Agree with it or not, but this is a real mans tool! If you own one its because you don't need another man changing your cars oil or doing regular maintenance.
Agree with it or not, but this is a real mans tool! If you own one its because you don't need another man changing your cars oil or doing regular maintenance.
Pete 023
You serious? See that's what's wrong with kids now days! No work ethic. "I'll just sit here on my iPhone living in a virtual world while my car gets serviced looking at Pinterest, and I'll eventually get home 3 hours later and get home in time to tell the landscaper how I want him to trim my bush".
Man up bro!
Yea but nowadays u can get a regular oil change for 20-25 bucks, so not really worth spending the time and getting all greased up to save a few bucks
There's the satisfaction of knowing it was done right. You can use a better oil and filter if you DIY for the same cost. I use mobil1 full synthetic and a good filter for about $32. You also get to do it on your schedule and not waste time driving there and back and waiting.
Yea but nowadays u can get a regular oil change for 20-25 bucks, so not really worth spending the time and getting all greased up to save a few bucks
Be sure you actually WATCH that oil and filter change being done, that you're getting the right oil for your car and the correct filter, that the drain plug isn't being over-torqued, that the old filter gasket was removed, etc. Did your car's oil come out of a big drum? How do you know what's actually in it? Think oil change shops are honest? Think again!!!
Yea but nowadays u can get a regular oil change for 20-25 bucks, so not really worth spending the time and getting all greased up to save a few bucks
It takes about 10X as long to drive back and forth to a quick change place and have them do it, than to DIY, and then you don't risk them cross threading the bolt or over torquing it or the filter, and don't have them mucking around under your hood trying to sell you more services.
The person doing your oil change is usually an incompetent idiot trained more in upselling services than actually doing the work.
Plus, they usually charge a premium for synthetic oil while I've gotten dozens of quarts in recent years for less than half what the quick change places charge for a synthetic oil change, and used a decent filter instead of whatever was the cheapest thing they could find. Plus they're in a hurry, usually don't let it sit long enough to get the last bit of old oil drained out.
Having written that, I never need one of these strap wrenches, just to wipe the filter off first then a rubber glove for grip, unless the last person who changed the oil over torqued the filter, though I suppose over torquing it a little beats under torquing it then having it come off while driving.
Calm down nerds. I've changed oil for years, but the last few years, my dealership sends me a coupon for $20 oil change every few months, so with tax and everything it's like $25 bucks, and with an appointment, it takes less than an hour. So now I don't have to worry bout storing the oil, disposing of it, and dealing with the whole mess of changing it. They will try to upsell but you can decline it all
^ Sure, you can pay someone to do anything in life then you never need tools, but the work is usually lower quality and the cost usually higher. You might say not much higher one at a time but it adds up to thousands of dollars over the life of a vehicle, unless you sell it early on and eat the thousands lost from newer vehicle depreciation instead.
If all else fails you can just drill a hole in the side of a filter and stick a screwdriver in to get leverage, IF you have access to the side, though it seems odd to me that there aren't more filters with a nut welded on the bottom so you can use a standard wrench.
What would that cost, 3 cents more? Then again that would result in some kid at an oil change shop using a torque wrench to over torque it so much that it deformed the casing.
I change the oil in my cars myself and can have it knocked out (including pulling out my equipment and putting it away) in about 20 minutes. By doing it myself, I know that the oil drain plug is screwed in correctly, that the oil that I paid for is actually the oil that's put in the engine, and that the filter is installed correctly.
I have also changed the oil in my parents' car after they've had it changed at an oil change place and the filters used at those places are significantly smaller than even the ones available at Wally world or the parts store.
For such an important and frequent regular maintenance task, I only know it's done right if I did it myself!
^ Good point that I'd forgotten about. Quick change places usually don't stock every filter size out there, instead just a few in each diameter and threading that they use on multiple vehicles. In that regard you're more likely to get the right filter from a dealership, providing it's a dealership for your make of vehicle.
