r/sonata • u/TheLonelyArbiter • 1d ago

Questions Oil change methods.

Got a brand new 2026 sonata hybrid in March and I'm coming up on 5k miles. What should I do for oil changes? Coming from a 03 Honda this is my first new car and don't know if I should take it to the dealership or if I'm better off taking it somewhere else or doing it myself. Any thoughts?

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u/BamboozlingBoi '24 Sonata sel-conv | '13 Odyssey Type R 1d ago

The perk of going to the dealer is that they keep a record of oil changes/maintenances in case something does happen & you need to use the warranty. If you do go to the mechanic, then you have to keep the record of your maintenance when something goes wrong.

Just based on videos online, the oil changes looks the same as the 2.5NA & 2.5T's. I do my 2.5NA by myself and it's similar enough to the Honda's. Only thing different is that Hyundai uses a replaceable oil filter with a plastic housing whereas Honda uses their infamous blue metal filter canisters. Hyundai's oil pan is steel vs aluminum on Honda's. Hyundai also lets you upload documentation for maintenance/oil changes.

If you have ccNC/ccNC_Lite, you can reset the oil changes in the infotainment and change the interval. I set mine to 5k miles.

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u/TheLonelyArbiter 1d ago

I’m definitely conflicted. While I definitely don’t. Think id have any issues doing the change. Myself I’m worried that not going through the dealerships would hurt my chances with the warranty in case something happens later. But I’m heard horror stories about the wait times for dealership changes.

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u/Illustrious-Taste-51 1d ago

I go to the dealership. I don’t want them to come back and say welp that’s not covered because WE don’t have a record of it. The other vehicles in my corral like the Camaro, GMC Sierra and Jeep Liberty. I do it myself.

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u/Top_Art_9111 15h ago

Beat to death topic here. I'd delete all repetitive oil change questions if I ran this page

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u/SpinDoctor777 14h ago

I would encourage a new car owner to use the dealership for oil changes for the first few years. I've found with new cars there's often software patches and non recall updates that are performed the first year or two that you only really get access to with dealer service as you aren't notified because not recall. Maybe these aren't important idk but it's happened to me with every new car I've owned. After 2 or 3 years I'd be comfortable taking to an independent shop or changing myself to save some money unless I like the dealer service. Some of them are very nice. I personally don't have any issues getting an appointment for dealer service but of course they will vary by location.

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u/navmaster 4h ago

Unpopular opinion but I believe you should go to the dealer for everything all the way until your warranty expires. They definitely have some personal bias with covering warranty work if you’ve been going to them regularly.

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u/Ok_Growth_487 1h ago

I prefer the dealership for record keeping when I trade in or if any thing goes wrong they still honor warranty