AznSky

iTrader: (12)

Wow nice bike! Man you and all ur toys.

And you can actually save around $30 per oil change since the stealer charges like $60 for synthetic.

thekinn

iTrader: (18)

By the time you drive out the the shop, wait in line, wait for them to do it.. you could have done it yourself. Then you know for sure that you have a new filter and fresh (from the bottle) oil.. and not whatever crap that came out of a 500gal barrel..

Plus, while you are under the car you can..
a. check your suspension
b. belts
c. check for leaks
d. see if there is any grit/metal at the bottom of the oil pan
e. see how much oil exactly is coming out of the car (are you burning lots)

or.. just let someone else deal with it.. up to you I guess.

p.s. there is a cool aluminum belly pan for quicker oil changes too. I don't have it, but if you have a seemingly endless supply of money and want one.. here is the link https://my350z.com/forum/body-exteri...are-ready.html

skingy

iTrader: (8)

so is all that oil still in your engine? you're lucky you didn't blow your engine. the oil level has to stay below the crank shaft, or else it'll foam up the oil. and an oil pump can't pump foam to the rest of the engine.

i don't trust anyone else to change my oil. i once went through one of those 10 minute oil change places (not with my z) and found out later that my check engine light came on. they screwed the oil filter on so tight it cracked, and oil was leaking out. hand tight is all it takes.

ramps won't work, esp. with your front end. just use some spare 2x4 boards. i drive up slowly on 2 of them, then i drive up on 2 more. that'll give enough clearance to get my floor jack under it. just don't forget to put the boards back down when you're done, or the jack will be stuck.

sig11

iTrader: (3)

Screw changing the oil in the 370 myself. There are like 25 bolts to remove... :P I'm happy to pay someone to do that crap even though ester oil changes are expensive.

Jonny Boy

iTrader: (7)

I DO!!! Your on Mekatoka

I def hope to see you at the track with that thing!




Everyone else, the first oil change will be your slowest until you figure it out. It really isnt hard at all and will take you no longer than 30 min to do once you have it down. Its really not difficult to do. Like Steve said, it allows you t oknow what is going into the car and also allows you to check on things while your under there.

If you dont wanna do it, you can always pay me

mekatoka

iTrader: (2)

Thanks Rob. The amount I save is compared to doing the oil change myself vs paying a quick lube to change oil & filter that I will provide them. I always buy oil at Advanced Auto Parts where they sell Oil + Filter for 30$.

Hey thanks for the link Steve I might be interested in getting that. Honestly, I think the most painful part is getting the car on jack and crawling under. The actual work to change oil is a piece of cake but it took me 1.5 hrs the other day and I was like this is not worth for the 10-12$ I save. But I do agree on all your points that you can check all those. Unfortunately, I don't know all of that yet. I am slowly learning. Do you guys remember me when I first met you last year All I knew then was to drive the car.

I know what you mean Lee. I am thinking it might easy if I can find some kind of a power tool to loosen the bolts. That would make life better.

Haha, Jonny I knew you would be the only one who'd say that I got a sweet deal on the bike. I got it for 8K OTD with a 2 yr extended Honda protection plan, so that's 3 total years warranty (including the manufacturer warranty).
I gotta first learn to deal with all the extra horses I get now. Even if I don't race I will come to one of the track days this year. We will be in touch.

AznSky

iTrader: (12)

DO NOT TAKE IT TO A QUICK LUBE

Seriously man, so many horror stories. Not tightening sh$t down, tightening too much. It's just all around bad.

If all else fails, just bring it over and I"ll do it for you for free. Seriously.

mekatoka

iTrader: (2)

Alright, alright .... looks like y'all are going to beat me up if I don't do my oil changes .. LOL. I will do it myself

Phreakdout

iTrader: (32)

I have so much to do on the Z right now I am concerned it won't all be done in time for ZdayZ. To make matters worse, work is sending me back to Japan and China next weekend. (For another 1.5 weeks.) For the little time I am here, the wife is starting to eat up my free time. Aargh!

I took today off to put the car up on stands and start doing some work. Dang it, why can't we have good weather today. Low to mid 40's sucks!

Phreakdout

iTrader: (32)

Rob: How did the tune go? Before and after HP? Noticeable difference?

AznSky

iTrader: (12)

Goin tomorrow dawg. 5 hr drive down, 5 hr drive back. Ugh.

