Jimmy Jeong

Passing On His Skills | Calvin Coley at the NAIT instructional garage.

This week, SEE web editor Andrew Paul learns how to change the oil in his car. Read along in future issues as our writers learn more basic household skills.

My father passed along many skills to me while I grew up on an acreage west of the city in a house that was under perpetual renovations. By the age of 12, I was well versed in the fine arts of operating a table saw, pressurizing the well, and chopping wood to heat the cabin during the winter months.

However, despite growing up in the redneck heartland of monster trucks, I’ve never been interested in mechanics. And looking back I feel I’ve cheated myself out of the time-honoured tradition of learning basic vehicle maintenance from your father.

The root of my mechanical declination rests in my family’s long history of jalopy enthusiasm. Like Old Yeller, the rusted-out 1981 Chevy extended cab whose back window we smashed out one afternoon while loading the box with firewood, or the ancient station wagon “affectionately” called the leprosy car thanks to its palomino paint deterioration — seriously, Archie’s car had nothing on these buckets of junk.

But recently I decided it was time to learn some basic vehicle maintenance, if for no other reason than to save $50 on changing my oil at a shop.

Unfortunately, my pa lives out of town, so my next best bet was to learn the automotive ropes from the pros in NAIT’s automotive department — sorry, Dad.

When I arrived at NAIT, instructor Calvin Coley was there to greet me with a hearty handshake, his enormous meathooks engulfing my lily-white collegiate hands.

Coley was born into the auto trade in 1957 while his father was operating the High Park Texaco full service station here in Edmonton. Coley grew up in that shop until 1984 when Texaco downgraded the shop to a self-serve station. That’s when Coley opened Calco Auto Services, which just celebrated its 25th anniversary.

“At one point there were three generations of family working at Calco Auto — myself, my father, and my son,” Coley says. “I always joke that my first job interview in my life was when I came to NAIT to teach.”

That was four years ago, and together with fellow instructor Darren Jones, who has 18 years’ worth of experience in dealership shops, they were going to pass along their oil-changing skills to me. And I was relieved to hear that automotive ignorance is actually quite common.

“Learning how to change oil with your dad isn’t as big of a tradition as it was 20 years ago,” Jones says, adding that the biggest contributing factor is the evolution of automotive technology.

“Even as a mechanic, there’s not much I can do without the right diagnostic equipment if I break down on the side of the road.”

They showed me the 2008 Chevy Uplander we would be working on. To help, they gave me the official Pre-Employment Oil Change Checklist — the same list used by their pupils.

We didn’t follow the list exactly, because several items were things I’d never have to worry about while changing my oil at home, but we hit all the main points:
(1) Plan ahead. Arrange to transport the used oil to one of the city’s eco stations or the Edmonton Waste Management Centre that specialize in the disposal of toxic household waste.
(2) Consult your almighty vehicle instructor’s manual (usually found in the glove box) to find out how much of which kind of oil you’ll need to refill your ride with. Also check the manual to find what kind of oil filter you’ll need. In the Uplander’s case, 3.8 litres of 5-W-30 would do the trick.
(3) Make sure you have all the tools you’ll need. These will vary between vehicles. Chances are you won’t have a massive hydraulic lift at your disposal, so always make sure you have ramps or jack blocks while working under your vehicle. Never work under a vehicle that’s supported only by a jack — if the vehicle falls, it means death.
(4) Get under the vehicle, pull the oil plug, and drain the runoff into an oil pan.
(5) While the oil is bleeding out, check the rest of your vehicle’s undercarriage for leaks and other problems.
(6) Once the oil reservoir is empty, replace the oil plug and gasket, and remove the oil filter, allowing the run off to drain into the pan.
(7) Replace the filter with a new one. Make sure to grease the filter gasket with a dollop of oil before hand-tightening it back on.
(8) Refill your oil reservoir and fire up the vehicle to make sure nothing is hemorrhaging. Turn off the vehicle, check the oil levels, and if the dipstick says everything is good, you’re done.
The whole process took less than an hour, and even if it had taken two, it was a relief to know that I’ll be saving a few bucks over the years being able to change my own oil — and better yet, pass on my newfound knowledge.
And don’t worry, Dad. I promise you, there are 100 other things I’ll need your guidance on in the future. Like how to change sparkplugs.