oil filter tricks

does anyone have a trick to get off the oil filter when the jack a.. mechanic at the dealer i brought it to last time put it on way to tight. I have the filter wrench and everthing. any help would be so appreciated

Get a different wrench. I have on from Snap On that goes on the bottom of any size filter and gets tighter as you take it off. Works every time. Those band ones really suck. Also you can go redneck on it and punch a long punch or screwdriver through the lower section of the side and turn.(like a lever) That will allow you to get it loose. Good luck those sort of things make easy projects very frustrating.

The punch in the side trick works well. It also releases the pressure and it will come right off.

Take a garbage bag and place it the the engine compartment directley below the filter. That way when you take the filter off the oil that comes out of the filter and the filter itself can fall or you can place it into the garbage bag.

I always wrap a 1 gallon glad bag aroung mine, then use the wrench that fit just the bottom of the filter element. works like a dream and no mess....

thanks guys funny stuff my girlfriend told me about the screw driver trick i thought she was crazy. i had the dealer do it thanks again!!!!1!

don't punch a screw driver thru the side of it. i did that on my boat and almost had to pull the motor out to get it off. all it did was tear fat holes in it. i had to take an air chisel to it to crack it loose.

Wow ryan, and I thought mine was tight the first time, lol.

Let me share a little story about the first time I took my oil filter off. I guess the Douche whoever tightened it before needs a lesson in moderation. This was the first time I changed the oil in my newly acquired used bu.

After actually bending TWO oil filter wrenches trying the right method I went with the punch a hole in the side method. I punched a hole and used my thickest craftsmen screw driver with a deep socket and 1/2 extensions to help with leverage. That didnt work for two reasons, one was it was too thin and ripping through the oil filter; the other was it put a nice bend in my screwdriver. When that didnt work I literally used a pry bar with extensions to get it off. Needless to say I was a little worried it would never come off. The thicker pry bar worked great, but took some work getting through. If I had to do this again my steps would be similar. Try the regular methods, if all else fails, drill a hole through both sides of the filter a slightly smaller size than a decently sized pry bar. Then pull.

Ohh yah. Quadruple check your spinning counter clockwise, lol.

ya going the right way is pretty important honestly i always have to think about it. Does anyone think that the dealers do this so we have to go back to them. I called the rival dealer i bought mine from and they loosened the oil filter and fuel seperator which was put on with a torque wrench or something. The guy was so happy to get a new client he did it for 5 bucks

The oil filter in my V drive is in a really stupid place. They should have used a remote kit. I cant even get a chain wrench behind it.

I use a web strap that i can loop round it and pull back on it self. This grips it enough to get it undone but it is a real pain.

Have used the screw driver trick before on my old correct craft but ended up slicing my hand open and would never try it again!

Last time I had to deal with a crappy filter install, I tried the screwdriver trick and just tore up the filter and bent my screwdriver because it was on so tight. I ended up taking the smallest chisel I could find, getting it really sharp and chiseling out the seal. Then the remains of my filter came right off. If you do this, you'll have to be careful not to bend the base that the filter screws on to (hence the small chisel).

If you ever have a hard time taking off your filter, make sure the entire seal came off. If not you'll have to scrape it from the base or you'll leak oil after your oil change. Thankfully I learned that one from secondhand experience.

DO NOT use a screwdriver!! get a filter wrench that has a flat strap that tightens as you turn the wrench, any parts store will have one, and they are cheap! $8?? also when you loosen the filter do it near the top of the filter, it will have less chance of crushing the filter!! if you can, get a pan under the filter, and use a punch to put a hole in the center of the bottom of the filter. this will make it a lot cleaner when you loosen the filter and take it off!! oil will not run over the sides of the filter when it is loose! if you cant get a pan under it, then don't put a hole in the filter, just use a plastic bag so it keeps the oil out of your bilge!!! also make sure you clean up any so it doesn't get in to any water that gets in there!!!!

The screwdriver in the side should be the LAST resort if all else fails....trust me on this.

Get the filter remover that is a flat strap that tightens as you turn it, and be sure to grab it high so there is less chance of you crushing it.

I know this sounds weird but try tightening it first and then backing it off, this has worked for me before.

Do yourself a favor like a few others have stated above, put a plastic bag underneath in your bilge, this will save you tons of work later.

If you do break the filter and have to get it off with a small pneumatic impact chisel put a mirror on the floor so you can see what you are doing. Be very careful not to hit the threads or get any metal shards inside the casing.

I busted one off a few years ago, crushed the filter and then ran a screwdriver thru it, still couldn't get it off. Local MC dealer got it off with an impact chisel and saved my ass.

When you finally do get it off and put the new one on run some oil around the gasket to help prevent this from happening again and install it as tight as you can with your hand and give it a 1/4 turn with an oil wrench.

good luck

a while back I was able to get a slippery filter off by putting some sandpaper inside the metal band of a standard filter wrench. grit facing the filter.

Try This, Works Good


http://www.griotsgarage.com/images/products/lg/11913_LG.jpg

Oh and the gramps special, make sure you put the filter back on before refilling your motor with oil!

and make sure to remove you old gasket/seal, just in case it gets stuck to the filter base... boy it makes a mess...

One of the biggest reasons they are hard to get off is you're not supposed to use a wrench to put them back on! Yet most do! A light coat of oil on the gasket, install until it bottoms snugly and then hand tighten up to one full turn only. I've done everyone this way on cars, bikes and boats and never had one leak, and they come right off when needed! Also, if you fill your filter with 6-8 ounces of fresh oil before installing it the pump doesn't have to prime the system and you have close to instant oil pressure. This of course helps with engine longevity and a more accurate engine oil reading after filling.