mass transit sucks
January 10, 2006 2:18 PM Subscribe
I can’t remove an extremely stuck oil filter.
Despite my best efforts, the filter won’t budge. Several people told me to stick a screwdriver through the filter and turn, but it only ripped the filter upon “turning” and bent the hell out of my screwdriver. So, now I can’t drive it to a lube place because it has two holes in the filter. Please help me. I need to drive!
Despite my best efforts, the filter won’t budge. Several people told me to stick a screwdriver through the filter and turn, but it only ripped the filter upon “turning” and bent the hell out of my screwdriver. So, now I can’t drive it to a lube place because it has two holes in the filter. Please help me. I need to drive!
Did a shop do this? A long, long time ago (last time I oil changed at a shop) they used a machine to screw it back on, which they shouldn't do. It required some parts being replaced, of which I can't remember -- I didn't have to pay for it. Point being if it is a shop job take it back and force them to pay.
posted by geoff. at 2:22 PM on January 10, 2006
posted by geoff. at 2:22 PM on January 10, 2006
This may seem unnecessary, but have you tried penetrating oil? Often times the rubber gasket gets stuck and makes the job harder than it otherwise would be.
posted by kc0dxh at 2:42 PM on January 10, 2006
posted by kc0dxh at 2:42 PM on January 10, 2006
This might also seem unnecessary, but do you have your lefty-loosy/righty-tighty correct?
I once spent a few hours in a junkyard in below freezing weather trying to loosen bolts to salvage some brackets. I resorted to pounding on end of my wrench with a hammer until I sheared off the bolt heads. Two days later I realized I'd been turning the wrench the wrong way. Lying on my back under the car and looking at the bolts upside-down had me all confused.
posted by hydrophonic at 3:23 PM on January 10, 2006
I once spent a few hours in a junkyard in below freezing weather trying to loosen bolts to salvage some brackets. I resorted to pounding on end of my wrench with a hammer until I sheared off the bolt heads. Two days later I realized I'd been turning the wrench the wrong way. Lying on my back under the car and looking at the bolts upside-down had me all confused.
posted by hydrophonic at 3:23 PM on January 10, 2006
Lo-tech solution that doesn't require you drive and get an oil filter wrench, which you can't do anyway.
Hammer a flat-head screwdriver at an angle into the filter so it gets lodged into the filter well and you have some room to use the screwdriver as a lever to turn the filter. You will get oil everywhere, but if you do it right, you'll have enough leverage to get the filter loose. I've done it before...not fun, but it works.
posted by mcstayinskool at 3:40 PM on January 10, 2006
Hammer a flat-head screwdriver at an angle into the filter so it gets lodged into the filter well and you have some room to use the screwdriver as a lever to turn the filter. You will get oil everywhere, but if you do it right, you'll have enough leverage to get the filter loose. I've done it before...not fun, but it works.
posted by mcstayinskool at 3:40 PM on January 10, 2006
Since booknerd's link isn't working, here's a picture of an oil filter wrench. Basically it fits around the filter, then you can use a ratcheting wrench (usually a 3/8") to un-do it. There are also "strap-style" wrenches that wrap around the filter, but I've had better luck with the first kind.
Also, so you know for future reference (in case you don't already), you should never tighten an oil filter more than hand-tight. And this is why.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 3:41 PM on January 10, 2006
Also, so you know for future reference (in case you don't already), you should never tighten an oil filter more than hand-tight. And this is why.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 3:41 PM on January 10, 2006
Response by poster: Yes, I have tried an oil filter wrench.
No, it wasn't a shop. 3000 miles ago I didn't know that it's best to hand-tighten the filter, so I treated it like a bolt and really muscled it tight.
Yes, I bought a strap wrench after this went down but it hasn't worked.
Yes, I've used a pair of huge pliers. This was my fail-safe. The filter is now twice as thin and I'm afraid if I continue with the pliers I'll end up tearing the filter in half.
