Top side Oil Change Comment

[tiggy_rogue]

Hello All;

As I learned so much from this forum with very friendly moderators, I decided to give back a little by adding my comments on top side oil change. My wife has a VW Tiguan and it has the oil filter mounted right at the top of the engine by the dipstick. VW technicians change the oil from from the top by using a liquid extractor to the dipstick hole, no going under the car.

So I bought Mityvac 7400 fluid extractor from Amazon for ~$70. Horrible product, do not ever buy anything from this company, it leaked oil everywhere, I contacted the company, they told me that it is not designed for synthetic oil use (nowhere it mentions that in the manual) so no warranty coverage. waste of $70.

Then I bought "Liquivac Topside Oil Changer" from Amazon for $50. What a fantastic product, simple to use etc. I changed oil total 9 times in my cars with this, no problem. Honestly I was a little hesitant that there may be some oil left in the car after extracting oil from the top so during the last oil change I decided to open the drain plug of the Rogue expecting about a cup of oil still left it. I was shocked to see that literally not a single drop of oil was left! As the Rogue's oil filter is located by the passenger wheel, no more going under the car. One other good thing with Liquivac is you just remove the pump component from the container put the cap on and take it to Autozone etc. for recycling the oil. I don't have to transfer the oil to other containers. Maybe it is just me but I always created a mess in that step.

Anyways, I think it is a good investment.

[takeshi]

Not sure which Mityvac I use but I've never had problems with it and the car I use it with only runs synthetic.

EDIT: I use a 7400. Interesting. Been using it since early 2009. Leaks seem to be a common complaint on Amazon and the manufacturer seems to be of no help with leak issues.

[tiggy_rogue]

When I bought Mityvac, I thought people writing negative review on Amazon were doing something wrong or "incapable of operating a simple pump". It turns out that that's not the case. Maybe some people are getting a batches from a different factory or something. What bothered me the worst was the customer service agent at Mityvac was the worst agent I have ever encountered in my life. In the middle of his conversation, I thought he was going to start swearing, that's how much he was shouting at me!

[carbon02]

tiggy_rogue

I found this post while googling Mityvac Oil Change. I have a 2010 Altima 2.5L that I'm interested in changing with a topside oil change. It appears that the Rogue uses the 2.5L so I can get the oil, but how do you get the filter off without lifting the car or getting under it?

Is there a trick for this that you can share?

This looks to be a great forum, as I start maintaining our families 2010 Altima.

Thanks-

[kerrton]

The oil filter on the Rogue is conveniently located near the front right side of the car, and there is lots of room to access it without the need to raise the car. Here is the link to the oil change procedure with photos that show the oil filter location clearly:

how-to-change-the-rogue-s-engine-oil-diy-t296876.html

[tiggy_rogue]

Carbon02;

As kerrton pointed out, I don't have to go under the car to change the filter for rogue. Just follow the link kerrton posted. However, I am not 100% sure whether altima's filter is at the same location as Rogue(same engine, should be the same). Also note that Rogue is higher from the ground, it may help the whole process...

[carbon02]

Tiggy_rogue and kerrton

Thanks for the reply and post to the full oil change. The filter is in the same spot with the Altima, but the ground clearance is a lot lower. There's someone over on the other post that says he has done an Alti filter without lifting the car, that may be an option. I've had a bad experience with ramps, and the local dealer, while far away will change it for $16 using conventional, but if I could figure out a way to use the mityvac, and not be directly under the car for filter removal I'd upgrade to synthetic and start doing it myself.

Overall I've thought the Alti was fairly well designed for maintenance, compared to some of the GM cars I'm familar with. But that filter location looks like a mess for $16.00. (There's a youtube video of a 2010 Alti on a lift at a dealership, and oil is going all over the body crossmember, or control arm, from the filter. I may keep allowing them to do it, as long as they keep that price.

Thanks and Happy Holidays to all

[epmeyer50]

I have both a Rogue and an Altima with the 2.5. The Rogue oil filter is easily changed without necessarily lifting the car, but the Altima is not. I don't think you can do the Altima filter with out either getting under the car or maybe jacking up the side by the filter and removing the wheel (haven't tried it). But as you saw in the video, it is not conveniently placed relative to the frame and suspension components mounted under it. There is always some mess.

