06 passat noob-changing oil?

i'm new to vw. how do you remove the engine cover to get to the oil filter? is that where the filter compartment is? it looks like there's a "star shaped" nut in there, not a 6 pointed type that's common with the bolts, but a larger nut that needs to unscrew, never seen that kind before. so basically, how do you remove the engine cover?

its a torx
back 3 are t30
others are t20


and you need a 36mm to get the oil filter off and 19mm to get the drain plug off... have fun with the oil filter housing, theres about 2qts of oil awating to give you an oil bath if you dont let it drain slowly =) or use the special tool vw made so you dont make a mess

is the oil filter under the engine cover like i suspect, or is it under the engine? there's no screws that take torx bits in plain sight of the engine cover, so that's why i ask. the plastic shield under the engine looks like it's held in by torx screws so that would make more sense.

is there any pictures anywhere for the special tool that vw makes to drain oil? there isn't just a bolt to undo and let the oil drain? wtf do they make it so difficult to do any work to this car?

maybe a walkthrough? maybe some pics (crossing fingers)? seems like an easy enough job on any other car :banghead:

know where i can get the oil filter for less than the $20 the dealer quoted me? the oil filter in my bmw cost me $5.00, that's expensive for an oil filter. $20 for an oil filter is immoral.

its a long life filter (10,000 miles supposedly.. right.... i wouldnt do that)

The special tool basically screws into the end of the oil filter housing and presses the dimple so the oil drains out through the hose not on you!!! =)

Dont forget synthetic oil unless you are doing 3k mile oil changes.

so how do you get the oil filter housing off? i have a oversized adjustable wrench that should do the job, but the housing is cheap, and it just flexes, it doesn't come off. there's an arrow pointing clockwise, so i don't know if it should be turned clockwise, or counter clockwise, like every other friggen screw in the world.

I would buy the vw special tool to take the oil filter housing off if you'r going to do lots of oil changes yourself. I believe the # is 3212..??Its the same tool used for tdi oil filter housing. You can buy it directly through the parts counter. (they will have to order it) But make sure from the techs of the special # tool first. I would not reccomend using a wrench or other tool because the housing is made of plastic and breaks easily with those tools.
You turn counter-clockwise to loosen it off and clockwise to tighten it up. Just snug it up to tighten dont torque on it or it will break.

i'm new to vw. how do you remove the engine cover to get to the oil filter? is that where the filter compartment is? it looks like there's a "star shaped" nut in there, not a 6 pointed type that's common with the bolts, but a larger nut that needs to unscrew, never seen that kind before. so basically, how do you remove the engine cover?

Here`s the HOWTO that I used :
"click on free download and enter security code"

http://www6.rapidupload.com/d.php?file=dl&filepath=31273