Sick of messy oil changes...help

[mr brightside]

Ok so just to update, i've tried punching a hole in the top of the filter with a bodging driver and left it for 15mins to drain, it still leaked everywhere and when i got it out i forgot about the hole in the top and covered my car in old oil...Grrr.

All i can think is maybe the oil is having to drain through the filter medium to get out, either that or it's back to the drawing board. I'll have another go in 5k.

 

[pauljmcnulty]

Ok so just to update, i've tried punching a hole in the top of the filter with a bodging driver and left it for 15mins to drain, it still leaked everywhere and when i got it out i forgot about the hole in the top and covered my car in old oil...Grrr.

Leave it overnight, not perfect but it'll be better.

 

[sawood12]

I don't think oil will drain through an oil filter under gravity no matter how long you leave it. Every oil change i've ever done the oil filter is always full of oil even when i havn't started the car before draining so it has been left overnight. I never did an oil change when I had my 944 but if I were to do one i'd probably get an old rag, shape it into a donut and wrap around the base of the filter. Unscrew the oil filter off so the oil is leaking out at a slow rate and shape the rag so the drips of oil are dripping off one part which you can collect. Have a cup of tea while the oil filter empties. Will still create some mess but less that just unscrewing the filter and allowing the oil to flow out around the full 360 degrees of the filter base.

Another option might be to puncture a hole in the side of the filter as low down as possible so the oil can drain out into a small catch can - but i'm not sure if you'd have much room for that.

 

[vitesse]

On the 924S,I remove the aluminium undertray,drain the engine oil with the dipstick & filler cap off & have the theraputic cup of tea-with a large catch tray with a 10 litre old emulsion paint plastic bucket on top,I then crack the oil filter using a strap type wrench & leave to drain.
Inevitably,I have to clean everything below the filter with rags including the steering rack,oil thermostat housing etc,but the filter doesn't usually keep full of oil.

 

[JamesO]

I'm going to try punching a large hole in the filter and sucking the old oil out with a big syringe, worth a try I think.

 

[pauljmcnulty]

I don't think oil will drain through an oil filter under gravity no matter how long you leave it

No, but with a hole in the top it will. Or, at least, the worst will if left overnight.

 

[Pastry]

ORIGINAL: mr brightside

Ok so just to update, i've tried punching a hole in the top of the filter with a bodging driver and left it for 15mins to drain, it still leaked everywhere and when i got it out i forgot about the hole in the top and covered my car in old oil...Grrr.

did exactly the same 1st time round ;D I can smile about it now, always expect oil somewhere it shouldnt, ive taken to covering the driveway with old cardboard boxes.

i pierce the filter too and wrap the base in a rag, and wrap the filter in the rag as i remove it. definitely the worst car i've had mess-wise.

at least the filter spanner makes it easier to change, using a strap wrench was a total ballache.

 

[pauljmcnulty]

Hoe exactly does an oil filter work, and what is its purpose??!!

Erm, as a filter? [8|]

Traps any solids, and stops them creating wear within the engine.

 

[tr7v8]

ORIGINAL: sc0tty


Hoe exactly does an oil filter work, and what is its purpose??!! [8|]

Think of lots of blotting paper used to hold the bits & let liquid flow through.

Oh & another tip pop the headlights up as it gives more clearance to get the filter out past the light linkage.
Also get the cap tool for undoing the filter.

 

[zcacogp]

'Tis a daft design for sure. I usually pierce mine to encourage draining but it never makes much difference. One useful trick is to cover the filter with an old rugby sock before unscrewing it, and pull the sock down over the filter as soon as it is loose. This will mop up the leaking oil ... an improvement, but still messy.

I also tend to have a good squirt around the oil filter area with a pressure washer whenever I can, to remove the spare gallons of oil that collect there every time I remove the filter ...


Oli.

 

[Neil Haughey]

Just to update, cap tool is brilliant got mine from Halfords for a ISTR less then a tenner. Also if using a suction pump I found it works about 1000 times better if used immediately after driving the car around. It really needs the oil to be hot to be thin enough to suck it out effectively. ISTR it took about 10 minutes to suck it but you will still find that the total in the pot and the total in the filter is not all the oil, I reckon it leaves about 1 litre left over probably up in the cylinder head etc.

On the race car we put one of those drain valves on to make it easier/safer less messy to drain the oil hot.

A cartridge oil filter sounds great for a car that will be driven on the track a lot and probably require fairly frequent oil changes.

 

[sawood12]

ORIGINAL: pauljmcnulty

I don't think oil will drain through an oil filter under gravity no matter how long you leave it

No, but with a hole in the top it will. Or, at least, the worst will if left overnight.

I'm not sure it will. I am referring to the fact that the oil wont go through the filter element within the can unless it is pumped through and I think there is usually some form of non-return valve on the input into the oil filter to stop oil draining back and all the grunge and filth collected by the filter flowing back into the engine. Afterall the main purpose of the filter is to filter out the rubbish and retain it within the oil filter can.