Oil Extractor

[Sidney Plowman]

Has anyone used an Oil Fluid Extractor when changing the oil in their car.
Are they effective at removing all the oil from the sump .
From what I can see they seem to save crawling underneath the car and avoid messy spillages.
Comments please

 

[grober]

Yes I use a 6 litre vacuum extractor available from Sealey at about £53 http://www.justoffbase.co.uk/s.nl/sc.9/category.1954/it.A/id.7298/.f. Its great.This technique is widely used for marine engines- difficult to drain the sump in a boat! so marine chandlers also stock them. There is a high number of posts about the pros and cons of this proceedure especially on the American http://www.Mercedesshop.com. Some are for, some against. I quote from Mercedes own sales brochure on the E CLASS SALOONS (W124) SERIES "all engines are designed so that during an oil change, the used oil is extracted through the dipstick tube. This makes changing the oil less laborious and cleaner" If you change the oil/filter regularly I dont see a problem. However if this has been neglected and "sludging " has occurred then a hot drain from the sump might well be better. Others may disagree thats just my experience - works for me.
edit
I should add that I do this with the oil warmed up and every 5 -6000 miles rather than the 9000 recommended by MB
thanks to prompts from Shude and previous post from Will to see one (a topsider) in action http://www.slk32.com/pages/oilchange/oilchange.html Warning! I still wouldnt wear a white tuxedo to do this!

 

[Ian B Walker]

IRC there was a thread about these some time ago. I am not sure what was said but in my opinion there are for and against things for it. Yes it saves crawling under the car but I dont think they remove 100% of the oil. I would sooner go the extra mile so to speak and remove the sump plug. That way you will get rid (I hope) of all the sludge from the engine. Having seen your SL It is possible to do the sump plug from the top of the engine bay. So crawling about under the car isnt really necessary. All you will need is a drip tray, a 13mm socket and breaker bar.

edit....beat me to it Grober

 

[Vlad]

I always use an oil extractor pump now....every time I try to undo a sump plug on a Merc it ends up with a rounded off sump bolt

I obtained my extractor from a boat chandler.

 

[Satch]

http://www.compass24.com/index.pl?1142860748

Do a search on Pela. Got the 6.0 litre one.

Damn sight easier than grovelling underneath.

 

[Will]

Silly question, but what's point of a sump plug if the dipstick tube is for oil extraction?

Ok, so perhaps you might not own an oil suction device, but you'd still need a socket/spanner, oil catch tray, filter removal tool etc to change the oil.

Personally it's no hassle for me to remove the sump plug and fit a new washer, also gives me an opportunity to check the lower parts of the engine for fluid leaks (eg leaking sump gasket etc). If you don't want to get dirty you might as well use the likes of Kwik-Fit/National Tyre etc who'd change the oil for you quickly for not a lot of money.

Obviously it's horses for courses, but I agree with Ian and I prefer to do it properly

Will

 

[Shude]

Try searching for "topsider"

 

[tamrsoft]

I agree with those using the traditional sump plug removal method, I generally remove the bulk of the oil and then raise the front OS slightly to get the sump plug to its absolute lowest point and leave draining for another hour. Its amazing how much will continue to drain out after the bulk of the old oil has apparently been removed. I'me sure the vacuum removal method cannot evacuate to this level and garages certainly don't. After my last garage service (and it will be the last), the new oil looked almost as dirty as the old clearly contaminated by an incomplete drain of the old oil.

 

[Shude]

When Ian Walker changed the oil on my car we discovered that MB Whitefield at least use the "proper" method of removing the old oil

 

[Satch]

I'me sure the vacuum removal method cannot evacuate to this level and garages certainly don't. After my last garage service (and it will be the last), the new oil looked almost as dirty as the old clearly contaminated by an incomplete drain of the old oil.

Quite right, it does not, and for a proper drain there is no substitute for removing the sump plug although if you have the time and do another suction about an hour after the first one quite a bit comes out.

If 5% of the old oil is still in the system it will discolour but better have a 95% replacement of the oil & additive packages than 100% of the old stuff!

 

[Sidney Plowman]

Thanks for the advice. I agree that the 300 Sl sump plug is easy to get at and the filter on the M103 is at the top but I also change the oil on a BMW EEK and four other vehicles (vans) that are not so well designed and changing the oil can be a pig so I will be investing in a oil extractor and save some mess and pain and I can always take the sump plug out of the sl every other change.The oil does not get that dirty as it is changed evey 6 months at about 2000 miles and I put old the oil in an old desiel Van to save money.

 

[Satch]

Just remember to take the filler cap off first.

Otherwise you will. like me, stand there cursing the extractor pump for taking ages.........

 

[Bazzle]

I suppose those who say the extractor doesnt remove it all have tried them?

I have and I find more oil in the sump when removing the plug than when using the extractor. Not only on the benz. The suction tube ends up in the lowest part of sump. Sump plug method need vehicle to be leant towards the plug to drain all oil out.
Oil still settles in the bottom after a wait using both methods so all oil is removed that can drain down using extractor.

Try getting under an SLK one day in your driveway...

Bazzle