Hmm, not sure this is the right thread, but I'll put it here for now as it must fall under technology right? Anyways, I changed the oil in my car Friday. It seems to have gone well considering I haven't done it on my own in about 4 years. I thought I'd give it a try doing it myself again since I had the time. I'm kinda worried that I might have messed up though. Nothing appears to be wrong yet after 2 days. I don't think there is any oil leaking, although when I got under the car today I found a drop hanging off the underside of the car. I felt around the actual bolt (oil pan plug) and tried to feel around the filter, and didn't find anymore drops so I guess its good. My question then is, how long would it take for an oil leak to appear? A few days, a week? I drove the car around yesterday for about 45mins and when I checked for oil spots on the ground this morning there weren't any. I've checked the oil level about 4 times in the past 2 days as well and everything seems normal. I guess I'll just keep checking for any signs of a leak and checking the oil level for another week or so.
Ah, I hate, hate, hate changing the oil. As far doing it right, there is not much you can do wrong. If you don't see any spillage after leaving the car overnight, then you should be fine. Oil leaks tend to leave a very visible trace fairly quickly. If your still worried, just check the dipstick every other day for a week, and if it doesn't drop your good. If there is insufficient oil you will notice quickly. The engine will start making noises or run hot after a few minutes of use. I once killed an engine after something on the side of the road ripped my oil pan in a pursuit, less then 10 miles down the road the engine block broke, and there was nothing I could do. My supervisors really liked it too...... I should have stopped, I just didn't realize the extent of the damage.
If it's just a slight drip - and it's an older car, I wouldn't worry too much. My previous car - which was getting 'up there' in kilometres (nearly 300k) - used to drip a little...but it didn't burn any. Older cars (especially the type of Ford that I had) have a tendency to develop slightly leaky oil seals with age. Now - if I was baileyh, I could probably fix it in half an hour flat - but I'm not - I do my own oil changes (+ oil/air filters etc) but other than that, my mechanical ability is fairly limited. As it was, I just kept an eye on it - and it never got any worse - and actually used very little oil - so all I did was put something down in the garage to catch the drips - and didn't worry about it. That said - if it was my new car (which is still under dealer warranty) started dripping oil - I'd take it back so quick....
It sounds like everything is OK. Other than really screwing it up (which you don't seem to have done) there don't appear to be any problems. Like the others have said, anything wrong would have been so obvious by now. Relax. (From a veteran of many oil changes!!)
If you can't find an obvious leak, you're OK. Did you spill any oil on the engine block when removing the oil filter? Also, your front seal may be leaking but this usually shows itself by leaving small oil spots underneath your car. Even if it is your front seal, it's not something to immediately worry about. Like so many other things, it just happens with age.
Thanks everyone for the advice. I'll have to send Bailyh a PM later if anything new develops, but it looks like everything's fine for now. Thanks again.
