Break-in Oil Change

redmoose · 2011-12-16 01:44:19

Good news: I did my 25-hour oil change (before 30 hours, anyway!) today in my garage. Bad news: The little diagram that shows where to remove the crankcase drain plug is poor quality and black-and-white, so when I crawled under the Ranger to look for it, I found a bolt head clearly labeled "DRAIN" and loosened it. As the "oil" began to drain, I noticed that it was pretty clear, maybe a little green even, and smelled suspiciously like anti-freeze. :oops: OOPS! Before I could get the drain plug back in fully (slippery when wet!) I had drained 2/3 of the coolant from the radiator! I'm a little early for my 2 year coolant flush - like 21 months early - but okay, fine. After re-examining the diagram and identifying the REAL crankcase drain plug, I got it out, drained the oil, and spent the next 30 minutes trying to get the plug back in properly! There just isn't much room in there to maneuver, but I finally got it, refilled the oil and coolant, and she's good to go for the next 100 hours.

I've heard that a machine isn't really yours until you have some of her oil in your veins and some of your own blood on her. In that case, she's mine now!

Ron

redmoose · 2011-12-18 12:12:08

I considered it, but didn't do it... been told on another [more active] forum that it is easy to remove and replace the skid plate on the belly of the Ranger for maintenance. That would certainly improve access, and though it might add a few minutes to the beginning and end of any procedure, if it saves a half-hour in the middle it would be worth the effort.

#1 2011-12-16 01:44:19

Re: Break-in Oil Change

#2 2011-12-18 12:12:08

Re: Break-in Oil Change

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