1st Oil Change Experience, Observations & a Surprise

[Black Tire]

A week ago I did the first oil change for my Scion FR-S at 1124 miles. Here's a record of what I did and some of the results and observations.

Oil: Amsoil 0W-20 Signature
Oil Filter: OEM Toyota ($20+ from my Scion Dealer!)
Oil Plug: Fumoto F108S Oil Valve

I planned to use my original Rhino Ramps (and some wheel chocks behind the rear wheels!), but the ramps hit the front of the car before they touched the tires. To resolve this problem I laid some scrap sections of a 2x6 board in front of the ramps (crosswise) so that the boards lifted the car a bit before the tires hit the ramps. This worked and was just a little more trouble than the ramps alone.

To remove the original oil plug requires a 14 mm wrench. The crush washer on this plug seems to be painted or glued on, and it was not concentric with the oil plug. I'm glad that I don't have to remove and replace it because it looks like quite a challenge (and the fact that my dealer didn't even have one in stock.) If I was not planning to install a Fumoto oil valve, I would be very tempted to just reinstall it without trying to change the crush washer. It is possible that Scion/Toyota/Subaru is planning to only sell plugs with this crush washer installed and not crush washers alone for this car. As mentioned elsewhere on this forum, the oil gushes out of the drain hole, so be prepared with an oil catch pan if you are doing this yourself.

Original Oil Plug:





I replaced the original oil plug with the Fumoto F108S Oil Valve using the blue rubbery gasket that came with the valve. This version of the Fumoto valve has a short nipple for connecting a hose for draining. The installation was quite painless.

Fumoto F108S Oil Valve Installed on my Scion FR-S (with safety clip):





The oil filter was a no-brainier to replace since it is right on top at the front edge of the engine compartment. I was careful and did not drip any oil in the engine compartment when changing it out. The Scion (Toyota-Subaru) oil filter has a plastic seal over the business end. When I removed it I noticed that the rubber o-ring seemed to already have a coating of oil. I dipped a [gloved] finger in new oil and ran it over the o-ring just in case. I suspect that the technicians at the dealer don't do this step and just use the filter as-is.

Scion-supplied oil filter:



I poured in the manual-recommended 5.8 quarts of my chosen oil, Amsoil 0W-20 Signature and double checked that everything was sealed. The engine started well and I drove it off the ramps. I shut the engine off for 10 minutes and then checked the level at the dipstick. The oil level read high, but perhaps only a little higher than when the car was new from the factory. See my previous post here:

Factory Oil Fill Level

Now for the surprise. I noticed after the oil change that the valve train noise was much less than before. This was noticeable at idle, but even more pronounced at higher engine speeds.. Before the change, the noise generator ensured lots of noise anytime the engine passed 3500 rpm. This change was so pronounced that I forgot to shift from 5th to 6th when I went on to the freeway and accelerated to around 70 mph. I had never forgotten this before because the engine changed sound so much that I could easily drive by ear.

Could it be that the overfill of the oil was the cause of the change in engine noise? To find out I went back under the car the next day. I attached a short hose with the little plastic connector that came with my Fumoto oil valve. I was able to drain exactly 0.5 quart of oil from the oil pan by only partially opening the valve to control the flow. Wow! I would not have been able to do this so precisely without the Fumoto valve. Also, I used only one blue paper shop towel for the entire procedure including checking the dipstick afterwards! The level of the oil was now just a tick below the full mark. After driving the car and then letting it sit for several hours, I checked the oil level again. This time, with a cold engine, the oil level was approximately 5 mm above the full mark on the dipstick. I think this is about right for this car, so I stopped messing with it.

And what about the sound? There was no change in the sound after removing the 0.5 quart of oil. My car is now much quieter, especially at higher engine speeds. I personally prefer this, and I trust Amsoil as I have had also good experiences with it in other vehicles.

For reference, doing the math, this means that for my car it takes about 5.3 quarts of oil to refill it after an oil and filter change. Another post suggested adding 5 quarts and then checking the level at the dipstick. I think this would probably work fine, but I would make sure to check again after several hours (or the next morning ) with a cold engine as I think this is what is intended after reading the manual. Seeing that the recommended 5.8 quarts results in an overfill, I really don't think this is really a problem for this engine. It may be that for the track an overfill is preferred to reduce the chance of oil starvation during sustained high-G maneuvers (this was the case with my last car, a BMW E36 M3). I would really like to talk to one of the Subaru engineers who developed the engine about this.

[StevenEngage]

I have never in my life heard of that oil drain valve....that is F***ING amazing. I will be doing some research on those and probably putting them on all my vehicles.

Interesting that the valve train became quieter, maybe they use a thinner oil from factory to help promote engine break in? good to know regardless

[roddy]

I changed mine on Friday night at 1801 KMs (1119 miles). I noticed everything you did... drain plug washer, valvetrain noise, fill to full on dipstick ~ 5.2 L. I did notice when the OE oil was drained, it shot out like a geyser, and seemed very thin...smelled s bit like gas too.

