Doing an oil change on the 6 this afternoon and it got me thinking about the little stuff I do to improve the maintenance experience. I figured this could be good spot to share ideas too.

Silver sharpies/ paint pens- on the oil changes I have started putting the current mileage and service date on the filter. Also paint pens are great for monitoring nuts/suspension pieces for backing out.


Dual trip meters- I reset trip A to each each fill up to check mileage. Trip B gets reset with each oil change.

Share what you got!

• Blackstone Labs oil study
• Use aCar to track fuel mileage and maintenance
• Try to not cut my knuckle in half on a sharp piece of stamped metal ever again
• Use Venom Steel gloves for messy work - those things don't break easy

I used to get my hands dirty every other weekend, and as odd as this would look, i always felt like gloves that came up to you high forearm or some sort of sleeve would have been very handy. They exist but certainly arent "common" in auto stores. I end up with as much dirt on my arms and cuts as i do my hands.

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I used to get my hands dirty every other weekend, and as odd as this would look, i always felt like gloves that came up to you high forearm or some sort of sleeve would have been very handy. They exist but certainly arent "common" in auto stores. I end up with as much dirt on my arms and cuts as i do my hands.

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Is that an AI Glove?

"We talkin' 'bout maintenance????"

Fumoto drain valves ftw. No more messy oil changes.

Them and brake speed bleeders

Any specific brand/model?

I've had success with these.

Thanks.

I always "pre-fill" my oil filters to attempt to cut down on dry startup wear after a oil/filter change. Nothing ground-breaking there.

I also keep a Maintenance log (hard and electronic copy) for all of my service and maintenance items.
Helps keep track of intervals and also could help with resale down the road.

Definitely interested in the Fumoto drain valve. I've never seen anything like that. Will have too look into it when the dealer maintenance agreement expires on our Tundra.

No leaking issues?

Get a crowsfoot and a torque wrench and properly torque it. I've had them on two different cars for a combined 40-50k miles with no problems. Really help with blackstone sampling and no-mess oil changes

Anyone ever put an hour meter on their engine and maintained the oil based on that instead of miles?

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Fumoto drain valves ftw. No more messy oil changes.

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Thanks for reminding me about these. Just ordered one.

I find that if you idle a lot/stop and go a lot, you should just follow the "severe" schedule in your owners manual

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Anyone ever put an hour meter on their engine and maintained the oil based on that instead of miles?

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On my tractor.

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Anyone ever put an hour meter on their engine and maintained the oil based on that instead of miles?

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On my tractor.

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Exactly why I had this in mind.

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Anyone ever put an hour meter on their engine and maintained the oil based on that instead of miles?

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My super duty has an hour meter. Lists miles, lifetime mpg, hrs, and idle hours.

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Anyone ever put an hour meter on their engine and maintained the oil based on that instead of miles?

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My super duty has an hour meter. Lists miles, lifetime mpg, hrs, and idle hours.

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Since I am a luddite using ancient technology, I assume this is part of the ECM and can probably be accessed through the OBDII port?

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Anyone ever put an hour meter on their engine and maintained the oil based on that instead of miles?

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My super duty has an hour meter. Lists miles, lifetime mpg, hrs, and idle hours.

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Since I am a luddite using ancient technology, I assume this is part of the ECM and can probably be accessed through the OBDII port?

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probably but I access it through the dash screen.

Computers in cars are the devil's work.

Tips and tricks?

I dunno. It takes me about 10 minutes to do the oil, tops. Open drain, wait until it trickles, close it, change filter, refill, write mileage on a sticky for the windshield. Probably plenty of ways to over think this, but I dont have time for that anymore.

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Tips and tricks?

I dunno. It takes me about 10 minutes to do the oil, tops. Open drain, wait until it trickles, close it, change filter, refill, write mileage on a sticky for the windshield. Probably plenty of ways to over think this, but I dont have time for that anymore.

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oooOOOooohhh look at me I'm too busy for fun stuff

Need to replace the oil sending unit on my 2011 Suburban. Any tips or tricks? It looks like a *****...

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Need to replace the oil sending unit on my 2011 Suburban. Any tips or tricks? It looks like a *****...

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Usually these are at the back of the block right up against firewall. It will be near impossible to access with a wrench with the intake manifold on. I also don't think a regular deep socket will work (**unless the sender looks different than pictured below?**)
I would recommend you try to find the job-specific socket for this:


I forgot to snug mine up before I reinstalled motor and ran into the same issue.

The only other option I know that will allow easy access is to remove intake. Check out Youtube maybe?

^ That

The socket can be found at O'Reilly's. Pulling the intake is easier than trying to work on it blind IMO but you'll need a in/lbs torque wrench to properly put the intake back on. I also recommend using a thread sealant on the threads of the new sending unit.

As far as my tips go, when disassembling sh*t with lots of fasteners, bag & tag errythang.

I didn't do this when I did the first swap and pretty much just used bolts wherever they would fit. Needless to say, I didn't have this issue during the second swap.

Another good practice is putting tools back in their spot immediately when you're done with them, this will save tons of time from searching for the tool that was in your hand a couple minutes ago.

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As far as my tips go, when disassembling sh*t with lots of fasteners, bag & tag errythang.

I didn't do this when I did the first swap and pretty much just used bolts wherever they would fit. Needless to say, I didn't have this issue during the second swap.

Another good practice is putting tools back in their spot immediately when you're done with them, this will save tons of time from searching for the tool that was in your hand a couple minutes ago.

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This is crazy talk, I say.