edogger

Do most of you guys get your oil changed at the stealer or do you trust other private "shops" in your local areas?

2005 C55 AMG

Tump43

I do it myself. Unless you watch them, you have no way of knowing what oil either a dealer or independant uses for the change. I have heard that typically they use recycled oil that is a blend of all kinds of motor oil drained from cars.

Corrosive

If you have a shop that you can "trust" then go that route. If you are a first timer at the shop and you tell them you want mobile 1 synthetic and they still try to charge you like 20 bucks... then ya, they are not really putting it in.

I have done this in the past. I just moved to a new neighborhood and found a shop that looked up to par. They had a few nicer cars in there and they were asa certified. I asked to talk to the shop manager and to take a tour of the facilities... they actually think this is pretty cool and they love to talk cars. From there see if they carry the oil you want, and if they dont offer to buy it and have them do the change. Sometimes they will want to order it, but if you can establish the relationship... most of the time they will be cool w/ you bringing it in.

This is what I have done in the past. To be completely honest with you, the stealership may not be as good a shop as they think they are... look at all the mis-diagnosing they have done.

SilverBulletAMG

I have heard of several members here that just take their car to a quick lube shop for the change every Service A/B/C. They then take the care to someone that is able to reset the clock for the next service. For the most part, the service A/B/C is an overpriced joke. I was suckered into it once. Never again...

Fifth Ring

I do it myself but if I didn't, I would: (1) buy my own filter and oil, and (2) bring it to a reputable shop to do it.

The oil quality is vital. It's not just "Mobil 1." There are LOTS of grades and many of the Mobil 1 grades are not up to the Mercedes spec. There are sources to find exactly what brands and grades are sufficient. It's always worth the investment. Same with the filter. A Jiffy Lube would probably stick in the same crap filter they put in a C320 or other Benz. You need to buy the GOOD fleece filter (made by Bosch or Mann) since that will survive the extended life of the oil.

If you're on the fence about doing it yourself, I can report that there is no car easier than ours, IF you get yourself an oil extraction pump. You stick a tube down the dipstick and suck out the oil. The filter is on top of the engine, so you twist off the cap, swap in a new filter (change rubber gaskets if you're ****, otherwise just confirm that they are in good shape), and screw the cap back down and tighten. Refill with about 8 quarts (?). Done. You need to use the computerized system to confirm that you have put in enough oil.

I sleep a LOT better when I change my own oil. I know exactly what went into the engine. I've had HORRIBLE experiences with dealers using junk oil or oil of the wrong viscosity.

edogger

this is very helpful thanks

can you guys tell me exactly what Oil and Filter I need for the 2005 C55 AMG?

Fifth Ring

I Googled "Mercedes Recommended Motor Oils" and got this site. Looks accurate and current.
http://www.whnet.com/4x4/oil.html

As you can see, not many oils meet the current standard. And these are not easy to find. In a pinch a local independent mechanic that specializes in German cars might stock it. Otherwise, buy it where you find it, or order it online.

Moxxon

It's so easy to change the oil yourself with an oil extractor. I got a filter at the dealer and then sucked out the old oil and replaced it with an equal amount of Mobil 1 0-40W for my 2003 C32. This way I know exactly what went in my car and I have the satisfaction of doing it myself and I didn't even get dirty doing it.

I used a Pela oil extractor and it worked very well. Here's a link to the place I bought it at:

http://www.jerrybleach.com/pelapumps.html

After a couple oil changes the extractor pays for itself....

Corrosive

Here is a dumb question but why an extractor and not a drain like most cars... Is that just mb or is that so you dont have to get under the car?

Also our engine takes 8 quarts? i did not think it was that much, but then again I have not changed the oil yet, so I have yet to look.
-Mike

uweb

1. Additionally I changed the oil and filter every 5K; used 0-40 Mobile 1; best bang for the buck! I used an electric suction pump until it broke; now I use a manual suction pump which has a 2 Gal. container; slow but ok. Recycle oil locally for about 50c a quart.

2. 0-40 is no longer ailable here, mercedes went to 5-40 and that's what I buy at the dealer (Record may come in handy, if needed!!).

3. When the car was new, I made a dipstick, which I used every time the dealer did the oil change (every 10K) - unfortunately they messed up every time; oil 1 Quart low!! or too much!! I MADE THEM take it out - in the presence of my Sales Guy and the shop lead! They did it wrong again IN OUR PRESENCE!! Got my dipstick out to "proof", because they were not able to convert the "general shop dipstick" reading from mm to Quarts....; I showed them how to read the oil level electronically....; anyway, I lost all trust. Absolutely you MUST KNOW how to check what they are doing.

4. The oil at the dealer is about $6 a quart (using about 8.4 of the 9 quarts).

Which electric suction pump is worth buying/have you used for at least 5 oil changes? (mine lasted about 2.5 cycles/$50 junk)

Moxxon

Corrosive,

An extractor just makes things easier. MBs do have drain plugs, but why get under the car and mess with the belly pan and get dirty? Some people say extractors don't remove all the oil and using the drain plug is better, but from my experience there is little difference. Even with the drain plug, you can't get ALL the dirty oil out anyway.

