'm not opposed to doing my own oil change. However, what about winter time? You guys just get out in the driveway under the car onto the frozen ground/concrete?

Also, does the CX-9 even need ramps or jacking up? My car can't even make it onto conventional ramps (too steep). So it's just a complete pain in the neck.
 
If you use synthetic, you can probably get away with 8-10k every change. Just time it such that you do it around Thanksgiving and then 6 months after that, it's almost summer already. It'll work unless you drive more than 16-20k miles/year.

I have ramps, but I find it easier to jack up the car and use jack stands. Local auto parts store often sell jack and 2 stands for like $30 for a 2 ton on sale. Some even some with a trolley.

With my body frame, I can do the oil change on the CX-9 w/o jacking it up or using ramps.

If you are not going to keep the car long (say beyond 4 - 5 years), just have someone else do it. It's not your problem after that anyway. Chances are they'll do an ok job and even if they don't the problem won't manifest until after 50k miles and beyond, unless they really screwed up.
 
I do it flat on the ground. Easy.

If you have cold concrete, use a piece of cardboard and a big towel. Warm the car to normal operating temp, then park it where you will do the oil change and put the towel and cardboard under it to heat it up.

I have a toasty garage, but in the past still changed my oil.
 
I'm not opposed to doing my own oil change. However, what about winter time? You guys just get out in the driveway under the car onto the frozen ground/concrete?

Also, does the CX-9 even need ramps or jacking up? My car can't even make it onto conventional ramps (too steep). So it's just a complete pain in the neck.

I do it in the garage, on ramps. If it happens to be winter, a towel keeps you from transferring very much heat to the concrete. If you don't have a garage, I guess having it done makes sense, as you you have nowhere to keep the supplies, tools etc.
 
Well I bring my own oil and oil filter and watch every part of the process, and chat a bit too, so..... and pay less than 8 bucks!
By the way I like to use fully synthetic.
 
I expect similar arguments can be made for car washes, yard work, house work, etc. I try to do my own because it is easier than calling ahead for an appt or waiting for an hour to have the stuff changed. Also, it gets me outta the house on the weekends when the kids are being crazy!
 
Just a reminder that, manual specifically says that even if synthetic oil is used, you have to maintain the same change interval. Otherwise, Mazda could deny your warranty claim in case like the Toyota engine sludge problem a few years ago. This is the same for most (if not all) automakers. They allow you to use synthetic (why not), but they want you to stick to the change interval so that their dealerships can make $$$. Believe it or not, most dealerships make more money from services than selling new vehicles.

Case in point, the new 2010 Toyota Prius requires synthetic 0w-20 oil. However, the change interval remains at 5,000 miles. You can't find 0w unless it is synthetic.
 
SportsOwner,
The future of our world belongs to multiple energy sources, wind, solar, nuclear, etc.
I don't want to hijack this thread. If you are interested in this "green energy" discussion,
I can refer you to PriusChat.com (a very very active forum) with many professionals who
drive Prius. I have been a long-time member there.
 
SportsOwner,
The future of our world belongs to multiple energy sources, wind, solar, nuclear, etc.
I don't want to hijack this thread. If you are interested in this "green energy" discussion,
I can refer you to PriusChat.com (a very very active forum) with many professionals who
drive Prius. I have been a long-time member there.

Yeah, if we had a Prius I'd make my wife drive it as well. I suppose they figured out a green way to recycle those batteries and produce the electricity to power them without additional pollution.
 
Is the Prius such a green car though? It burns less gas, but what about the batteries? How much energy does it take to make them and recycle them (re: dust-to-dust life cycle)? Rhetorical questions obviously. I too have done my research.
 
"Is the Prius such a green car though?" No, it's not.

It's an attempt by car makers to LOOK like they are making more responsible cars while still feeding the oil companies. The money that was spent to develop hybrid technology could have put Hydrogen fuel cell cars on the road in equal numbers to hybrids. The cost one one new oil rig could have paid for the retrofit of stations to add H2 and start making it, which is cheap and easy.

Hydrogen can be made at the station with a solar panel on the canopy. The by-product of making the fuel is oxygen, not toxic chemicals. When you fill your car and drive it, you recombine that oxygen with the on board hydrogen, and get back the water you originally used to make the hydrogen, which is what comes out of the tailpipe. Perfect.

Fuel cell cars also use a permanent ultra capacitor, instead of a huge battery array, because they don't store the power, but generate it. They also use a lot less oil and grease, and what they do use can be made synthetically. Finally, an electric motor also has one moving part, vs. hundreds for an internal combustion, and has more torgue, even at 0 RPMs.

Hybrids are actually keeping the environment polluted longer, since now it will take a lot longer to replace gas and diesel with hydrogen.
 
Since DoE stopped funding for fuel cells, there's less and less incentive to pour more money into the research. Most major automakers have abandon this and going full force into electric and/or electric hybrid.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrogen_vehicle#Automobiles



Going forward GM Volt type of technology will be mainstream IMO. Nothing like the Prius or any other hybrid electric on the car right now.

Too much cost is involved when you don't already have the infrastructure for fuel cell.

E-85 was dead even before anyone out of MI know what it is.

Ford has a few fuel cell Focus being driven by one of the local city in Michigan and Honda has special FCX leasing ($600/month) in CA. I think that's about it for mainstream.
 
Yes, they do know how to build them already. Honda's FCX is estimated to cost $2million per. Lease them out for $600. You can tell they lose way more money per vehicle than say Sony does on PS3.

Coupled that with no infrastructure (otherwise E-85 might have taken off), lack of consumer knowledge (hydrogen?? Didn't that blimp exploded??) and unknown long term serviceability, it is a dead end, esp the buzz is now all electric.

Be prepared to see more next generation electric hybrid cars like GM Volt in the future and from BYD China.
 

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