Changing your own oil - 2.5L hybrid

[Lane]

Some clever Mav owner with an engineering background needs to design quick release clips to replace the #30 TORX fasteners.

I have an older Lotus and it has a lot of fasteners to remove the body undertray for an oil change. Several companies have made kits available to replace the factory fasteners with quarter-turn Dzus fasteners. Here's an example - take a look at the pics to get an idea of how they install. You might be able to do something similar for the Maverick.

IMO, I don't think it's worth the effort. Just buy a cordless impact which will zip out the factory fasteners nice and quick, and you'll also find a lot of other uses for the tool in your garage/home.

Sponsored

 

[Old Ford Guy]

Just did my first oil change at 3000 miles. Autozone charged me just under $50 for 6 quarts of Valvoline full synthetic 0W-20, including a free extended life oil filter and my military discount. What's the going rate at the dealer these days?

I will say that the plastic panel under the engine seems stupidly designed. There is an access hole for the drain plug, but it's not lined up right to allow the oil to drain straight down without making a mess. There is no access to the filter at all without removing the entire panel under the engine, about a dozen screws. Not a big deal, but more work than it should be and I see a high potential for losing or stripping these screws out in the future. Am I missing something here? Was this panel designed with only the ecoboost in mind or something?

you are FAR from the 1st to note how inconvenient this design is for the DIY'er. the consensus solution from the community at MTC is that Ford should come out with a replacement cover equipped with access holes for the oil drain plug & the oil filter. when or if we'll ever see such a 'fix' remains a open question.
perhaps some enterprising entrepreneur out there will come up with one?

 

[Old Ford Guy]

The cover is just there for airo benefits, and Ford doesn't want people doing oil changes themselves, so they don't go out of their way to design it in a way to make it easy.

great point.
ALL the manufacturers do not seem to give a flying fadoodle about the DIY people who take pride or pleasure in maintaining their own vehicles. i dislike sounding like a conspiracy theorist but this is all part of a trend towards replaceable consumer goods to force us to either take it back to them for repair or just get the next new thing. think about TV repair shops, they've all but disappeared because it's usually cheaper to just get another one rather than to get the old one fixed.
just look at how hard the OEM's, both domestic and transplants have fought to prevent aftermarket repair shops from being able to access diagnostic and troubleshooting software. the same goes for Apple and other Big Tech companies failed efforts to defeat our 'right to repair' our own bought & paid for phones; tablets and such.

 

[Old Ford Guy]

Sigh, again I realize WHY the cover is there. No need to debate that or try to educate me with links. My solution would be to notch out the already existing, yet misplaced, hole for the drain plug and use a 4" hole saw for oil filter access. Some day I'll probably lose or strip out a couple of screws and get irritated enough to do just that, but I'm not there yet.

Funny how you all are fixated on the second part of my original post, yet no one has bothered to answer the first question. How much does paying for an oil change on the hybrid typically cost? I don't think I'm saving much money doing it myself, but my time is money also.

at my local dealership i routinely get coupons for their 'works' pkg. a oil & filter change: tire rotation: fluids top offs and vehicle inspection at $60 to $70 plus tax. almost never more than an hour start to finish, i can live with that. your pricing may vary. i put less than 10K miles a yr on her and with the full synthetic have no qualms about only changing the oil either annually or at 10K miles or whenever the oil life monitor display gets to 25% or less, whichever comes 1st. hope this helps.

 

[GPSMan]

Not sure who wants to do it or why; but....

Start the truck engine

Put it in "neutral" N

Put parking brake on

Engine will run forever (or until you run out of gas )

Option B

If truck engine is off

Put it in "neutral" N

Put parking brake on

Engine will NEVER start and eventually both batteries will drain. (You'll get a warning about this.)

Engine can't start or stop in neutral.

 

[Thundercougarfalconbird]

Thanks for your suggestion, but when I tried holding the OK button on my hybrid, it just reset the current trip odometer. I will have to try it again with small mods like holding down the OK button before inserting the ignition key, and perhaps just turning it to ACC or ON (not START). Aside from tuning the AFE (MPG) factor, my main goal is to be able to test run the engine in the hybrid as if it were in an EB. e.g. Turning the key will start it, then It will idle and respond to accelerator inputs as if controlling the throttle. Ignition OFF resets this mode back to normal. I think a LOT of DIY-type people would like this capability. One more thing for my to-do list.