On the other hand when you DIY... my mower has an oversized Toyota Camry 3.0L filter on it that cost half as much as the OEM filter.
Avoid these "can crushers" and use an "end cap" type wrench. Almost all the standard filters these day are so flimsy that U can get into trouble with a stuck-on filter...usually from some maroon at the quickee lube or factory not oiling the gasket before install. I've got a decades-old Delco endcap wrench that I'll never wear out. Left over from the days that Detroit Iron meant something good instead of today's junk. As far as the quicikee lube places, research all their legal troubles from botched jobs, like my brother's burned up engine from leaving the drain plug loose.
Avoid these "can crushers" and use an "end cap" type wrench. Almost all the standard filters these day are so flimsy that U can get into trouble with a stuck-on filter...usually from some maroon at the quickee lube or factory not oiling the gasket before install. I've got a decades-old Delco endcap wrench that I'll never wear out. Left over from the days that Detroit Iron meant something good instead of today's junk. As far as the quicikee lube places, research all their legal troubles from botched jobs, like my brother's burned up engine from leaving the drain plug loose.
Excellent point...except that I'm always removing an oil filter that I spun on myself so this type of filter "wrench" is more than adequate. I've never had a problem removing an oil filter that I installed.
Comments & Reviews (14)
I agree! And, by the way, I have two of 'em....
You serious? See that's what's wrong with kids now days! No work ethic. "I'll just sit here on my iPhone living in a virtual world while my car gets serviced looking at Pinterest, and I'll eventually get home 3 hours later and get home in time to tell the landscaper how I want him to trim my bush".
Man up bro!
There's the satisfaction of knowing it was done right. You can use a better oil and filter if you DIY for the same cost. I use mobil1 full synthetic and a good filter for about $32. You also get to do it on your schedule and not waste time driving there and back and waiting.
All that said, I really like this type of wrench more. They've very good for the filters that are tucked way up high.
http://www.sears.com/craftsman-universal-oil-filter-wrench-auto-adjustable/p-02820523000P?
Be sure you actually WATCH that oil and filter change being done, that you're getting the right oil for your car and the correct filter, that the drain plug isn't being over-torqued, that the old filter gasket was removed, etc. Did your car's oil come out of a big drum? How do you know what's actually in it? Think oil change shops are honest? Think again!!!
It takes about 10X as long to drive back and forth to a quick change place and have them do it, than to DIY, and then you don't risk them cross threading the bolt or over torquing it or the filter, and don't have them mucking around under your hood trying to sell you more services.
The person doing your oil change is usually an incompetent idiot trained more in upselling services than actually doing the work.
Plus, they usually charge a premium for synthetic oil while I've gotten dozens of quarts in recent years for less than half what the quick change places charge for a synthetic oil change, and used a decent filter instead of whatever was the cheapest thing they could find. Plus they're in a hurry, usually don't let it sit long enough to get the last bit of old oil drained out.
Having written that, I never need one of these strap wrenches, just to wipe the filter off first then a rubber glove for grip, unless the last person who changed the oil over torqued the filter, though I suppose over torquing it a little beats under torquing it then having it come off while driving.
What would that cost, 3 cents more? Then again that would result in some kid at an oil change shop using a torque wrench to over torque it so much that it deformed the casing.
I change the oil in my cars myself and can have it knocked out (including pulling out my equipment and putting it away) in about 20 minutes. By doing it myself, I know that the oil drain plug is screwed in correctly, that the oil that I paid for is actually the oil that's put in the engine, and that the filter is installed correctly.
I have also changed the oil in my parents' car after they've had it changed at an oil change place and the filters used at those places are significantly smaller than even the ones available at Wally world or the parts store.
For such an important and frequent regular maintenance task, I only know it's done right if I did it myself!
On the other hand when you DIY... my mower has an oversized Toyota Camry 3.0L filter on it that cost half as much as the OEM filter.
Excellent point...except that I'm always removing an oil filter that I spun on myself so this type of filter "wrench" is more than adequate. I've never had a problem removing an oil filter that I installed.
Thank you!