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Oil Change - How many Quarts of 15W-50 Mobil1?

HoldHard2

Active member
Joined
Aug 3, 2003
Messages
35
Location
Farmington Hills, MI
Corvette
1991 Medium Quasar Blue Callaway Twin Turbo SOLD!
Well the "Change Oil" light finally came on and I'm going to do it myself. Since the Callaway will be spending the winter in storage, I was going to do it anyway.

How many quarts of 15W-50 will I need? The book says 5 quarts with filter change but since there is the alternate reservoir and sump pump, does that change the total capacity?

I have ramps (but aerobody does not clear them, so that means rolling up on some wood first), a Hydraulic jack and jack stands which I probably will use, as those they provide more room.

Any recommendations on oil filter?

Thanks,
HoldHard
 
I use the AC Delco PF 35 (truck filter) it's a bit longer than the recommended PF 25. I use 6 quarts.
 
The interesting thing about the sump reservoir is that there's no easy way to fully drain the system. To get the oil outta that sump reservoir you'd have to remove it (not an easy earl change task and not necessary) As 8388 mentioned, 6 quarts is about right with an oil filter change. That extra quart is only a partial drain of the system and is more or less what is hanging in the oil cooler and sump lines. The long and short of it is that I guess that no matter what car you change the oil, there is always some little amount left in there..
 
Anybody have any experience with the Mobil1 oil filter? They are a little bit more, like $9.99 at a discount parts store around here.

If there is one thing that is considered a "consumable" on the Callaway, I'd prefer that it be the best available, especially when it comes to keeping the oil clean. I'm sure I just opened a can of worms........ oh well......

Mayabe I'm a victim of advertising but I still remember the Fram filter commercial of the garage mechanic saying "you can pay me now or you can pay me later".

Thanks for the 6 quart recommendation. Price was $4.99 a quart <ouch> but Mobil1 15W-50 is what it says on the side of the intercooler and that's what has always been put into it. I'm not going to switch to anything else now....

HoldHard
 
I recommend you use a good quality filter like the Delco brand and save your money on those expensive ones. Keep in mind that the oiling system uses a bypass valve located on the block where the filter bolts to. This is designed to open when the pressure is greater then 20 psi which is just about always. This is a safety feature which allows the oil to bypass the filter in the event the filter were to get clogged up. The majority of the oil that flows thru the engine winds up going thru the bypass any way. Only by removing the bypass will you actually force all the oil to go thru the filter 1st. Your best bet is to change the oil and filter every 2500 miles.
 
Is it easier to remove the drivers side intercooler to get to the oil fill cap?

It just looks like the 4 hose clamps have to be loosened and then it can be pulled off. Am I missing anything?

HoldHard
 
I gently move it enough to clear the oil cap while unscrewing it.
 
Keep in mind that the oiling system uses a bypass valve located on the block where the filter bolts to.


Can you easily change or check the bypass valve?
 
6shark9 said:
Can you easily change or check the bypass valve?


Yes it can easily be removed. But remember **all** the particles will then flow thru the filter, and you can run the risk of having the filter explode due to glogging, even thicker steel wall filters like the K&N may not hold. In order to change the bypass pressure, you would have to experiment with differents stiffer springs. Honestly the best insurance policy is to just change both filter and oil on a regular basis.
 
HoldHard2 said:
Is it easier to remove the drivers side intercooler to get to the oil fill cap?

It just looks like the 4 hose clamps have to be loosened and then it can be pulled off. Am I missing anything?

HoldHard

On mine, I use a (clean) empty oil bottle and insert the opening into the fill hole - Leaving the intercoolers on.

The bottom of the oil can is trimmed off and it kida "flexes" into the area between the intake and intercooler :cool

I know others have had to take their intercoolers off, the funnel I made works for me :m

Hope this helps

(I used to have pics of this in another thread but cannot pull them up :confused )
 
Eric - yeah, I tried a "flex funnel" but it was too small of a tube and took forever to pour the oil into the cover...

