Looking For a Cheaper Alternative and Deciding To Do It Yourself

When I was in my teens and early twenties, I used to always change the oil on my car myself. I guess I learned how to do it from my older brother, who was several years older than me and into cars. As I grew older, however, I got away from “doing it myself” and usually paid to have my engine oil changed on my vehicles or vehicle, figuring my time was better spent on other things, and telling myself I could afford it.

A year or so ago, I decided to start putting synthetic motor oil in my vehicles. Both my wife’s car and mine were getting in the 5+ yr. old range, and, having read up on making your car last longer through regular maintenance and taking good care of them, I decided synthetic motor oil was a good choice for our older vehicles.

The problem was, although I could get a regular oil change for $15 to $20 (depending on the deal going on or whether I had a coupon), there were not many deals on synthetic oil changes, and most were $50+ in my area. I felt like that was a little too pricey for me, even though a car can go a good bit longer between changes than with conventional motor oil.

So what did I do?
I decided, after probably a 10 year hiatus, to start changing my oil myself. For around $25 +/- each, instead of $50, I could change the oil in my vehicles myself and make sure I did a proper job (after reading and hearing first hand some of the horror stories about quick lube places, as well-and I am not picking on Jiffy Lube specifically here), as well as use high quality synthetic oil and filters, which should make my cars last a little longer.

Is it a little extra work? Sure. But sometimes, both the monetary savings and knowing something is done correctly, or to your satisfaction, is worth spending a little bit of your own time learning and doing yourself. Learning new skills or how to perform new tasks, such as making things from scratch, performing maintenance, cooking, cleaning, painting, yard work, or other routine tasks may not always seem like they save you a whole lot of money. But you know the task or job is performed to your standards, and that is definitely worth something in this day and age.