I changed the oil myself at about 8500 miles, not wanting to go too far towards 10k or beyond but at the same time thinking 5k is silly these days on a modern engine with modern synthetic oil. I figure this splits the factory interval nicely so the dealer can handle the next one 6 months from now.
I ordered the filter tool from Bavarian Autosport, the quality is decent for $20 and it fit and worked like a charm.
I bought the filter and 6 quarts of the specified 5w-30 re-branded Castrol from the dealership, unfortunately I had to go back to swap the filter. I believe the reason is that my car is on the cusp of the April 2012 change to an aluminum oil filter housing, or perhaps there is some option or build spec that dictates this. In any case if you have an Al housing the filter should not appear to have a rubber skirt on it, that one simply didn't fit.
I like the drain pointing straight down, though it's guaranteed to get at least a little messy. I captured some of the oil with a Blackstone kit just out of curiosity, still waiting on results. Not sure if I want to spend the extra $10 to determine if I can push the 8k interval.
After adding 5 quarts I fired her up and moved off the ramps, then drove to recycle the used oil and check the E-dipstick. I was expecting to need half a quart but it showed at max, and repeated after 400 miles. I'm just carrying that extra quart in the trunk now
All said and done it's very easy and I enjoy working on such a clean and new motor
