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Car Oil Change Maintenance Disaster

Here’s a DIY horror story that no one is sure exactly what happened (including myself, but I do have a few ideas) where one car owner claims to DIY his oil changes.
When DIY Oil Changes Go Wrong

In previous articles I’ve discussed the benefits of DIY car maintenance to save money and ensure that you are not putting your car in harm’s way with a Quickie Lube type joint where all sorts of shenanigans can…and do…occur.

Related article: The Most Common Damage Dealership Mechanics Will Do to Your Car

However, when it comes to articles in which I’ve pointed out how the customer is the one at fault, I tend to focus less about this problem―save for those Just Rolled In videos that show why not everyone should own a car let alone do any maintenance, repairs, or upgrades.

Today you are getting a whopper of a DIY fail for something as simple as an oil change…or was it?

Bad DIY or a Lying Customer?

In a recent Toyota Maintenance YouTube channel episode, the host takes us to a garage next door where the garage owner showcases an engine that is so filled with sludge that words fail to do it justice in its description. It is almost supernatural.

The story goes that the owner of the car had a bad alternator, went to an auto parts store and bought a non-OEM alternator, and then took it to the garage with instructions for the mechanics to just replace the old alternator with his newly purchased one.

Upon inspection of the car, the mechanics determined that the real fault lay in an engine oil leak―presumably from the valve covers―that led to oil seeping into the old alternator and ruining it. Putting a new alternator on as instructed would only lead to another ruined alternator in a short time.

The mechanics removed the valve covers and found the worst engine sludge mess they have ever seen. They then contacted the owner with their findings explaining the engine block needed to be cleaned out and any leaks fixed before installing the new alternator.

The owner balked at their diagnosis insisting that there was nothing wrong with his engine as he always DIY his oil and filter changes.

Two logical assumptions present themselves: Either the owner does not know how to properly DIY an oil and filter change and has made some mistake(s); or, he is lying, and an oil and filter change has never been done on a car with a little over 100,000 miles on it.

The Video Show and Tell

Follow along with the host in this short video and be sure to watch it in its entirety as some additional information is provided in the second half of this video.

Then, check out a list of potential possibilities I believe could have led to the massive engine sludge problem that will benefit the reader in why it is so important to watch an informative and accurate video on proper DIY oil and filter maintenance for your car and why some cost-cutting shortcuts or car maintenance remedies are really a bad idea.

DIY Car Maintenance Disaster

Possibilities of What Went Wrong Due to Bad DIY

The problem with assuming a customer is lying to you about their car is that it is a no-win situation. For many, denial is their first line of defense answer to everything rather than own a mistake made.

Possibilities of what went wrong include:

  • The owner always changed his oil and filter with a cold engine rather than a hot engine, leading to a gradual sludge buildup in the engine.
  • The owner never changed the oil, only the filter assuming the filter will clean the dirty oil.
  • The owner mistakenly changes his oil and filter once every 50,000 or 100,000 miles (rather than 5,000 to 10,000 miles) because of bad eyesight reading his car manual or oil can manufacturer claim.
  • The owner used the wrong oil when changing the oil filter such as vegetable oil, old motor oil tossed for recycling, old oil he found in a barn that has degraded and became contaminated with moisture, and/or was the type used without detergents and other additives.
  • The owner mistook the oil filler cap for something else.
  • The owner has an enemy who dumped something other than motor oil into his car.

If I had to place money on a bet, I would suspect that he might be telling the truth―albeit with somewhat irregular and infrequent oil changes. However, the problem he fell into was deciding to treat his leaking engine with a several bottles of one of those mechanic-in-a-bottle fluid sealers that led to serious gunk formation that the mechanics found so difficult to remove.

The point to be made is that there is one right way and many wrong ways to DIY your oil change. Just make sure you know what you are doing before doing it.

For additional articles related to fails with maintenance and car repairs, here are a few for your consideration:

Timothy Boyer is an automotive reporter based in Cincinnati. Experienced with early car restorations, he regularly restores older vehicles with engine modifications for improved performance. Follow Tim on  “Zen and the Art of DIY Car Repair” website, the Zen Mechanic blog and on Twitter at @TimBoyerWrites  and Facebook for daily news and topics related to new and used cars and trucks.

COMING UP NEXT: Avoid the Diagnosis Trap When Smelling Burning Oil

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Comments

Scott (not verified)    February 25, 2024 - 11:49PM

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The sludge of a whole other is far more than likely from an oil and filter change never being done in 100, 000 miles if I'm betting on any possible scenario. Adding a quart or two of oil to the crankcase who knows how often with as much as that had to be leaking is the one thing that kept that motor from locking up I should add in my opinion, along with the owner thinking adding a quart or two to the crank case every 1,000 miles at best being their idea of an "oil change"