C32's oil capacity is 8.5 US Quarts.

One thing I don't like is not having a dipstick. I wish MB would start using them again...

Fifth Ring

The pump can be used on any car, but because the Benz filter is on top, you can do the whole job just by opening the hood. If the filter was underneath, you'd need to be up on stands anyway, so the benefit of the pump is minimal.

Corrosive

Thanks for the heads up on that guys... I think I am going to pick up a pump and do mine this weekend.

8.5 quarts is kinda crazy in my opinion. I cant get over that for some reason. Its a good thing because more fresh oil is going to be circulating and at cooler temps, but coming from cars that had 4 quarts it just seems like a whole heck of a lot.

Anyone know if 8.5 is only for the C32 or if that is the same on say a 320?

uweb

1. I was assured (when I "special" ordered a C32 dip stick at Smythe European) that the length is the same....; anyway the delivered stick was much too short - fits the C320

2. 8.5 Quarts is a lot - but nothing compared with a Jaguar XK-E

Jaguar:
OIL CHANGING: If you buy an oil drain pan from the local auto parts store, slide it under the Jag, and open the plug
in the sump, you may be in for a messy surprise. The Jag V12 will drain around 11 US quarts of oil, and this is more
than the capacity of many conventional oil drain pans. Either be sure to get a really big pan, or figure out how to drain
the sump into two pans.
And by adding an after market pan.... even more is needed! And if it's "Imperial Gallons".... add another 10% - how about that? (friend of mine uses 16 quarts... he has an integrated external electric suction pump (oil change on the fly...).
enjoy

Moxxon

Corrosive -

My 2003 owner's manual says a C320 takes 7.9 US Quarts and the C320 4MATIC takes 7.4.

The 8.5 is just for the C32.

Another thing about using an oil extractor....assuming my oil level is satisfactory, I only put in what I take out. For example, if I suck out 8.1 quarts, I only put back in 8.1 quarts of new oil to avoid an over-fill, which is bad for the engine.

m444

My old 1967 911 Porsche had 9 quarts of oil. This has been typical for Porsche for a long time.

hkycoldrct

I was browsing through the Craftsman catalog and they have an extractor for about 80 bucks. It should carry the Craftman guarantee as well so if you break it ya get another one.

With Mobil 1 is there a specific part number for our cars? I assumed that Mobil 1 was Mobil 1 and not a ton of different Mobil 1's????

splinter

A recent issue of Excellence magazine mentions that initial motor oil fill on the latest iterations is ~14 liters! Of course, not all of it is removed on subsequent changes because of that which remains in the cooling lines etc…. Good thing I can't swing one of those fine machines.

splinter

Many Mobil 1 formulations are not approved for use by AMG.

This link- http://whnet.com/4x4/oil.html from #7 ^^ shows those that are recommended. Credit to Fifth and others who have referenced the site. Conscientious Mercedes-Benz service departments normally stock only Mobil 1 5W-40 because it meets the latest 229.51 specification. Note that not all 229.50 oils receive the blessing from AMG.

ericpd

OK,... found me some level ground and did the check. I am 1.5 qts low. Went to Wal-mart and got 2 qts of Mobile 1 0W-40 European Car Formula. Think I'll go back and get a case,... great price.

Question: Do these blown C32's consume a lot of oil normally? Will topping off be a frequent ritual? Got a feeling I'll be visiting the local shopping mall to check the oil more often!

splinter

Can't speak for the other members, but I never have to add a quart between changes.

Get yours up to "oil level okay" pronto! After that, no worries regardless... they are hell-bent for strong.

edogger

so I took my 2005 C55 in to an independent guy for an oil change (told him what oil to order) and it seems all good

he got a bit confused b/c there's no dipstick and the level indicator is saying the level is a little high -- but it doesn't give specifics

I'll take it back in but how do you know how much to reduce?

How bad is a slight overfill?

neihouma

Funny I came across this thread today, this weekend I did a
oil change, I know I distinctively put 8 quarts of oil and this
is what the car told me has in there... I wonder where the
other 1/2 quart of oil went.

Yes I went to a level floor to do the measuring...

edogger

Yeah -- I got to figure out how to use the Oil Level function --guess I'm going back to the Manual

C55'ers any input?

ericpd

I would imagine you're overfill is not at a critical level. I'm sure our clusters have a way of saying,.... "danger, danger, danger". It's probably graduated similarly to how they let you know you don't have enough. "A little high", is probably the first warning, a non-critical reminder so to speak. But I'd call a dealership and find out for sure. I understand overfilling can really trash our AMG power plants.

After my 'B', I plan on getting a pump and doing the oil changes myself, since I ain't gotta get on my back.