[Chris_C2000]

Thought I'd have a go at writing a How-To as there's not one for changing the oil on a TS.

If I've got anything wrong let me know and I'll change it Pictures were taken from my PH1 2.0 TS GTV, not sure if there's any difference in older models but I think it will be minor.

Difficulty : 1/10 - Very easy as long as the sump plug comes out.

1). Run the car for a short time to get it warm (not hot), Jack up the front of the car securely and place axle stands securely under the jacking points. If your car has one then remove the undertray, this can apparently be a difficult area as the bolts can become corroded. Luckily I didnt have one

2). View of what you are looking for, this is from the front of the car looking back, Arrow shows the location of the sump plug, towards the top of the picture is the oil filter.

3). Place a large tray under the sump plug and undo with a 8mm Hex socket. This is the only tricky bit. On my car the sump plug came lose after a small struggle with a standard socket wrench. Be careful with it as the sump is alloy and you can strip the thread if you are not careful. Plus-Gas/WD40 sprayed on an hour/day before can work wonders.

Also make sure your tray is big enough, 4.5 litres of oil is a surprising amount.

4). Leave it to drain until it stops dripping, move your tray under the filter and undo using a oil filter removal tool as per it's instructions (Mine was a £6.99 chain type from halfords) to loosen it off. If you dont have one of these tools I'm reliably informed you can ram a screwdriver through the side and turn it that way.

5). Finish unscrewing the filter by hand, it will be full of oil and more oil will come out of the engine too.

6). Half fill the new filter with oil to reduce low-pressure time at the first startup, try to get it down the middle, I got it all round the sides and spilt it everywhere clean up the surface where the oil filter attaches, and smear a little new oil over it. Attach the new oil filter hand tight.

Clean up your sump plug and replace the copper washer with a new one (If your sump plug has been previously bodged/damage you may want to replace it, I got one from a dealer with a washer for £12 but didnt use the new plug in the end as mine looked in good condition. Sump plug should be torqued to 17 to 21 Nm or 1.7 to 2.1 kgm.

..continued in next post

 

[Chris_C2000]

Nearly there

Top up the engine with oil of your choice, I used Castrol 10W40, 4.5 litres should bring it to the right amount.

Double check everything is nice and tight, place some paper under the car so you can see if there are any drips and get a reliable person to start it up. They are there to stop the car in a hurry if oil starts pouring out! After you are happy everything is ok you can let the car back down. I then ran the car up to temp just to be doubly cautious. Check the oil regularly for the next few days/weekends to make sure its not vanishing.

Dispose of the oil responsibly I took mine down to the local 'recycling centre' (Tip) where they have a special section for old oil.

All done

Thanks to PKR for his great information when I asked how to do this, most of this is his work

 

[pkr]

Awww shucks!

Great write up. You may want to send the forum moderator a link to this post so it can go in the general 'How Tos'.

Nice to see good photos too - even if the forum software does overcompress them .

Incidentally, the standard jack won't last long if its actually used! The teeth at the top wear badly. Keep an eye on Aldi/Netto/Lidl as the occasionally do simple trolley jacks for about £15 as specials.

 

[Chris_C2000]

I've actually got a trolley jack. I asked on here but I couldnt get anyone to commit to a decent place to use it (other than the jacking points) (or at least with a clear enough explanation so that someone that's not quite sure what all the different bits under the car are called could reliably place it ) . Since I wanted to use the jacking points for the axle stands I came unstuck and resorted to the standard jack.

Yeah its a pain that you cant have better pictures on here (and larger). My other hobby is photographing water droplet splashes (and weirdly managed to capture a lovely droplet in the 6th pic) so I have some reasonable gear and external flashes etc.

Edit: 5th Pic not 6th

 

[.:ian:.]

That oil filter looks like it's been there a few years!

 

[msgtv]

And dont let your oil get that black again!

 

[Chris_C2000]

Hey I've only had the car a couple of months I blame the previous owner(s)!

 

[Just a Spider]

oil filter model

What kind of oil filter do you guys use?

Thanks!

 

[Mitch916]

I use original part from here

Alfa Romeo GTV Oil Filters

 

[alexGS]

I've actually got a trolley jack. I asked on here but I couldnt get anyone to commit to a decent place to use it (other than the jacking points) (or at least with a clear enough explanation so that someone that's not quite sure what all the different bits under the car are called could reliably place it ) . Since I wanted to use the jacking points for the axle stands I came unstuck and resorted to the standard jack.

