Money-saving tip: Do-it-yourself oil change

One of my favorite ways to save money is by changing the oil in my car. The local Jiffy Lube charges about $31 to change the oil and filter, check other fluid levels and filters, check tire pressure, and vacuum the interior. In addition, they'll make recommendations on what needs to be done to the car to keep it maintained.

I think that the oil-change places use a cheap oil change as a loss leader to get you in their shop so they can make expensive recommendations that seem like a good idea. It's those recommendations that make for big savings when you're doing it yourself. Here's why:

The charge for Jiffy Lube to flush the transmission on my car: $90
The cost for me to do it myself: $15, plus 1 hour of labor

That's just an example of the savings I can realize by doing the job myself. At this point in my life, an hour of my time isn't worth as much as the savings, so it makes sense to change the oil myself. That may change in the future. It's so incredibly easy to do, too. I realize that many women and even some men have never changed their oil before, so check Google for a good tutorial for changing your oil yourself.

Warning: while oil changes are easy, there are some things that can go wrong. Here are a few things to avoid:

1. Wrong oil filter - I made the mistake of putting the wrong filter on my car. The end result was that it worked for a while, and then all the oil leaked out at once. Potentially very damaging, if you don't notice the loss of oil, so make sure you use a reliable source (such as the guy at the counter at your local Kragen or Pep Boys) to find the correct oil filter for your car. I used a computerized system at Wal-Mart to find that (incorrect) oil filter, and I realize now that there was some glitch in the system.
2. Wrong oil for your car - This is less vital than getting the correct oil filter, but still important. If you get the wrong oil, your car might not develop as much power, but it will probably still run. However, it might not be as well-lubricated if you use the wrong oil, so you'll be reducing the life of your engine. Anyway, buy the oil that your owner's manual recommends.
3. Spills - If you have your own garage, it's probably a good idea to get a drip pan, and change your oil with that pan in place. We're all human, and that means we sometimes spill oil on the floor or the engine. Avoid a mess by planning for spills.

One final word: if the whole point of doing it yourself is to save money, make sure you actually put aside the money that you’ve saved, or it will slip through the cracks.