There are several AFE bias threads - perhaps one will have it. I actually pulled that thread link from one of those threads. It's a lot to dig through

 

[Saltwater Cowboys]

There are several AFE bias threads - perhaps one will have it. I actually pulled that thread link from one of those threads. It's a lot to dig through

I got mine to go into Engineering Mode and the instructions weren’t quite right but I figured it out. I think maybe I did hold the ok button before turning the ignition.

I don’t think I adjusted the right thing though, as my AFE is still off by about 2 mpg.

 

[Grabber Rick]

I'm talking about the hybrid. I assume it helps with aerodynamics and improves fuel economy a little bit and maybe protects the engine and eCVT somewhat.

My issue is not that it's there, but why make the filter impossible to change without removing the whole damn thing?

Only got 270 miles on my hybrid. Not ready to change oil yet. I plan on cutting a access hole for the filter and drain plug. I will use threaded slip on clips to reattach the part I cut out. I may have to use something else to reattach if what I cut out is not big enough to cover the opening. I will try to use 4-6 screws or bolts to hold it on. I will go with stainless hardware if possible to avoid corrosion. I also think the cover makes it attractive for rodents to crawl under it to build a nest.

 

[Hkak45]

Does anyone know if a fumoto valve will fit under the hybrid properly?

 

[Merverik]

Sounds like there could be a nice niche in aftermarket parts market. If some company can come out with a perfect upgrade panel with access hatches or whatever. A big chunk of flat plastic isn’t hard to crank out.

 

[Timothyd]

Just did my first oil change at 3000 miles. Autozone charged me just under $50 for 6 quarts of Valvoline full synthetic 0W-20, including a free extended life oil filter and my military discount. What's the going rate at the dealer these days?

I will say that the plastic panel under the engine seems stupidly designed. There is an access hole for the drain plug, but it's not lined up right to allow the oil to drain straight down without making a mess. There is no access to the filter at all without removing the entire panel under the engine, about a dozen screws. Not a big deal, but more work than it should be and I see a high potential for losing or stripping these screws out in the future. Am I missing something here? Was this panel designed with only the ecoboost in mind or something?

Good job. Thought I'd take the easy way a few years ago and try the oil change places after spilling a pan of oil on myself and the driveway. But, they've gone downhill with most of them hiring minimum wage help. Doing it "quick" is less important than doing it correctly. It's actually a simple task but they managed to screw it up the last couple of times. So, it's back to me doing it. Which filter has the small hex on the end of the filter?

 

[BlueSpec1]

Does anyone know if a fumoto valve will fit under the hybrid properly?

There's space. I've used Fumoto valves on 5 prior vehicles.
When I changed my Escape's 2.5L oil a couple weeks ago, it was simple once the splash shield was down that I won't do it on either it or the Maverick this time.

Maverick 2.5L Oil Drain looking thru splash shield square hole.


Looks like an adapter has to be added to the valve to fit onto the pan.
https://www.mavericktruckclub.com/forum/threads/fumoto-drain-plug.14752/post-333352

 

[MaveRichard]

I believe one of the primary functions of the lower cover in hybrids is to control air flow under the hood. Keeping the engine (and cats) as close to operating temperature as possible is important and saves fuel, so this makes sense. It seems Ford initially did such a good job of controlling air flow that they had to reverse course and remove some grille shutters to prevent under-hood fires should the engine throw a rod.

QUESTION to ALL:
Does anyone know the secret handshake to manually start the hybrid engine in engineering test mode so I can do an idle leak check after an oil change?​

Confirmed that pedal to 50% even briefly will start the ICE if vehicle is "ON"


In park, mine ran for ~30 seconds before shutting back down.

 

[Maverick2023]

Because I'm an engineer and it's my job to question things that don't make sense. Especially since the rest of the vehicle seems very well designed.

I also have a maintenance background and really hate it when engineers design things that aren't maintenance friendly.

You’re an engineer and that’s the problem right there. So many designs were made by clueless engineers without real world application.

 

[Saltwater Cowboys]

Which filter has the small hex on the end of the filter?

I believe K&N’s do.

You’re an engineer and that’s the problem right there. So many designs were made by clueless engineers without real world application.

Believe me, I know it. I actually don’t do any engineering anymore. I found that desk jobs didn’t suit me so I work in the maintenance and field service side of things now. I constantly have to deal with things that are poorly engineered, and the engineers don’t like it when I tell them this, but I don’t care! I’ve lived in their cubicle world too and seen both sides of the coin, so I think that gives me some credibility.

Sponsored