Verano 2.4 Litre oil drain plug location - where is it?

[verano4u]

Anyone have a picture showing where it is. Is it hidden by the plastic engine cover at the bottom?

Thanks

 

[warmpabst]

No photo, sorry. But it is about 4" behind the opening in the cover.
I watched the dealer tech change the oil once, it was a disaster! The oil drains out all over the top of that cover. It took him longer to clean up than actually drain the oil!
Somebody slept through the design of that cover, it's in a horrible spot and the cover is too big to remove for this (should be) simple procedure.
The best engineering I saw was was done at the dealership, when I came back for the next oil change they had devised a sacrificial Verano-oil-change-funnel/pan-device to channel the oil over the cover. 🙂

 

[verano4u]

No photo, sorry. But it is about 4" behind the opening in the cover.
I watched the dealer tech change the oil once, it was a disaster! The oil drains out all over the top of that cover. It took him longer to clean up than actually drain the oil!
Somebody slept through the design of that cover, it's in a horrible spot and the cover is too big to remove for this (should be) simple procedure.
The best engineering I saw was was done at the dealership, when I came back for the next oil change they had devised a sacrificial Verano-oil-change-funnel/pan-device to channel the oil over the cover. 🙂

Thanks for the info! So if I understand correctly, that means you can easily access the drain plug as it is not under the plastic and the plug is out in the open. But, when the drain plug is removed, the pressure of the oil coming out shoots to the front of the car and goes all over the plastic pan between the engine and the plastic pan.

Is the drain plug nut at the bottom of the oil pan or the side and what side is the drain plug on....the passenger, driver side or the middle of the car.

Thanks again.

 

[warmpabst]

Accessible, yes; but not in the open. The plastic cover underhangs (hangs under?) the drain plug, though most of the oil pan is exposed by a large (but poorly placed) opening in that cover.

The drain plug is located on the side (opposed to bottom) of the pan and it points/drains to the rear.

Part # 431 on this borrowed pic is the plug, you can see its orientation/relative location. (Sorry bout the size! 😱)

 

[warmpabst]

Here's two more diagrams that actually show the air deflector/underbody panels. (Lots of diagrams on this site too!) Sorry, the fullsize pics are wayyy to big to link and I didn't feel like rehosting them smaller.

http://www.tonkinonlineparts.com/showAssembly.aspx?ukey_product=6595584&ukey_assembly=834155&ukey_make=1084&ukey_model=15899&ukey_driveline=0&ukey_trimlevel=0&modelYear=2012

http://www.tonkinonlineparts.com/showAssembly.aspx?ukey_product=6296155&ukey_assembly=837749&ukey_make=1084&ukey_model=15899&ukey_driveline=0&ukey_trimlevel=0&modelYear=0

The problem with these is that they show a U-shaped cutout, open toward the rear. That conflicts with the idea of a rearward-pointing oil plug draining all over the works.... 😕
Damn I really wish I could crawl underneath the thing and look! (It's getting late [for me] and I need to get some sleep, maybe I'm just getting loopy.) But I swear, it will all make sense once you see it!

 

[mercurio]

I did an oil change on this about 2 months ago, and it was pretty brutal for such a simple procedure. It appears there is no way to drain the oil without first pulling the cover if you have the engine hot.

I pulled the cover, and there are a combination of the plastic screws, and the little knob screws you have to pop up to get the cover off. I believe(don't quote me on this), there was something like 16-18 in total to pull the cover.

Only after that did I warm the car up to do the draining part. Also, make sure you have the special GM oil filter wrench too before getting started.

 

[verano4u]

Great information guys. I will be taking on changing the oil on the weekend. Maybe an oil extractor to get the oil out through the dipstick is an option for me then. I have heard good and bad about using the extractor.

 

[verano4u]

Update on oil drain plug.

Went to the dealer today to get my oil changed.

Car had 5% oil life remaining and information center said to "CHANGE ENGINE OIL SOON"

First oil change at 19,500 km and car is 6 1/2 months old.
If the oil change monitor is good enough for GM, it's good enough for me. 😀

Brought my own oil - Valvoline full synthetic SYNPOWER 5w-30 (exceeds dexos1 specs) 4.73 litre container on sale for $22.98
Brought my own oil filter - Fram CH9018 Regular price $9.00
Dealer performed oil change $17.09

They put the car up on the hoist, and showed me where the oil drain plug is.
Yup right above the plastic bottom plate. He said the he will have to remove the plate and it is a PITA, sooooooooooooo I said, just cut the plastic out so that you can get to it without removing the bottom plate and it will not spill all over the place.

2 minutes later....voila!!! cut out made (5" x 10").

30 minutes after bringing in the car in for the oil change I left with 5" x 10" cutout in my hand, my oil and filter changed, and now can change the oil at home without having to jack up the car and without any hassle with the plate and oil spilling everywhere.

I know that some that will read this and say that they can get their oil changed for the same cost or less where they go, but I assure you that you will not get full synthetic dexos1 spec oil put in the car. It will be the cheap synthetic blend or SAE equivalent as the manual states.

Use only engine oil licensed to the dexos1® specification, or equivalent,
of the proper SAE viscosity grade. ACDelco dexos1 Synthetic Blend is
recommended. See Engine Oil on page 10‑7

So I figure $17.09 (had 10% off coupon) labour to change the oil and to cutout the plate is a great deal.
Now I will be changing the oil my self for about $32.00 a shot with full synthetic dexos1 spec oil and filter. I could get the cheap blend dexos1 oil for $15.00 making my oil change and filter to be $24.00....but no.

I know I could have save a couple of bucks on the oil filter as I did not really shop around for a good price.

