Oil leak - filter not tight enough

[Drew99GT]

This is the 2nd time it's happened to me and it only happens in cold weather.

Went to change the oil in our family's Olds 88 only to find the filter not very tight and oil everywhere. The car was a quart low as well (usually never consumes any oil even with 170,000 miles).

The same thing happened to my Corolla when it was below 0 for a few days a couple years back.

Now mind you, I crank the filters on by hand as hard as I can. I think the extreme oil pressure under brutally cold conditions gets past the filter gasket.

Might start giving them an extra quarter turn with a filter wrench from now on.

 

[StevieC]

I always put the filter on, tighten as far as I can by hand and then use the filter wrench to give it another half turn to tighten it. (Be gentle when using the wrench not to damage the filter) My filters are always on tight, never leak and are easy to take off when need to be by using the filter wrench again...

 

[MGregoir]

I always just tighten as much as I can by hand and it holds up fine down to -40.

 

[Johnny]

Same here. Clean off the mounting service, put a thin film of CLEAN oil on the filter gasket and tighten by hand as much as I can. Never had a leak doing that in 40 years.

 

[jldcol]

A theory for you Drew, was this a hot/warm oil change? I tend to think the warm block/filter mating surface will contract a bit as it cools and shrink away from the filter. This bit of space may be enough to leak thru or cause filter to be less that tight enough. The current cold temps may exacerbate this effefct,or not.

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: StevieC
I always put the filter on, tighten as far as I can by hand and then use the filter wrench to give it another half turn to tighten it. (Be gentle when using the wrench not to damage the filter) My filters are always on tight, never leak and are easy to take off when need to be by using the filter wrench again...

I do pretty much the same thing, run it down by hand and get it tight, then 1/4 to 1/2 turn with a wrench. No problems in more years than I care to count.

 

[StevieC]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Originally Posted By: StevieC
I always put the filter on, tighten as far as I can by hand and then use the filter wrench to give it another half turn to tighten it. (Be gentle when using the wrench not to damage the filter) My filters are always on tight, never leak and are easy to take off when need to be by using the filter wrench again...

I do pretty much the same thing, run it down by hand and get it tight, then 1/4 to 1/2 turn with a wrench. No problems in more years than I care to count.


My dad has always done this ever since he had a filter leaking on him at his service station many years ago and taught me to do it... I have never had a filter leak on me because it was loose using this method...

 

[dishdude]

I always but the cap style wrench and give it a little snug. I hold the ratchet down close to the socket so I can't get a lot of torque on it.

 

[demarpaint]

Just how tight hand tight is, is a random thing. A guy that weighs 300 lbs and has fingers the size of bananas is going to tighten the filter by hand a lot tighter than the slim build 150 lb guy. My method hasn't failed me yet. JMO

 

[Drew99GT]

Originally Posted By: jldcol
A theory for you Drew, was this a hot/warm oil change? I tend to think the warm block/filter mating surface will contract a bit as it cools and shrink away from the filter. This bit of space may be enough to leak thru or cause filter to be less that tight enough. The current cold temps may exacerbate this effefct,or not.


That's a good theory! I always do oil changes when the engine is warm, so as it cools, and the gasket contracts, it becomes looser then when I tighten it.

Who knows; the seam could have failed as well. I looked at it for a while, but even cleaned off, there was still oil around the seam, so it was hard to tell if there was a crack or a leak.

 

[bdcardinal]

i use a torque wrench on my filter, but my car has a spec for it.

 

[demarpaint]

That's about as fool proof as you can get.

 

[Drew99GT]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Just how tight hand tight is, is a random thing. A guy that weighs 300 lbs and has fingers the size of bananas is going to tighten the filter by hand a lot tighter than the slim build 150 lb guy. My method hasn't failed me yet. JMO


I can get them pretty darn tight. I also think the angle at which you're at when installing a filter as an affect. On the Olds, I'm wedged in there with my arm extended and it's hard to get maximum force on the filter, but on my pop's Blazer with the remote mount filter, I sit directly under it and can really crank it on. That one always give's me a fit trying to get it off since it's usually very tight.

Same with my Corolla. I have to have my wrist turned to get to the filter and it limits the amount of torque I can get.

 

[demarpaint]

Angle and position is everything. On my E-150 4.9L and Aerostar 3.0 L I can get them good and tight by hand, but I still tweak slightly with the wrench. On the Jeep 3.7L it's a real PIA, and has to be done with a wrench. I can just about get my hand in there.

I'm wondering if storing your filters in the house and taking them outside just before you install them would help. Or if leaving the filter outside in the garage and installing them cold would matter????? Lately I've been keeping mine in the house.

 

[jldcol]

If you need to do a cold oil/filter change, change the oil first, and can do this hot or cold. After cooling overnight, then change the filter on the cold engine, and should leave the filter outside to get to the same temp. Don't start engine after the oil change wait until new filter is on. This may help on future changes.

 

[demarpaint]

He could also change the oil hot, then remove the filter cold, install the new filter cold, add oil and go. It will take a lot longer but might solve the problem, or try running the filter down with a wrench and see if that extra torque helps. Just use caution tightening it with the wrench.

 

[labman]

Anybody ever read the instructions on the filter? Oil the gasket, and turn another 3/4 to full turn after the gasket contacts the flange. I have always done that, and never had a leak or a stuck filter. If you need a wrench to get that turn, use one. Just do it the way it says. They gave up on that hand tighten stuff years ago.

 

[Gary Allan]

Some men are longer than others - from Braveheart

 

[jldcol]

Really? kilt malfunction? deleted scene? I am so glad I watched it on TV, and not the DVD. Perhaps one day such a man was walking the fields and a rock was knocked into a hole in the ground and golf twas born. Not from Braveheart.

 

[dishdude]

Originally Posted By: labman
Anybody ever read the instructions on the filter? Oil the gasket, and turn another 3/4 to full turn after the gasket contacts the flange. I have always done that, and never had a leak or a stuck filter. If you need a wrench to get that turn, use one. Just do it the way it says. They gave up on that hand tighten stuff years ago.


This is the only good thing about the Fram, they give you the little arrows to tighten it down with!