The Land Rover dealer near me stopped offering $69 oil changes so it was my turn. Here is a report on my first DIY LR3 oil change. Overall, it was very easy.
Rhino ramps worked great and I felt safe while under the LR3. On my old allroad you could push a button to lock the air suspension, wish the LR3 had the same feature to prevent any surprise movements. I also left a door slightly open which seems to stop suspension movements when I do tire changeovers.
Dealer must have used an air wrench to install the skid plate bolts. And they were all badly rusted. I wire-wheeled off the rust and added a coat of Teflon lube to make the next removal easier. A 5-gallon Home Depot bucket works great to support the skid plate when removing and installing the bolts.
Drain bolt was also put on at max torque, not 18 foot-pounds as it should be. It was also pretty chewed-up. Atlantic British sent me a new drain plug along with the oil filter.
I reached-in to put a strap wrench around the oil filter and saw it spin. It was actually loose. Technician that did the last oil change must have forgotten to tighten it. I was amazed that it was not leaking. I installed the new filter using the “additional ¾ turn past contact” tightening method. Does anybody know what size socket fits over the top of the oil filter and where I can get one?
After using synthetic oil in my cars for the last ten years, I could not find any proof that it should go in the 4.4 LR3 engine. So I bought regular Castrol 5W-30 and it took 7.5 quarts. One near disaster…when you unscrew the cap on the oil bottle, the cap separates, leaving a plastic ring on the bottle. When I was pouring the 3rd quart in, the ring suddenly fell off the bottle neck. I figured valve cover removal was next, but thankfully I was using a funnel and the ring got stuck in the funnel. New rule – remove the cap AND ring on the oil bottle before pouring. Hopefully this advice saves someone else from a similar disaster.
Rhino ramps worked great and I felt safe while under the LR3. On my old allroad you could push a button to lock the air suspension, wish the LR3 had the same feature to prevent any surprise movements. I also left a door slightly open which seems to stop suspension movements when I do tire changeovers.
Dealer must have used an air wrench to install the skid plate bolts. And they were all badly rusted. I wire-wheeled off the rust and added a coat of Teflon lube to make the next removal easier. A 5-gallon Home Depot bucket works great to support the skid plate when removing and installing the bolts.
Drain bolt was also put on at max torque, not 18 foot-pounds as it should be. It was also pretty chewed-up. Atlantic British sent me a new drain plug along with the oil filter.
I reached-in to put a strap wrench around the oil filter and saw it spin. It was actually loose. Technician that did the last oil change must have forgotten to tighten it. I was amazed that it was not leaking. I installed the new filter using the “additional ¾ turn past contact” tightening method. Does anybody know what size socket fits over the top of the oil filter and where I can get one?
After using synthetic oil in my cars for the last ten years, I could not find any proof that it should go in the 4.4 LR3 engine. So I bought regular Castrol 5W-30 and it took 7.5 quarts. One near disaster…when you unscrew the cap on the oil bottle, the cap separates, leaving a plastic ring on the bottle. When I was pouring the 3rd quart in, the ring suddenly fell off the bottle neck. I figured valve cover removal was next, but thankfully I was using a funnel and the ring got stuck in the funnel. New rule – remove the cap AND ring on the oil bottle before pouring. Hopefully this advice saves someone else from a similar disaster.
