In another thread someone posted a good experience they had with a Mobil 1 Lube Express oil change shop for the price of $80.00.

My biggest concern about using a quickie lube shop was, what kind of filter did they use? Was it the old paper or newer fleece filter? As some of the older forum members know, MB recalled all of their paper filters a few years back and replaced them with a better fleece filter to head off potential engine problems caused by using cheap paper filters.

I stopped by a Mobil 1 Lube Express and a Jiffy Lube to check out what type of filters they were using. The shops I visited were listed on the Mobil 1 website. Both stores use a very cheap paper filter with made in India stamped in big letters on the top. Their filters were hardly MB quality.

For those that have their oil changed instead of doing it themselves, I would recommend staying with your dealership. They have the correct filter and if something should go wrong, you have a much better chance of them correcting the problem.

The Five Star dealers in my area charge right at $95.00 for an oil and filter change. You can bring the price of a dealership oil change down to $80.00 if you bring your own oil that you bought elsewhere. Walmart and some automotive stores sell Mobil 1 0W/40 for $4.95 a quart.

So... beware, you get what you pay for at the quickie oil change shops.

 

Guess I am lucky to receive free oil changes and state inspections for as long as I own the car, it was part of the purchase agreement offered by the dealer.

 

As I've said many times before, do it yourself for about $65. It is so easy, even if you're all thumbs. You don't even have to jack the car up. I just drive my front wheels up onto two 2"X10" boards, and that gives me all the clearance I need to drop the engine cover. All you need is a small socket set, a pan that holds at least 8.5 qts. and an oil filter socket that fits the oil filter cap. Maybe $35 in necessary tools, that you can use, time after time. They're basically paid for after just one oil change.
It's not even that messy. I use a couple of paper towels to grasp the oil filter cartridge when I slide it off the bayonet, then I put it right in an old plastic bread bag. The most critical part of the whole operation is making sure to get all the O-rings back in their proper position on the bayonet. Very simple to do. Only the top most O-ring can be confusing, but not if you pay attention to where the original one was that you took off.
The satisfaction of doing it yourself, along with the piece of mind knowing that the correct oil was used as well as the correct filter, is well worth the effort in my opinion. Just save all your receipts for the oil and filter purchase, and simply keep them with your records.
Out of the eight vehicles that I routinely change the oil on myself, this is by far the easiest, and cleanest one to do (also the most expensive).
Even if you have never changed your own oil in your entire life, Have a friend (who has) walk you thru it once, and you will see for yourself it's a piece of cake.

 

This car is one of the easiest to change oil in. It is designed to have the oil removed through the dipstick. Just get yourself a topsider, no fuss no muss.

 

SRT6_Roadster, I used to use one of those when I had boat. I just never felt that it did a very good job of completely sucking out all of the old oil.
Have you ever measured how much oil that you actually retrieved from the crankcase using this method? Maybe the new ones are better than the one I had.
I've found the "old fashion" way to be so simple, that I've never felt the need to use a "Topsider". But I'm sure it would be more desirable to some Crossfire owners who don't enjoy laying on the ground.

 

Agreed, doing it yourself is the best way to go and it is a simple task. However, a lot of people, for whatever reason, do not feel like working on their own vehicles and I am becoming one of them. I guess the older I get the lazier I have become. Then again doing it yourself was always a guy thing and a way to save a few $$$ when I was younger. I no longer have the desire to be crawling around under the car and saving a few $$$. If one can afford to buy a Crossfire (especially those that bought them at MSRP a couple of years ago) the cost of a dealership oil change is not going to break them. After all, I knew the Crossfire was an expensive automobile to own and maintain going in.

Anyway, the intent of the original post was to warn people that use the quick oil and lube places that they are not getting a top of the line oil filter and to stay with the dealer.

As for the topsider, I too feel that you are never getting all of the old oil out. If I was still changing my own oil, I would stay with the traditional method of pulling the drain plug on the oil pan.

Whichever way you decide to go, DYI, or having someone else do it... I would ask to see the filter they use before they start work on your car.

 

Any filter is better than a dirty filter. That is unless you plan on running more than 5-6k between changes.
If you are going 7k or more spend the money on the fleece one.
Just my .02

 

This website, and another Mercedes site I checked, clearly shows a preference for the topsider method.

http://www.slk32.com/pages/oilchange/oilchange.html

I've never used a topsider before, but with all of the posts from concerned owners, I think I'll give it a try. I used to always change my own oil...that way I always knew what was going in...and the quality of the filter installed. I haven't had the time lately, but I think that I will find the time in the immediate future. I'm not paying $80 for a change I can do myself on a car that I love.

 

None of our Mercedes techs use a topsider. We pull the plug and drain from underneath.
If you have trouble finding the oil in your area, we sell it on our Mercedes accessories website at www.parkplacetexas.com
I think it's running $5.15 per quart. The filters retail at $18.50 for the fleece. Shipping is $7.50 per order with a maximum of 6 cases.