I'll get some penetrating oil. I figured that since I oiled the o-ring when I installed the filter it shouldn't be an issue, but about now I'm willing to try anything.
Thanks for the ideas guys. Keep 'em coming!
On preview: Civil_disobedient - actually no, I used the metal strap type oil filter wrench. There isn't enough room at the end of the filter to attach both the oil filter wrench and the ratchet.
posted by spork at 3:50 PM on January 10, 2006
No, it wasn't a shop. 3000 miles ago I didn't know that it's best to hand-tighten the filter, so I treated it like a bolt and really muscled it tight.
Yes, I bought a strap wrench after this went down but it hasn't worked.
Yes, I've used a pair of huge pliers. This was my fail-safe. The filter is now twice as thin and I'm afraid if I continue with the pliers I'll end up tearing the filter in half.
I'll get some penetrating oil. I figured that since I oiled the o-ring when I installed the filter it shouldn't be an issue, but about now I'm willing to try anything.
Thanks for the ideas guys. Keep 'em coming!
On preview: Civil_disobedient - actually no, I used the metal strap type oil filter wrench. There isn't enough room at the end of the filter to attach both the oil filter wrench and the ratchet.
posted by spork at 3:50 PM on January 10, 2006
Try a hammer and punch. You may need to chisel off most of the filter (the thin can portion) so you can get to the base. Then put the point of a punch or chisel near the edge and try to tap it in the off direction. Just make sure you don't chisel the gasket surface of your engine.
Also, many engines have a separate oil filter flange that is bolted on to the block. If you have one of these engines you can unbolt the flange and work on it off the car (or take it somewhere).
posted by 445supermag at 4:11 PM on January 10, 2006
Also, many engines have a separate oil filter flange that is bolted on to the block. If you have one of these engines you can unbolt the flange and work on it off the car (or take it somewhere).
posted by 445supermag at 4:11 PM on January 10, 2006
Best answer: Do you have the car up on either a ramp or jack stands? Getting the car up off the ground can help give you more working room, so you can better manhandle the filter.
posted by Thorzdad at 4:12 PM on January 10, 2006
posted by Thorzdad at 4:12 PM on January 10, 2006
Best answer: You said you tried big pliers, but I would suggest channel locks that can open up enough to grab the base. Or a pipewrench if you have room.
posted by 445supermag at 4:14 PM on January 10, 2006
posted by 445supermag at 4:14 PM on January 10, 2006
Another wrench. I use one similar to this, but mine seems to be better-built. The great thing is that if the filter is tight, the fingers just grip all the more tightly, to the point they'll start crushing the can (which really gives them a grip.)
I hate strap wrenches.
When you put your new filter on, you only need to get it finger-tight plus about 1/4 turn. Never ever use a wrench to put it on.
Idle question, for when the thread slows down: why in hell are oil filters always placed at the most inconvenient location? It should be perfectly possible to run a pipe to them, allowing them to be located in the most convenient location. Grrr.
posted by five fresh fish at 4:16 PM on January 10, 2006
I hate strap wrenches.
When you put your new filter on, you only need to get it finger-tight plus about 1/4 turn. Never ever use a wrench to put it on.
Idle question, for when the thread slows down: why in hell are oil filters always placed at the most inconvenient location? It should be perfectly possible to run a pipe to them, allowing them to be located in the most convenient location. Grrr.
posted by five fresh fish at 4:16 PM on January 10, 2006
Ok, spork, there is only one way outta this, as follows but I'll give you more detail to get you started:
Hammer a flat-head screwdriver at an angle into the filter so it gets lodged into the filter well and you have some room to use the screwdriver as a lever to turn the filter.
posted by mcstayinskool at 3:40 PM PST on January 10 [!]