The oil bottle w/ bottom trimmed off works the best and again, it conforms to the shape between the intercooler and intake - I use it on other cars too (Superram is a tougher pour than the B2K :eek)

Cheap, simple, effective :upthumbs
 
*89x2* said:
On mine, I use a (clean) empty oil bottle and insert the opening into the fill hole - Leaving the intercoolers on.

The bottom of the oil can is trimmed off and it kida "flexes" into the area between the intake and intercooler :cool

I remembered the pictures that were on a previous post and decided to just loosen the intercooler hose clamps while leaving it in place. That provided enough room to gently move it to the side and place the modified plastic oil bottle into the valve cover fill hole.

It worked great!!! The modified bottle was held in place by the two cruise control cables and the fill hole. I could pour a complete quart in and then stand it in the modified bottle to drain the last little bit. 15W-50 sure moves slow at 50-some degrees.....

Thanks again for all the help.

HoldHard
 
Glad it worked - The modified bottle method works well and is not a "Callaway Specific" part as I have used it on countless vehicles - Who designs the location of the fill hole anyways...:mad

Have you been driving your Callaway much?? Any new pics?
Enjoy :m
 
*89x2* said:
Have you been driving your Callaway much?? Any new pics?
Enjoy :m

Looks like I've got an offer on the table. I've been exchanging e-mails and phone calls with a gentleman from Kansas City. He and his wife are driving in with a trailer on Thanksgiving. They are serious collectors as they already have two ZR1's, one repainted in Grand Sport colors.

It's really crushing me to sell this car, but life goes on. I've already convinced my wife that when things turn around, I'm buying another Corvette. She insists that the next one is "one that we drive, not just polish and take to car shows".

Gotta love a woman like that.......

HoldHard
 
HoldHard2 said:
Looks like I've got an offer on the table. I've been exchanging e-mails and phone calls with a gentleman from Kansas City.

Sounds like it will be going to a good home - again, sorry you are selling :(

HoldHard2 said:
It's really crushing me to sell this car, but life goes on. I've already convinced my wife that when things turn around, I'm buying another Corvette. She insists that the next one is "one that we drive, not just polish and take to car shows".

Gotta love a woman like that.......

HoldHard

I can appreciate that - You may want to consider a Callaway Supernatural Corvette :upthumbs

I drove ours again this morning, top down w/ the brisk air :D

From a maintenance standpoint, there is absolutely no other concerns besides what a normal LT1 / LT5 would have

Ours has some miles on it - miles of smiles :)

My bride often wonders why I don't drive our cars more though... That was one of the reasons she likes the SNAT - Cause I do drive it :m
 
HoldHard2
You have a very sharp car and I personally know it can be hard to let them go. May better times pass your way.
 
Redmanf1 said:
HoldHard2
You have a very sharp car and I personally know it can be hard to let them go. May better times pass your way.

Thanks Redmanf1. Sounds like you've been down this path......

You have to have goals in life and for me one of them was a TT Callaway. I can't remember being as excited as I was the day it came off the transport truck. I had to get up in the middle of the night and go look at it in the garage because I still didn't believe it was mine.

I'm just old enough to have been around when muscle cars were available (ok, ok, used muscle cars) and the only thing that comes close to the Callaway was a 428 CobraJet Mustang from 1968. Funny, it was also blue with a black interior. Some things never change I guess......

The car has produced some of the finest memories of any vehicle that I've owned, especially this past summer during the Woodward Dream Cruise and the Corvettes America show at the GM Tech Center. The Dream Cruise pulls in thousands of cars and thousands of people. The Callaway always drew a crowd, even parked amongst twenty or two hundred other Corvettes.

Hopefully better times are coming, but right now the job market in Detroit really sucks. It's the wrong time of year to add staff as everyone is keeping a close eye on the bottom line as the fiscal year closes.

The good news is that I'll always have the memories, good ones of this group helping solve all the little problems that you run into with a car as special as a B2K. It's like being in a big extended family.

Thanks again.

HoldHard
 

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