Next time you need a filter, if you have a Subaru dealer nearby, try their parts counter. I got the same oil filter ( # 15208AA130 ) next door at the Subaru dealer for about $8.00. I kept the stock drain plug for now, but the Subi dealer wasn't sure if this car used the large or small drain plug gasket. I grabbed 2 of each, and it turns out that it uses the standard small Subaru gasket. Just in case anyone was wondering.

[ShoGun]

Thanks for the tip.

Random side question:
Do you think its possible to change the oil without the use of ramps or jacks?(stock car with no lowering)

[jarviz]

I just did an oil change yesterday and replaced it with a compatible K&N filter. I tried changing the oil by myself the first time, but the drain plug was on unbelievably tight, I started wearing the corners till I didn't want to damage it too much. I brought it into a local mechanic and fortunately they were able to get it off. I replaced it with Toyota Oil for about 7 bucks a quart from Toyota. Toyota charged me for $25 for the oil filter, but I went for the K&N instead.

I also ordered the Fumoto drain valve - how's that working for you?

[jarviz]

Originally Posted by ShoGun

Thanks for the tip.

Random side question:
Do you think its possible to change the oil without the use of ramps or jacks?(stock car with no lowering)

No definitely not - I picked up some Rhino ramps for about $50 - even with that it's still really close to the ground, so unless youre small framed or really slim, don't even bother doing it yourself with rhino ramps. Find something else that can get it higher off the ground.

[Coheed]

The filter looks like a Champion Labs piece. Is that who makes the filters for OEM toyota/subaru?

[ahausheer]

That's going to be annoying if the manual says add x amount of oil and then the dipstick suggests otherwise.

[roddy]

Originally Posted by Coheed

The filter looks like a Champion Labs piece. Is that who makes the filters for OEM toyota/subaru?

Made in Japan by Tokyo Roki.

[Black Tire]

Originally Posted by jarviz

I tried changing the oil by myself the first time, but the drain plug was on unbelievably tight, I started wearing the corners till I didn't want to damage it too much. I brought it into a local mechanic and fortunately they were able to get it off.

I also ordered the Fumoto drain valve - how's that working for you?

For the original oil plug, I used a box end wrench with a dead blow hammer to get it started. I just thought it was because I was weak! Anyway this method worked with just a few taps from the hammer on the end of the wrench. If I were re-using the plug I would not have put it that tight. Perhaps the same paint-glue stuff that sticks the crush washer on also stuck the plug to the oil pan. Maybe also this is done so that the dealer can see if the oil plug has been removed - this may be important for warranties in some countries.

The Fumoto drain valve is working great so far (1 week in) - no leaks. I think oil changes will be completely different with this valve. Note that I needed to use a pliers to get the safety clip in place. My fingers are just not strong enough to squeeze it open against the spring tension right now.

[Subie]

I've never heard of a washer being painted or glued on. You said your dealer didn't have it in stock: does that mean the part number was listed but he had no inventory? In the past when changing oil the washer has stuck to the oil pan and I've removed it by giving it a gentle tap with a flathead screwdriver. My guess is that the washer is simply stuck to the plug from it being tightened so much, and not permanently attached.

[simpleisbest]

I just changed my oil for the first time and noticed the paint fused crush washer.
Looking at the how it was painted on, I assume it's a production process miss.
I used a dremmel and gently grinded off the paint holding on the crush washer and it came off easy.
When compared to a new Subaru crush washer, the thickness is greatly different. Not sure how reusable it is, but since I had a set of them I replaced it.

[csaba]

Originally Posted by ShoGun

Thanks for the tip.

Random side question:
Do you think its possible to change the oil without the use of ramps or jacks?(stock car with no lowering)

No

[Scooby South]

Originally Posted by Subie

I've never heard of a washer being painted or glued on. You said your dealer didn't have it in stock: does that mean the part number was listed but he had no inventory? In the past when changing oil the washer has stuck to the oil pan and I've removed it by giving it a gentle tap with a flathead screwdriver. My guess is that the washer is simply stuck to the plug from it being tightened so much, and not permanently attached.

Originally Posted by simpleisbest

I just changed my oil for the first time and noticed the paint fused crush washer.
Looking at the how it was painted on, I assume it's a production process miss.
I used a dremmel and gently grinded off the paint holding on the crush washer and it came off easy.
When compared to a new Subaru crush washer, the thickness is greatly different. Not sure how reusable it is, but since I had a set of them I replaced it.

Thats a Subaru thing...First time oil changes on Subaru's always have the crush washer stuck to the drain plug.. it will be easy after this..the reason is because Subaru paints the oilpan with the drainplug already in it.. For you FRS guys..I recommend going to Subaru to get the Filter and the drain plug Crush washer... It should be cheaper...and I know for a fact, that dealers have these in stock...always.. because they share that filter with other Subaru models...Be careful with aftermarket filters, because there is a pressure relief Valve inside the Subaru Filter...some aftermarket filters don't have this feature and could leak or split on you...only seen it once...but just words to the wise.. Even after some VERY heavily modded cars that I have seen...most prefer the stock oil filter..

Bill