What was left out: the filter is a can with a lip up near where it screws on. That lip and plate under it are the strongest part of the filter. With the screwdriver or something strong, tap it lefty loosey, right on the thick lip or rim. But try to go all along the edge, not just in one place or it will just rip again. You will eventually get motion out of it. If you have to, rip off enough of the filters tin and tap the plate itself. If you get really desperate, You'll tear everything off and you will see the tube thats threaded on the inside connecting to the engine. If you get this far, carefully use vise grips on that tube. Good Luck!!!!!!
posted by snsranch at 4:18 PM on January 10, 2006
Hammer a flat-head screwdriver at an angle into the filter so it gets lodged into the filter well and you have some room to use the screwdriver as a lever to turn the filter.
posted by mcstayinskool at 3:40 PM PST on January 10 [!]
What was left out: the filter is a can with a lip up near where it screws on. That lip and plate under it are the strongest part of the filter. With the screwdriver or something strong, tap it lefty loosey, right on the thick lip or rim. But try to go all along the edge, not just in one place or it will just rip again. You will eventually get motion out of it. If you have to, rip off enough of the filters tin and tap the plate itself. If you get really desperate, You'll tear everything off and you will see the tube thats threaded on the inside connecting to the engine. If you get this far, carefully use vise grips on that tube. Good Luck!!!!!!
posted by snsranch at 4:18 PM on January 10, 2006
Oil filters really are a pain in the arse. If all else fails why not simply cut off the filter? If you've already mashed the heck out of it, I would have thought something like tin snips or a junior hacksaw would do the job, cutting bits off until just left with the screw head of the filter and finally cuttinbg that in a couple of places (exceeding carefully). All this presumes you can get enough access to get tools in etc and that every idea everyone else suggests has been tried and failed. IMNAMechanic!
posted by prentiz at 5:07 PM on January 10, 2006
posted by prentiz at 5:07 PM on January 10, 2006
superglue that strap wrench as close to the base as you can.
posted by hortense at 5:19 PM on January 10, 2006
posted by hortense at 5:19 PM on January 10, 2006
one more thing to try. clean off all the oil that's certainly splattered all over the area when you punched holes in the thing, and use a propane torch on the part of the block or oil pan or whatever the hell you call the thingy the filter screws into. get it nice and hot and the hole should expand around the threads of the filter, then do your screwdriver/vise grips thing. could help. don't melt anything.
alternatively i second the suggestion to try WD-40 or some other penetrating lubricant. i was trying to get a suspension control arm off for DAYS, cutting my hands up and breaking all kinds of tools, and the thing that finally worked was to spray the HELL out of the joint with WD-40 for a good 5-10 minutes and leave it overnight.. next morning it just popped right off. so give a really, really good soaking with the stuff and leave it for a few hours to work.
posted by sergeant sandwich at 7:40 PM on January 10, 2006
alternatively i second the suggestion to try WD-40 or some other penetrating lubricant. i was trying to get a suspension control arm off for DAYS, cutting my hands up and breaking all kinds of tools, and the thing that finally worked was to spray the HELL out of the joint with WD-40 for a good 5-10 minutes and leave it overnight.. next morning it just popped right off. so give a really, really good soaking with the stuff and leave it for a few hours to work.
posted by sergeant sandwich at 7:40 PM on January 10, 2006
If you apply a torch to this area, you will start a fire. I wouldn't do it. Penetrating oil on surfaces that are liberally soked with lubricating oil seems kind of pointless. I would also be very careful using a chisel near the gasket surface, but it sounds like you may not have enough room to use one anyway.
I hate to say it, but you may have to have the car towed to a shop, where they can raise the engine for better access, and have all the tools.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 3:38 AM on January 11, 2006
I hate to say it, but you may have to have the car towed to a shop, where they can raise the engine for better access, and have all the tools.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 3:38 AM on January 11, 2006
Water Displacement-40 isn't going to solve your problems. Get a real penetrating lubricant like Kroil or PB Blaster if you want to try that route. Personally, I'd try and get an oil wrench on the thing. It stands to reason that if you can install the filter, there must be at least a little room on the end (for it to unscrew) which is all you really need.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 4:29 AM on January 11, 2006
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 4:29 AM on January 11, 2006
I had another idea. It involves some skill and a special tool.
