Things You'll Need:
- Car lift (or)
- Floor jack and two jack stands
- Safety glasses
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Step 1
Start the vehicle and let it run for 10 minutes.
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Step 2
Lift the vehicle on a car lift or raise the front end of the vehicle with a floor jack and place the jack stands in a safe and secure location to support the weight of the vehicle. Do not crawl under the vehicle with the weight supported only on a hydraulic jack.
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Step 3
Put on the safety glasses.
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Step 4
Crawl or step under the front of the vehicle and locate the oil pan. There will be a large nut screwed into the lowest part of the pan. An oil pan is usually located in the middle of the engine, below the crankcase.
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Step 5
Refer to the owner's manual of the vehicle to locate the oil pan if necessary. If the vehicle is an automatic and you see two similar pans, touch the bolt head of the plug on each one with your hand. The oil pan plug will be warmer to the touch (from running the engine for 10 minutes) than the transmission pan plug.
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Step 6
Locate the plug in the oil pan. The oil pan plug is a large bolt head located on the lowest point of the oil pan. It will either be on the very bottom or along the edge of the lowest point of the pan. To remove the oil plug, place a container beneath it to catch the oil, match the bolt head up with a box end wrench and turn the plug counterclockwise until loose enough to finish removing by hand.
