Hi all,

Recently took ownership of an XKR-S and tried a DIY oil change last weekend. First time using a Mityvac thanks to the handy tube that Jaguar ran from the oil filler.

I was able to get out about 6.5l after a whole lot of manual pumping (married so an expert in this area) but that was about it. The last .5l took a lot of effort to get out and you could hear it bubbling, like when you suck on a straw with an almost empty cup.

I am wondering if my Mityvac has a leak? A number of reviews and videos online show people pumping 10 times and walking away and then coming back and all the oil is out. Is that how it is supposed to work? I had to manually pump mine throughout the process.

The good news is that I knew exactly how much came out so knew how much to put back in, but I am wondering if (a) I was doing it wrong or (b) I have a faulty tool (no comments, please).

Many thanks!

-Adam

 

Well, 6.5 liters IS about seven quarts, so I'd call that good anyway.
I use an electric pump I got from Amazon for cheap, but it's starting to leak when I use it. I should have bought a better one. Guess I will now.

 

Everything is normal. If you want to check for leaks just plug the end of the mightyvac tube and see if it holds vacuum.
The thing that should concern you is 6.5 liters. But even that is normal if it was driven like it was stolen and oil changed only once a year.

No you cant pump it 10 times and walk away.

 

IIRC (check to be sure) the refil volume is 7.25 litres. I guess some of your oil was burned off. If the pump managed to get 6 litres out without problems, it is probably OK. Put a total of 7.25 litres in and see how much it uses after about 1000 miles then you have a bench mark for future top ups/changes.

 

Thanks everyone. I put in exactly what came out and the computer is saying oil level OK. Going to keep an eye on it...

 

I reckon you had a poor seal over the end of the extraction tube. It needs to be a good tight seal to make and keep a decent vacuum for the pump to work properly.
The first time I used my pump (an el cheapo Chinese one) I also had to pump like crazy to get any action but then I figured out that the seal wasn't tight enough.
I had previously discovered that a spare 9 mm plastic vacuum plug I had (used for plugging the brake line banjo bolt hole when I changed out the rear brakes) fitted perfectly over the top of the oil extraction tube, so I drilled out the other end of the plug and inserted it into the end of the pump tube fitting that goes over the end of the extraction tube. Voila, nice tight fit and good seal, a few pumps and all the oil was out!

 

Mine did the exact same thing. There's oil trapped in the nooks and crannies of the engine. After you've pumped out all of the oil, put your foot on the brake and hit the start button. Then immediately kill it. My engine ran for less than a second after I drained the oil. That's not going to do any damage.

After that I waited ten minutes or so and pumped out another quart of oil.

 

Remember the first factory fill is 8.9 litres. Subsequent fills are 7.25 litres because all of the oil can't drain to the sump. Splash out some of that difference but put back only 7.25 litres and you will under fill.

Also filling with the same volume as came out probably means you make the same mistake as the previous guy. Filling by the book is the correct and safest way of getting it right.

 

The amount of oil left in the system won't make any difference of the new oil's ability to function. Put in the amount you took out and then check the oil and fill as required. If you are concerned about any remaining oil run the engine for half an hour and then change the oil again. If paranoid then do this 4 or 5 times and that should get the system cleaned out. The easiest way is just let the dealer do it and you won't know how they did it. I had a dealer do it once a year (4K miles ) and would just check it once a week. No issues.

 

I re-plumbed my Mityvac so I can hook it up to my AC vacuum pump. No more continuous pumping but I do have to keep an eye on it or it will suck in the sides of the MityVac.