Oil Filters - Newer Style With Replaceable Elements - Curious . . . Educate Me, Please!

General Discussion
1

I’ve seen several comments in discussions here about some newer cars having oil filters that are not the throw-away type, but rather have replaceable elements and the “can” is reused.

Which manufacturer’s have gone to this ?
Do you have one ?
Have you changed one ?
Are they messy ?
Difficult ?
Problematic ?
What about the element ?
Seals/O-rings ?
Kits ?
Is the “can” stainless steel ?
Dealer only at this point ?
Expense relative to conventional throw-away ?
Are they all going to this style ?

CSA

2

I have dealt with them on a few different models, and I would say that most of them make the oil change process cleaner and easier since the canister is often mounted near the top of the engine and the filter is accessed through the top. Some Ford/Mazda vehicles have it at the bottom, but I don’t think those are any more messy than a regular oil filter (it’s been awhile since I’ve worked on one of those). On every single one I’ve worked on, except for one higher-end European car (can’t even remember the make right now), the can the filter mounts inside and its lid is plastic. I have never had to replace either due to stripped threads or anything like that, but did call the GM dealer on one occasion to find out about cost and availability for their caps and housings, and they are a normally stocked item and reasonably priced. Durability shouldn’t be an issue as long as the person working on the car is not too ham-fisted. From what I have read, the reason many manufacturers are going to this style filter is ease of service and lower environmental impact of the replaced filters (they are typically smaller and contain no metal).

3

Thanks, Mark. Do Throw-Away Types And Replaceable Element Types Interchange ? Do They Install The Same ? Can A User Find And Buy Either Style For Their Vehicle ?

CSA

4

I loved the canned Fram days but disposing of those things is an environmental nightmare. I’ve been lucky and I only have environmental daydreams. They weigh a lot too and cost way too much.

Most filter elements don’t have a can but have a plastic cap that you remove before lifting the filter up out of the hole it’s in. It’s so easy a cave man could see the betterness of it.

5

I think we are going back to “the good old days” with replaceable oil filter elements. My 1948 Dodge, my 1954 Buick and my 1955 Pontiac had replaceable elements. My later cars had throw-away filters. I prefer the throw-away filters. On the cars with replaceable elements, I would always wipe out the can that contained the element before putting in a new element. I had to be more careful that I didn’t drip oil when I removed the element from the can.

6

Yeah what’s old is new again. We had that on our 58 Chevy. It was a real pain to change filters since you had to take a turkey baster to get the oil out of the filter well. Luckily I was too young to do it and just watched and listened.

7

The first generation of Mazda Cx-7s had the cartridge type filter, but 2010+ went to the typical spin-on filters. Some aftermarket company sells a conversion kit for 1st gens to go to the spin-on types. Not sure why they went that way, but then again, I haven’t really ever done an oil change on any of my cars except the old Chevelle

8

This might be apples to oranges but if they are designed like the fleet of IH Transtar COE we had with Detroit Diesels they would be messy PITB. It also goes without saying nowadays it would be designed a lot better. The DD’s had a filter canister with a cone at the bottom that the attaching bolt ran through. First pull the canister drain plug which was not at the bottom. Then remove the attaching bolt and pull the canister. This way only 2 quarts of black oil ran down to your elbows.

9

My old SAAB 99 had a cartridge type filter in a metal casing. I liked it better for all tithe reasons stated.

10

You see a lot of oil filters now with the (phenolic?) black plastic lids with a male hex to remove them with. I did one recently that had, I think, a 32mm hex. All my 32mm sockets are 1/2" drive & there wasn’t enough room to use a 1/2" ratchet or even a 1/2" extension. I got an open end 32mm crow’s foot on the hex, but since the hex was plastic, the open end of the wrench just started to round off the corners of the plastic hex. A friend had a set of these:

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=sunex+oil+filter+socket+set&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=7731073564923416389&sa=X&ei=aeXSTtCFI-Tm0QHF5ZA0&ved=0CEYQ8wIwAg

The hex sizes on these sockets are large–24 to 36 mm & I’ve never seen a 3/8" drive socket in these big hex sizes, so you almost have to get this stuff, as a tech. You could use a vise grips or something, but very unprofessional!

Most of these new oil filter setups use an o ring which must be replaced with the new one that comes with the new filter. When you remove the old o ring from its groove you gotta remember which groove it came out of!

11

Good Information So Far. I’m Still Curious As To Which Major Car Manufacturers Have Gone To This Type Filter In Recent Models. Anybody Know ? Do You Know How I Can Tell At A Filter Manufacturer’s Look-Up Reference ?
Thanks, CSA

12

My wife’s Lexus ES350 is of this type. The Camry and Avalon with the same engine also has this system.

