Owners of other Nissan or Infiniti vehicles such as the Versa, Maxima, Juke, Rogue, Murano, Xterra, Pathfinder, Sentra, Cube, Armada, Quest, Frontier, Titan, G25, G37 and M37 may also find this guide to be helpful.

To complete this oil change procedure, the following items are needed: a floor jack, jack stands, a 14mm socket or wrench, an automotive funnel, a used oil catch container, a new oil filter, an oil filter wrench, and 5 quarts of new SAE 5W-30 oil.

Some compatible oil filters include the following: Purolator PL14612, Mobil1 M1-108, K&N HP-1008, Motorcraft FL816, Fram PH6607, Bosch 3300, Wal-Mart SuperTech ST6607 and Nissan 15208-65F0E.

This will help suspend any contaminants inside the motor within the old oil and allow it to drain out more quickly.

Then shut off the engine, open the hood, and remove the oil filler cap by twisting it counter clockwise.

Raise the passenger side of the car with the floor jack and securely support it with at least two jack stands.

Slide the used oil catch container below the passenger side of the engine and position it underneath the black metal oil pan.

Use a 14mm socket with a ratcheting wrench to carefully remove the oil drain bolt located at the rear edge of the oil pan by turning it counter clockwise.

(On this particular 2011 Nissan Altima, the oil drain bolt was marked with a small white dot of paint.)

The service manual specification states that the oil drain bolt should be tightened with a torque wrench to 22-29 ft lbs.

If you don't have a torque wrench, tighten the bolt a 1/4 to 1/3 turn past hand tight. Don't over tighten the bolt which may damage the threads or the oil pan and cause an oil leak.

Move the old oil catch container forward to below the oil filter location. You may be able to twist off the old oil filter by hand by turning it counter clockwise or you may need an oil filter wrench or strap.

If you need an oil filter wrench, I recommend the Lisle 63600 Oil Filter Tool.

Allow the old oil from the oil filter receptacle to drain out for about a minute. Then clean up the area with a rag and check to make sure that the old rubber o-ring is in fact on the old oil filter rather than stuck on the engine.

Lubricate the rubber o-ring on the new oil filter with some new oil. This will help the new oil filter form a better seal to the engine and make it easier to remove during the next oil change.

Twist on the new oil filter by carefully turning it clockwise on the oil filter receptacle threads.

Tighten the filter to about 1/2 turn past hand tight.

The 2007-2012 Nissan Altima 2.5 S requires 4 7/8 U.S. quarts of new SAE 5W-30 oil for an oil change with new oil filter. Place the automotive funnel into the oil filler hole and pour in about 4 quarts of new oil.

Run the engine for a minute, turn it off, and allow it to rest for 5-10 minutes parked on a level area. Check the oil level on the engine's dipstick which is marked with a yellow plastic pull ring.

You may not need to use the entire 4 7/8 quarts of oil depending on how long you allowed the engine to drain out.

It is much better to have slightly less oil than necessary in the engine than to overfill the engine with oil.

Having too much oil in the engine may cause oil leaks, excessive pressure on seals, or damage to gaskets.

Once the oil is at the correct level, remove the funnel and replace the oil filler cap.

I'd recommend checking the oil level on the dipstick a few times during the next week and watch your driveway or garage for any drops of oil that may indicate a leak from the oil drain bolt or oil filter.

Be sure to record the vehicle's mileage in your service record book.