Also, I purchased a 32 mm oil filter removal nut for $10.00. Trust me, you need this to get your oil filter off.

My experience.

Life's good.

 

[mmadden2]

Why was the plastic there in the first place? Is it protecting something?

 

[verano4u]

Why was the plastic there in the first place? Is it protecting something?

No it was not protecting anything. Just making everything look symmetrical under the car. Maybe helps with sound deadening (I heard no difference when driving home) or aerodynamics (negligible)

The dealer said there was a recall on the Cruze because when people had the oil changed in them, the oil stayed on top of the plate because it was either not all wiped down or did not see it pooled in there. The oil on the plate got hot enough and caught fire.

The recall fix the dealer did on the Cruze was to cut an opening so the no oil can pool there and catch on fire. The Verano just came out a year or so ago, so there may not be any complaints yet or fires. I have heard of no recall for the Verano for the issue the Cruze had on catching fire.

I am not concerned about the cutout.

 

[mmadden2]

Well I certainly prefer cutting a piece out to putting a fire out 🙂

 

[imidazol97]

Brought my own oil - Valvoline full synthetic SYNPOWER 5w-30 (exceeds dexos1 specs) 4.73 litre container on sale for $22.98

Use only engine oil licensed to the dexos1® specification, or equivalent,
of the proper SAE viscosity grade. ACDelco dexos1 Synthetic Blend is
recommended.[/QUOTE]

I've been reading some oil discussion on other forums about the dexos1® spec. Note that the owner manuals to use _oil licensed to the dexos1® spec. If it meets dexos1 then why does Valvoline put the Dexos approval on the front of the bottle. Saying that it "exceeds dexos1®" means nothing. Does it exceed one item of the spec or does it exceed two items?

I'll look for the Dexos approval on the bottle if I end up buying a GM vehicle in the next few months.

http://www.gmdexos.com/licensedbrands/dexos1licensedbrands.html

 

[verano4u]

I've been reading some oil discussion on other forums about the dexos1® spec. Note that the owner manuals to use _oil licensed to the dexos1® spec. If it meets dexos1 then why does Valvoline put the Dexos approval on the front of the bottle. Saying that it "exceeds dexos1®" means nothing. Does it exceed one item of the spec or does it exceed two items?

I'll look for the Dexos approval on the bottle if I end up buying a GM vehicle in the next few months.

http://www.gmdexos.com/licensedbrands/dexos1licensedbrands.html

Licensing a product increases the price to the consumer. Valvoline is not playing that game with GM. I am sure other companies aren't either.

You don't even have to put in dexos1 spec oil, you can use oil with the api starburst symbol with the correct viscosity as well. It may just give your vehicle reduced performance in some circumstances.

http://www.valvoline.ca/promos/dexos.jsp

http://aoca.org/resources/have-questions-about-general-motors-dexos

 

[Blake_GM]

Well I certainly prefer cutting a piece out to putting a fire out 🙂

My folks purchased a '13 Verano 2.4 recently. I was slated to do their oil change for them, just shy of 5K miles. I had already read about the dreaded shield.

I got it up on my ramps and looked at it. Pretty stupid design. But I don't want to get started on that rant again. I 'took in' the edge of where the plastic shielding was (in other words I cut that shit up) so that the drain plug could actually be used (and is now exposed). No adverse effects what so ever. Now the oil changes will be just as easy as my Regal GS.

Also, the oil filter socket you all want is a Lisle 14700, or an oil filter socket that is 1-1/4" or 32MM and designed for the use, otherwise getting it off will be more annoying that it should be with this simple socket. My local O'Reilly Auto Parts carried them for about $7.

 

[POS Racing]

Licensing a product increases the price to the consumer. Valvoline is not playing that game with GM. I am sure other companies aren't either.

You don't even have to put in dexos1 spec oil, you can use oil with the api starburst symbol with the correct viscosity as well. It may just give your vehicle reduced performance in some circumstances.

http://www.valvoline.ca/promos/dexos.jsp

http://aoca.org/resources/have-questions-about-general-motors-dexos

FWIW the owners manual seem to disagree with you.

Notice: Failure to use the
recommended engine oil or
equivalent can result in engine
damage not covered by the
Vehicle Care 10-11
vehicle warranty. Check with your
dealer or service provider on
whether the oil is approved to the
dexos1 specification..

 

[dariomolnar]

Can anyone tell me if this is the location of the oil filter? If not can someone tell me or show (pic) where it is? Thank you.View attachment 4408

 

[diboja]

Can anyone tell me if this is the location of the oil filter? If not can someone tell me or show (pic) where it is? Thank you.View attachment 4408

Thats it!

 

[dariomolnar]

thank you

 

[Davidsmad]

No photo, sorry. But it is about 4" behind the opening in the cover.
I watched the dealer tech change the oil once, it was a disaster! The oil drains out all over the top of that cover. It took him longer to clean up than actually drain the oil!
Somebody slept through the design of that cover, it's in a horrible spot and the cover is too big to remove for this (should be) simple procedure.
The best engineering I saw was was done at the dealership, when I came back for the next oil change they had devised a sacrificial Verano-oil-change-funnel/pan-device to channel the oil over the cover. 🙂

The engineers who designed this car should be drug tested.did my first oil change today and sacrificed a pizza pan,cut and bent to funnel the oil into the catch pan.why would anyone not be thinking ahead to do a oil change is mind boggling.

 

[Zeroboostbuick]

The dealer that changed the oil for my brothers Verano (first 8 oil changes were free), removed the plastic cover before draining the oil.

Now now on, I'm going to be changing the oil for my brother so I'll figure things out the hard way.