Is there a way for me to change the oil in my Honda Civic from 2016 without taking it to the shop? I don’t want to pay for an oil change and I’m pretty handy, so I’m hoping I can dodge some bills by doing it myself.

Liz Jenson · Updated on Dec 15, 2021

Reviewed by Shannon Martin, Licensed Insurance Agent.

While you can change the oil in a 2016 Honda Civic at home, you’ll need to lift your car using a car lift or plastic ramps in order to access the drain plug.

Changing the oil in your car is a multi-step process. You will need to drain the current oil, replace the oil filter, and fill the car with new oil. The whole process does require some specialized tools, so it may be easier to take your car to the mechanic. If you do want to change your oil yourself, you will need the following:

Drain pan

Screwdriver

17mm socket/wrench

⅜ inch ratchet

Oil filter wrench

Cleaning rags

New oil

New oil filter

Funnel

Once you’ve gathered your supplies and gained access to the bottom of your Civic, you’ll need to drain the old oil. To drain the oil, you will need to do the following:

Remove the skid plate, or the lower engine cover, by using a screwdriver to remove all of the screws holding it in place. Once you’ve removed all the screws, you can set the plate to the side.

Place a drain pan under the oil pan of your car.

Find the drain plug on the back of the oil pan and use a 17mm socket or wrench to remove it slowly.

As the oil begins to drain, adjust your drain pan so that it catches all of the oil.

It should take about five minutes for the oil to fully drain. While you wait, clean the drain plug and wipe away any oil spots on your engine.

When the oil is done draining, replace the drain plug and tighten it with your socket or wrench.

Now, you’ll need to replace the oil filter:

Place your oil drain pan beneath the filter.

Using an oil filter wrench and a ⅜ inch ratchet, carefully remove the filter by ratcheting counter-clockwise. When the filter is free of the car, some oil should spill into the drain pan that you’ve set up.

Wipe the filter housing clean, then apply a small amount of oil to the top of your new filter.

Tighten the new filter into the housing by hand.

Once you’ve installed the new filter, you’ll need to refill the oil reservoir:

First, make sure that you’ve tightened all of the necessary pieces and cleaned up any oil spills.

Then, you can replace the skid plate by tightening all of the screws back into place. If you’d like, you can also lower your car to make it easier to access the oil reservoir.

Now,

open the hood

of your Civic and locate the oil reservoir.

Using a fitted engine oil funnel, carefully pour the new oil into your oil reservoir. Check your dipstick to make sure that you don’t underfill or overfill your car!

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