--- title: Oil Changes & Fluids description: This topic covers the selection and replacement of essential automotive fluids, including engine oil, coolant, transmission fluid, and brake fluid. You will understand how to safely drain, flush, refill, and recycle these vital lubricants. category: trades-crafts subcategory: automotive difficulty: beginner, intermediate, advanced url: /subject/oil-changes-and-fluids --- # Oil Changes & Fluids This topic covers the selection and replacement of essential automotive fluids, including engine oil, coolant, transmission fluid, and brake fluid. You will understand how to safely drain, flush, refill, and recycle these vital lubricants. ## Available Resources 1 Books • 3 Websites ## Websites ### 1. Bob Is The Oil Guy A long-running enthusiast forum where members post and discuss used oil analysis reports, compare motor oil and filter brands, and share DIY maintenance procedures. Reading its analysis threads helps you judge drain intervals and oil choices from lab data. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/ **Tags:** motor-oil, used-oil-analysis, oil-filters, car-maintenance, lubricants ### 2. EricTheCarGuy Website of the Ohio mechanic known as EricTheCarGuy, collecting his repair and diagnostic videos, how-to articles, trouble code references, and tool recommendations. DIY owners learn to diagnose common faults and carry out routine maintenance and repairs on their own vehicles. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.ericthecarguy.com/ **Tags:** auto-repair, car-maintenance, diy-mechanics, automotive-diagnostics, automotive-tools ### 3. repairpal.com RepairPal is a car maintenance and repair resource offering maintenance schedules, how-to guides for common issues, and transparent cost estimates, plus access to a network of certified repair shops. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://repairpal.com **Tags:** websites, engineering-manufacturing, automotive ## Youtubes ### 1. How to Change EVERY FLUID in your Car or Truck (Oil, Transmission, Coolant, Brake, and More) **Author:** ChrisFix A single 39-minute walkthrough of every fluid service on a typical car: engine oil and filter, automatic transmission, coolant, brake bleeding, power steering, differentials, transfer case, grease fittings and washer fluid. **Difficulty:** Beginner | **Language:** English | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7JCh7PHoDc **Tags:** car-maintenance, diy-auto-repair, fluid-changes, brake-bleeding, transmission-fluid, coolant ### 2. The History of Automatic Transmission Fluids (ATF) — Part 1: Introduction **Author:** Professor John D. Kelly Weber State automotive professor John Kelly opens a multi-part lecture series tracing why automatic transmission fluid specifications exist, how friction modifiers and viscosity requirements changed across generations, and why substituting the wrong ATF causes failures. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aV-ri4rOHRI **Tags:** automatic-transmission-fluid, automatic-transmissions, friction-modifiers, fluid-specifications, automotive-engineering ### 3. Do Thin Oils Destroy Engines? Lessons From GM's Massive Recall **Author:** Jason Fenske A 24-minute engineering analysis of why manufacturers specify thin grades, what HTHS viscosity measures, and how oil choice relates to bearing wear, using GM's 6.2L V8 recall as the worked case study. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0VoEhW2I-E **Tags:** engine-oil, oil-viscosity, hths-viscosity, bearing-wear, automotive-engineering ### 4. The Motor Oil Geek **Author:** Lake Speed Jr. Lake Speed Jr., an STLE Certified Lubrication Specialist and Oil Monitoring Analyst, breaks down additive packages, base oil groups, oil analysis data, and drain intervals, testing common claims against laboratory results rather than marketing copy. **Difficulty:** Intermediate | **Language:** English | **Price:** Free **Link:** https://www.youtube.com/@TheMotorOilGeek **Tags:** motor-oil, used-oil-analysis, oil-additives, base-oils, drain-intervals ## Books ### 1. Automotive Lubricants Reference Book, Second Edition **Author:** Arthur J. Caines, Roger F. Haycock, John E. Hillier Eleven chapters and ten appendices covering base stocks, additive chemistry, engine oil test methods, gear oils, automatic transmission fluids, brake fluids and coolants, with the specification tables and glossary practitioners use as a desk reference. **Difficulty:** Advanced | **Language:** English | **Price:** Paid **Link:** https://www.amazon.com/dp/0768012511?tag=edmonddante07-20 **Tags:** lubricants, engine-oil, lubricant-additives, base-oils, transmission-fluid, tribology --- *This content is part of Dantes.io - Your Treasure Map to Knowledge* *Curated by humans at Dantes.io. Personal study use welcome; republishing this curation requires permission (team@dantes.io).* View this page online: https://dantes.io/subject/oil-changes-and-fluids