If you cut away the filter shell and guts so that you can see the hole in the middle (of the part that threads into the engine), you can insert a screw extractor and unscrew the remains. The hole is large, because that's where all the oil flows, so the extractor (AKA easy-out) will also be pretty large.
Excavate until you can measure the hole. Do so with as much accuracy as you can, then buy or borrow an extractor that fits that hole. They are typically sized for holes that are somewhat smaller than the minor diameter of the bolt they're made for. The hole size may be etched onto the extractor; pick the one that most closely matches the hole you have.
The extractor should work. You should probably not have to tap it in, but if it spins without moving the filter base, try tapping it with a hammer.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 6:48 AM on January 11, 2006
If you cut away the filter shell and guts so that you can see the hole in the middle (of the part that threads into the engine), you can insert a screw extractor and unscrew the remains. The hole is large, because that's where all the oil flows, so the extractor (AKA easy-out) will also be pretty large.
Excavate until you can measure the hole. Do so with as much accuracy as you can, then buy or borrow an extractor that fits that hole. They are typically sized for holes that are somewhat smaller than the minor diameter of the bolt they're made for. The hole size may be etched onto the extractor; pick the one that most closely matches the hole you have.
The extractor should work. You should probably not have to tap it in, but if it spins without moving the filter base, try tapping it with a hammer.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 6:48 AM on January 11, 2006
As others have said the base is much thicker than the sides. The filters used to get stuck on my 440 all the time and we used a cold chisel and 12oz hammer to get them loose. Knock the corners off the cold chisel to prevent damage to the oil filter mounting flange. Then use the cold chisel at an angle as close to a tangent with the filter body as possible while not slipping past when you apply pressure, about 40 degrees off the tangent. You want to have the edge of the chisel on the thick rolled edge of the base. Tap away with the hammer, lightly at first and then with some force if required. Try to anticipate where the chisel will go if it slips and make sure there isn't anything like the radiator in the danger zone. Once you've turned it about 1/8-1/4 of the way it'll loosen up to the point where you can just spin it off.
five fresh fish writes "Idle question, for when the thread slows down: why in hell are oil filters always placed at the most inconvenient location? It should be perfectly possible to run a pipe to them, allowing them to be located in the most convenient location. Grrr."
A remote oil filter costs about 100-150 dollars depending on your engine and is widely available from speed shops and heavy duty equipment suppliers. It's left as an exercise for the reader why OEMs don't do this.
posted by Mitheral at 7:07 AM on January 11, 2006
five fresh fish writes "Idle question, for when the thread slows down: why in hell are oil filters always placed at the most inconvenient location? It should be perfectly possible to run a pipe to them, allowing them to be located in the most convenient location. Grrr."
A remote oil filter costs about 100-150 dollars depending on your engine and is widely available from speed shops and heavy duty equipment suppliers. It's left as an exercise for the reader why OEMs don't do this.
posted by Mitheral at 7:07 AM on January 11, 2006
Response by poster: It's off! The trick was getting a better angle on the filter. This was tough because it's a motorcycle and I don't have a motorcycle jack and even if I did have a jack it would have blocked access to the filter. So anyway, the trick was to put the front wheel on a brick on the the sidewalk with the back tire out in the street. This raised the bike several inches and allowed my brother enough room to wrench around underneath while I kept the bike from falling on him. Obviously this wasn't the safest procedure, but it's hard to argue with the results. He used a variety of tools, but ultimately the huge pair of channel-lock pliers did it. And this time I didn't over-tighten the new filter.
Thanks guys
posted by spork at 3:25 PM on January 11, 2006
Thanks guys
posted by spork at 3:25 PM on January 11, 2006
Just for future reference, it would have made a huge difference in the way people answered your question if you'd mentioned it was a bike. If I'd known that, my advice would have been different.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 8:58 AM on January 12, 2006
posted by Kirth Gerson at 8:58 AM on January 12, 2006
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by booknerd at 2:21 PM on January 10, 2006