[philipa_240sx]

I don't think you can do the Altima filter with out either getting under the car or maybe jacking up the side by the filter and removing the wheel (haven't tried it).

I managed to do oil and filter changes on my '03 Altima 2.5S without jacking up the car. And I even had the Nismo S-Tune suspension on it... there was scarcely 4" of ground clearance under the oil pan!

The Rogue by comparison is dead easy. I have never jacked it up when doing oil changes. There is tons of room under there to slip a drain pan underneath.

Just to note, the oil filter on the QR25DE has an anti-drainback valve. You can empty the oil pan until it's dry and you'll still have ~1/2 qt or more of oil inside the filter and oil passages. The MityVac won't help you in this regard. Be prepared with a drain pan to catch the remaining oil when you remove the filter.

[carbon02]

Found one of my old threads while "googling"

I can do an oil change on a 2010 Altima 2.5 without getting the car in the air. Here's how..

Before parking the car turn the wheel all the way to the right.

Working in the wheel well remove approximately 5 push pin fasteners that hold a fender access panel in. You don't remove the entire wheel liner, just a cover that is part of the wheel liner.

You now have direct non obstructed access to directly to removing the 2.5L filter.

This panel takes some wiggling the first time you remove it, but it's much easier if you take a knife and remove the "sword" part on one end.

Google the part number on this panel and you'll see pictures of the aftermarket part that doesn't have this "sword" or shark fin on one end.

Just fine, and done about 5 oil changes through the dipstick. It get's all the oil, and it's a very clean process, when you can directly access the front of the filter, with the panel off.

[ImStricken06]

while im not dogging anyone for doing what you guys do, but i have to ask WHY!? this is the equivalence of using a ladder-to-an open-window to get into your bedroom, versus the front door.

spending money to buy vacuums that can fail and need emptying & cleaning, removing wheel/fender liners, etc why is it so hard to crawl under a car, remove ONE bolt, reinstall the bolt, replace a filter = and then add oil from the top? why fix a system thats not broken?

also, you do realize you are not getting the grit and junk sitting in the bottom of the pan, right?

[ras_oscar]

I speculate that someone in this thread once drove their car off the end of the ramps. Just sayin'

[Rogue One]

I speculate that someone in this thread once drove their car off the end of the ramps. Just sayin'

Hmm, could be... But here's one guys misadventure from the web. Moron-a-thon with drive on car ramps http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/103-3 ... ramps.html

[takeshi]

also, you do realize you are not getting the grit and junk sitting in the bottom of the pan, right?

I have yet to see any definitive proof of this. Do you have any?

Guess I can pull the plug next time, get a UOA and see if anything's reported.

why is it so hard to crawl under a car

You haven't seen my other car or else you wouldn't ask about crawling under it to begin with.

[ImStricken06]

I have yet to see any definitive proof of this. Do you have any? I can pull the plug next time, get a UOA and see if anything's reported, I guess.

just my assumption that crud builds up on the bottom, and sits there.

You haven't seen my other car or else you wouldn't ask about crawling under it to begin with.

id love to see post6479545.html

[tiggy_rogue]

OP here, I fail to see why you guys are making fun of it. Maybe you guys are young and assume life is just beautiful and all, nobody has a disability or had a serious spine injury that prevents from going under a car etc. Even without injury, I don't see why going under a car, spilling oil on your arm etc. is preferable over pumping this thing 10 times, putting it through the dipstick hole, going in the house (especially in Florida weather) and coming back 15 minutes later and just change the oil filter without getting under the car and call it a day...

Also, about the crud building up in the bottom, I opened the drain plug after this thing pumps it out, not even a drop of oil came out, I am serious. I don't know you guys but when I used to change oil traditionally, I get bored of dripping of oil from the drain plug after 15 minutes and close it. In my opinion, this method gets more oil out (not that it would matter).

[ImStricken06]

if you have a disability, than i fully understand and commend you for working around it. otherwise, i dont see a use for top side oil changes.

[Pimperish1]

I've used a Mityvac for years on my 2018 Rogue without issue. The problem I'm running into now is in using it on a 2020 Rogue. I usually measure the extraction tube against the length on the dipstick to ensure I'm getting properly down into the pan. On the 2020 Rogue the extraction tube does not get all the way down. So I'm only able to pull about one or two quarts. Anyone else encountered this and or have a workaround? I've run into a similar situation with a 2014 Honda CRV.