Doing you own oil changes can be very cost-effective. Why pay someone else to do a job that is essentially no more complicated than unscrewing a drain plug? [Note – Click here if you're looking for Tundra oil change instructions.] The simple answer for most people is ‘convenience’ – jacking a truck up in the air to get underneath and put a wrench on the oil pan’s drain plug can be a daunting experience, especially since many people aren’t comfortable laying underneath their vehicle.

Enter Rhino Ramps – a combination of durable plastic and special honeycomb foam that is capable of supporting the weight of a car or truck and compatible with low-profile vehicles. Since the ramps are made from foam and plastic, they’re easy to lug around your garage or driveway and simple to store. We can hear what you’re saying – “Did they say plastic and foam ramps?!” – yes. It’s true that the Blitz Rhino ramps are made from plastic and foam, but they can easily support 8,000 to 12,000 pounds (depending on the model).

Using the ramps can be a little tricky in some situations – some garage surfaces aren’t as “grabby” as others, and these ramps can slide on you. Here’s what we’ve figured out. There’s a rubber pad mounted to the bottom of the ramps, but sometimes that’s not enough to keep the ramps from slipping. Many people have devised a system for holding the ramps in place, but the best idea might be to use a set of rubber floormats between the floor and the ramps. This keeps the ramps from slipping forwards (when a rear-wheel drive vehicle pushes up the ramp) or being “sucked” backwards (when a front-wheel drive pulls up the ramp). We would like to see Rhino improve this system a little bit, but it must be said that many people never have a problem.

Here’s an image we found of Rhino Ramps being used safely. Note the chock blocks on the front wheels.

Other than this occasional slippage problem, Blitz Rhino ramps are a safe, simple, and inexpensive way to get your vehicle about 6” in the air, making them perfect for oil changes. For most vehicle owners, the Blitz Rhino 8000 ramps are fine – they offer about twice as much support as any passenger vehicle or light truck would need. For heavy duty pickups, the Blitz Rhino 12000 ramps are available. Both ramps feature a 17-degree approach angle, making them compatible with most cars (even some low profile rides). This makes it easy to do oil changes for the whole family.

As always, we can’t talk about ramps without mentioning safety. Use your head, make sure everything is dry (wet tires, ramps, and/or floors are dangerous), chalk the rear wheels, set the emergency brake, and make sure that someone knows what you’re up to before you start. You should also consider using backup jack stands as a safety measure (you can never be too careful), and if you’re really paranoid, have someone dial 91 and then wait for the signal to hit the last “1.” But seriously – if you’re careful and you use common sense you’ll be just fine. Thousands of people use these ramps all the time with no problem.

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