We decided to take a DIY approach when it came time to service our long-term Ascent.

There are many reasons to be excited about an all-EV world, and for someone who struggles to find sufficient time to freshen all the fluids in my small collection of motorized vehicles, a maintenance-free future appeals to me greatly. In the here and now, I often need to rely on nagging reminders from my task-tracking app to ensure that I regularly flush and fill my various rides.

I've been living with our long-term 2019 Subaru Ascent for a few months, having now put about 10,000 miles on it getting to and around upstate New York. The Ascent has proven to be a capable dog-hauler and adventure-seeker, returning an average of just under 23 mpg along the way.

Over the summer, the arrival of the Ascent's first service date posed a conundrum: take it in to the dealership, or just do it myself? The Ascent manual recommends the first oil change at 6,000 miles, a service I typically prefer to do myself. Given that, I was keen to try it on the Ascent to see if the change here requires the snow removal toronto of as many fiddly plastic clips as on my 2012 STI wagon. So, instead of scheduling an appointment, I ordered the necessary supplies and prepared to get my hands a little oily.

We suggest sticking with the manufacturer-recommended oil if you decide to change it yourself.

First up is oil. Subaru recommends 0w20 for the Ascent, which surprised me. That's some seriously thin stuff. In fact, on Ascent owner forums you'll find quite a few debates about the merits of ignoring Subaru's recommendations and trying something else. My policy on such debates is straightforward: barring an overwhelming amount of evidence to the contrary, follow the manufacturer recommendation. So, I picked up a bottle of Motul 0w20, my brand of choice for my other Subarus.

Finally, a crush washer. A lot of people say it's fine to reuse crush washers on oil changes, but then a lot of people also have oil stains on their driveways. For well less than a buck, I prefer to go with a new one. Subaru part number 803916010 for the Ascent.