I've been in exactly the same situation myself. The best I can manage on many cars is to put a small trolley jack under the suspension lower control arm bush - I mean under the subframe where the control arm bush is attached, not under the arm itself - and hope that a small axle stand will jostle into place beside the trolley jack and line up with the jacking point.

Another option if you have a sawbench is to cut a slot in a piece of wood at least 15cm long to suit the seam profile under the sill (where the standard jack fits) so that an axle stand can be placed there. That way you can use a large trolley jack on the jacking points, provided you can get it under the car.

Great write-up by the way, particularly the bit about taking the old oil to the tip (in NZ we call it 'the dump' and yes, they take old oil free of charge for recycling here, too). It seems to be the fifth picture that has the cleverly-captured oil drip

I especially like the advice to part-fill the new oil filter before fitting. I've only been doing that for a couple of years myself and it has proved so effective at shortening the time before the engine gets oil pressure. The oil soaks into the filter, so very little is lost when it's put in place on the engine.

I've always taken the rubber seal out of its groove in the top of the oil filter and smeared oil on both sides, but I now don't think this is necessary and might not do this any longer. I find an old tea towel is handy - for cleaning up, obviously, but also to get the best grip on the filter to tighten it (my little hands aren't very strong, and yes, I know what they say about guys with small hands).

-Alex

 

[EauRouge]

- for cleaning up, obviously, but also to get the best grip on the filter to tighten it (my little hands aren't very strong, and yes, I know what they say about guys with small hands).

-Alex

Small fingers!?
:lol:

 

[Chris_C2000]

I've been in exactly the same situation myself. The best I can manage on many cars is to put a small trolley jack under the suspension lower control arm bush - I mean under the subframe where the control arm bush is attached, not under the arm itself - and hope that a small axle stand will jostle into place beside the trolley jack and line up with the jacking point.

See that's what I mean.. Suspension lower control arm bush.. Which bit's that? I can probabily make a guess, but if I'm wrong I could seriously do some damage!

Since this was the first time I'd ever changed engine oil I cant take credit for the information contained, all of it came from different people on here, I just gathered it all together, tried it out and wrote it up

 

[alexGS]

Chris_C2000, yes, sorry, you're right. I need to back up what I'm saying with some photos and I will some time, I promise. Just not right now as it's after midnight and damn cold in the garage.

Small fingers!?
:lol:

Ummm yes, exactly. The length of the middle finger is... ah never mind.

Hang on... FIVE 916 Spiders/GTVs? <insert James May coughing-laughter here> you're mad! :lol:
I thought I was having problems spreading my time among four cars and not getting the house tidied/lawns mowed, etc...

-Alex

 

[Just a Spider]

I use original part from here

Alfa Romeo GTV Oil Filters

Thanks Mitch! That is a great source but I am trying to figure out any OEM equivalent (WIX, BOSCH, K&N etc ) to get it locally. Oil and fuel filters particularly. Any insights much appreciated!

 

[bowsider]

An old trick when changing oil, is when you start... put the container of new oil in a sink of very hot water.

That way when you come to pour the new oil in its is thinner and flows easier, particularly useful in cold weather.

 

[Chris_C2000]

That would have been a good one Was wishing I had a funnel or something, first big 'glug' of oil went everywhere and of course the only place it has to go if you miss is straight down the spark plug wells... When I checked mine the first two wells were nearly half full of oil!

 

[driver33p4]

Good work Chris. Head down to Maplins for a push on funnel that clips onto the oil container. Well worth the £1 or so that they charge.

 

[alfapash]

Went to change oil today, damm sump plug seized, sprayed it with everything still wont budge, A lot of swearing, started to rain, so gave it another spray and will try again tomorrow. Please undo I pray.

 

[Turtle4288]

Went to change oil today, damm sump plug seized, sprayed it with everything still wont budge, A lot of swearing, started to rain, so gave it another spray and will try again tomorrow. Please undo I pray.

Mine was bloody tight... no alan socket in my collection, only a 6 inch alan key that fitted. Put it in, used my foot on the end of the tool and it worked :lol:

 

[alfapash]

It's weird some have 8mm, some 10mm and now you have 6mm .Raining to much today so leaving it until the weekend.