Seat Altea 1.4 Petrol Oil Change Advice ?(Same Engine as 1.4 16V Polo ?)

ytareh

Ive done nearly all my own servicing for probably 15 years or so now and have well abandoned the Toyota dealer network for routine work on my Aygo .I reluctantly stomached the first Aygo service at about 140 euro but when they were looking for another hundred or more extra to throw in an air filter and plugs at the second service I had had enough .
Now the wife's Seat Altea 1.4 16V Petrol is due its first oil change ...(The fact that the dealers treat you as if you are getting open heart surgery done rather than a poxy 20 min oil change and quick check over and expect you to book the car in for a half day well in advance is as much a deterrent as the 140 cost!!!)On a quick glance it looks a bit trickier than average .Underbody 'Tray' has star head screws/bolts so they obviously dont want to make it easy to remove to get at the sump nut .I cant see the oil filter for the life of me .I guess its hidden behind the tray also ?
Someone told me some story about 'new' VW sump plugs shearing off if non VW main dealer 'tool' used to remove it .Is this rubbish?(Im guessing so)
I got my oil and filter from a Seat main dealer today .Oil I was given is MAXOL 10W40 semi synth ("We use that in our service department ") and filter is a traditional 'can' job .Now I was expecting a low grade 5W30 or similar oil and thought the filter would be a plain 'cardboard' cartridge insert type .Has he given me the right stuff for the job ?
Id imagine its almost essential to jack the car up to get good access at the filter is this right?Any complications I need to know about ?

colm_mcm

No offence, but you don't sound up to maintaining the car, I'm presuming it's inside manufacturers warranty? maybe get it done at the dealers for the sake of the warranty?

mickdw

To preserve your warranty you need to have service done at a vat registered garage using oe quality parts. This does not mean a main dealer however. So if its a new car, use an indy garage.
If doing it yourself, you would need a couple of secure steel ramps to put the front of the car on to get underneath to take the engine cover off and to remove the sump nut. I dont know where the oil filter is on that car but with cover off, it should be easy to find.
Is it due for oil & filter only or are there other works required?
Use a new crush washer on the sump when refitting sump plug.
Its easy to pick up a set of those star head sockets.
If I was you, I would get the set of ramps and a set of those tools to get the cover off. then you can have a look at the filter and sump plug and see if its straight forward to do the job... it should be.

HashSlinging

You could try getting a few tips over at this site www.seatcupra.net there are loads of "how to-" documents, failing that there is an interactive forum similar to this.

Tipsy Mac

Castrol say 5w-30, 3.6 litres of it
http://ew5.earlweb.com/recommendations.php?vehicle=56878