I like it. The canister is about the same size as a regular filter. You remove it…then remove the paper element inside. Then you clean it out and replace the gaskets (there are 2). Takes a little longer (maybe 2 minutes). But IMHO well worth it because you’re putting less in the landfills. Have had no issues to date. Wife has a little over 90k miles on her 07 Lexus.

13

Many manufacturers have BOTH filter types depending on engine size, not manufacturer.
For example;
an 07 Ford fusion has 3 engine choices, 2 take different spin on filters and 1 takes a cartrige type.
an 07 Chevy Malibu has 3 engine choices and just one takes a cartrige.

There are many other examples.
I could fish through my filter application book to see but it seems there’s no universal criterium for them deciding when to go cartige or spin on.

I am pretty sure that moving back to cartrige filters has a lot to do with environmental concers. the spin ons have so much more to throw in the dumpster.

14

Manufacturers now have a growing and almost endless list of regulatory mandates that they have to meet, one of which is recyclability. These new filters are one of the ways they’re meeting them, and I suspect all cars in the U.S. will eventually be using them.

I have no “feelings” about them. I prefer spin-ons, but I also recognize that spin-on filters are less environmentally conscious. Allegedly, at least.

Here I go again buying yet more filter wrenches. Over the past 40 years, as filters kept shrinking in size, I had to keep getting new filter wrenches. Looks like I’ll be back to the tool store again.

15

The principal reason for going to oil filters with replaceable cartridges is to eliminate oil contamination of land fills. The European Union has recently considered passing a law requiring replaceable filters. It is estimated that a casually discarded oil filter contains on average 30% oil by weight. The oil is retained by the rubber flow-back valve.

Currently it is illegal In Europe and many US states to discard used oil filters with any residual oil in land fills. In Illinois, if a can is not crushed (the preferred method for disposal), then a hole must be drilled through the top of a can and the can suspended upside down for several hours. I think eventually the screw-on can will disappear from the scene — mainly for environmental reasons.

16

I Suppose These New Reloadable “Cartridge” Type Oil Filters Don’t Pose Any Additional Problems Or Concerns For The Fast Type Oil Change Businesses Or Their Loyal Customers, Right ?

They’re All Over It. Piece Of Cake, Right ?
:wink:
CSA

17
Here I go again buying yet more filter wrenches. Over the past 40 years, as filters kept shrinking in size, I had to keep getting new filter wrenches. Looks like I'll be back to the tool store again.

Actually I didn’t need to buy a new wrench (at least for the wife’s Lexus). The end of the filter has a fitting for a 3/8" ratchet.

Not sure what other companies are using. But I’ve had to buy several filter wrenches for the canister filters.

18

I know K&N sells a spin-on type filter that has a 1" bolt on the bottom to remove it. No filter wrench, just a normal 1" wrench/socket, to remove it.

http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_Oil-Filter-K&N_6120001-P_1_R|GRPFILTAMS_____#fragment-3

19

CSA -

Which manufacturer’s have gone to this ?

Quite a few.

Do you have one ?

Yes and no. Currently out Fiat 500 is the only car in the garage that has this system.
Previous cars were the Porsche Boxster, and the Chrysler Crossfire.

Have you changed one ?

Much more than one.

Are they messy ?

Depends on your definition of messy.
The Porsche is potentially messier, but I keep a drain pan under it as I unscrew it.
The Crossfire was cleaner, as its mounted on the top of the engine, and if you unscrew it slowly, all the oil drains down into the pan. You still have to oil up the new o-rings, and pop them back into their proper slots.

Difficult ?

Honestly, no, they are not more difficult.
Though I have heard that the ones on certain Toyota engines are a bit more of a hassle to do.
No direct experience, though.

Problematic ?

Trying to manhandle an oily o-ring without damaging it is always a problem.

What about the element ?

Elements are usually pretty sturdy.
Some are paper, others are a fleece type material, like on BMW and Mercedes products with long oil change intervals.

Seals/O-rings ?

Sometimes an aftermarket kit can come with o-rings for different applications, and you might not be able to tell which ones are the ones you need until you have tried in vain to get the wrong o-ring on for the past 5 minutes.

Kits ?

Don’t really understand this question.

Is the “can” stainless steel ?

Mostly plastic.

Dealer only at this point ?

Not unless something breaks, or you have no clue what you are doing.

Expense relative to conventional throw-away ?

Some are more expensive, and some are less expensive.
Depends on the application.

Are they all going to this style ?

No idea, but in the long term, probably yes.
Less waste at the landfill is always s good thing.

BC.

20

Nice video on how to change a few types of these out here:

Hope that helps.