Oil change on 4stroke?

[fishinpapa]

We have had a new 4stroke for one year and wondering if we need to change the oil in it. If we do, is that something we can do ourselves, or leave it for a dealer.

Thanks

[Scott K]

Yes you should change the oil atleast once a year, its fairly easy. Once you figure out how.

[tgff009]

Piece of cake - thats coming from somebody who doesn't know much about motors. Biggest issue is the mess you can make on your garage floor I don't know what motor you have but the owners manual should have some pretty good instructions on how to do it.

[Water Hazard]

I bought a 2006 Yamaha 4-stroke and changed the oil in it twice last year. The first time was after the 10 hour break in period as described in the owner's manual. The second time was when winterizing the boat.

The owner's manual walks you through the whole process. I hadn't changed the oil on a boat ever before and I figured it out, so it isn't too difficult.

The hardest part was with changing the oil filter. I guess it wasn't that hard, just messy. Have some super absorbant rags and you will be fine.

If you have a Yamaha, let me know and I can go through my notes and see if there are any tips that I wrote down.

[kslipsinker]

I have a Merc 40 four stroke. Changing oil is very easy. One tip is to hold the drain pan up below the drain plug as you remove it. The oil can really make a mess on the floor if you don't, especially if the oil is warm. The filter on mine drains back into the motor, so it never makes a mess when removing it.