And I can probably stop by after work next week to help you out with installs

PS ~ HOw's the hand? Did you get teh cast off?

mekatoka

iTrader: (2)

Yeah, I can help you too Brian. As long as you give me directions Let me know, if you'd like we can do some work tomorrow.

mekatoka

iTrader: (2)

Ok, I took my car (Altima) to the dealer for an oil change and they recommended me a 700$ 30K mile service. I promptly declined all but the following

- Battery Service - WHY ? - because he showed me a little bit of corrosion on the battery tips and I figured it should help --> 39.95$

- Power Steering Flush - WHY? - when he checked the fluid color it was a much darker color and had no resemblance to the sample he had to compare against. --> 95.95$

Now, I did a quick search on internet and found THIS LINK

So, have any of you guys done a power steering flush. Is it easy enough? For now I am getting it done but would like to know. In that link some people said it shouldn't be needed unless its a high mileage car. My car has 161K on it now. I don't ever remember getting a power steering flush done.

Also, what about the other kinds of flushes like -- Transmission Flush - any of you done that on your other cars? How difficult is it?

skingy

iTrader: (8)

a wire brush is all you need to brush off any battery corrosion. not sure about the other stuff. probably wouldn't hurt at your mileage, but is all that money worth it? at that point, i'd consider the cost vs. the car value. drive it till it dies.

Phreakdout

iTrader: (32)

The second cast is temporary. In other words, I don't wear it when I should. I already fell once while visiting a factory in Shandong, China last weekend. I was sure I F'ed up the bones from being aligned. But no pain since then. I'm sure the doc will recommend a pin when I see him next week. Even that surgery will have to wait since I go back to China next weekend.

Thanks for the offer. I may take you up on that. I'm considering taking Wednesday off. Looks like good weather.

Good luck on the tune! I so want to do it. I just never have time to get down there.

mekatoka

iTrader: (2)

So I called SEARS where I got a major service done at 150K miles. Its only been 10K miles now and the dealer said the power steering fluid is bad based on the color. So I asked the SEARS guy and the dealer advisor as to what was the recommended interval of changing it.

The Sears guy goes, it depends on usage. Then I say, usage is fine but 10K is too short. Then he's like bring it over and we will check. I called dealer and canceled the service and ask him if its possible that SEARS used a fluid that's a bit different in color. He's like I don't know.

So do you guys know, if all power steering fluids are the same color? Either that or the SEARS people did not flush the fluid at all Man, why are these service shops hell bent on raping the customers like this.

My life was so happy earlier, being ignorant and doing all the things that the service shop told me to do and pay tons of money to them After buying the Z and meeting you all uncool people I have more headache than ever .....

Phreakdout

iTrader: (32)

^^ LOL - "uncool people"

Don't sweat it D. You're not doing anything wrong. The power steering fluid is not like oil. It's hydraulic fluid instead. Hydraulic fluid is subject to moisture which can alter steering performance very slightly. 99.999% of people never flush it. This is why power steering fluid always comes in little bottles and not in 1QT sizes. Folks tend to just add when needed. (Because of small leaks.)

Your car will be fine with the "discolored" fluid. Flush it if you wish. You always take good care of your cars so I'd never question you having it done. Flushing it yourself is a pain unless you have a pump that can drain it out.

So release the stress. You have my cell phone number if you're ever in a jam. Always remember that the dealer's services are crazy expensive and often not necessary. But they know the car and they give you peace of mind that it's been checked out and any service campaigns have been done. This is what you pay for. Peace of mind.

Regarding Trans flush ... I recommend it even for high mileage cars. The bands in a auto trans contaminate the fluid over time. The filter gets clogged with material and should be changed. Too long without a change and you get slippage and material being built up in the torque converter's fins. I tend to go to a transmission shop for this service. The cost is usually the same but they buy better equipment, I know the trans pan won't leak and they can check out the trans performance to tell if you have bigger problems coming up. The downside is that a flush at a trans shop usually takes longer. But it's done right.

AznSky

iTrader: (12)

Just got the tune done. Gained only 5 whp but across the entire power band. Guess my car was pretty optimal with my mods to begin with. Throttle response has improved significantly, I think that is my favorite part. Af ratios also were a bit high.

Hal is hella cool, and surprisingly a lot younger than I expected.

Currently eating chic fil a just outside cinci. Man I love chic fil a and sweet tea! Pics and vids when I get home

sig11

iTrader: (3)

Man... I wish we had chic-fil-a up here.

h8bumps

iTrader: (4)

My $0.02 on auto maintenance...

For a high mileage car, if you haven't flushed the trans fluid, I wouldn't do it. Many people do a trans fluid flush for the first time at 100K+ miles, and it actually causes trans issues. I'm sure if you google searched, you'd find people that can confirm. So, either: follow manufacturers recommended flush intervals, or don't do it at all.

I've never flushed power steering fluid either. No need, IMO.

And if any of you need help changing oil, etc, I'll help. I love getting under cars.