3.6 liter Chrysler V6

The oil filter housing is fine if you dont use a 1/2” drive ratchet and crank on it. 150K on mine, I’m the only one who touches it. And I’ve never used a torque wrench on it.
The same with the 200k van, it never leaked that I could tell but the pressure sensor was bad so it was due for replacement anyway.
 
pentastars seem alright, pretty zippy in an empty minivan but i wouldn't want it in a truck. done a few oil coolers and there's way too much plastic on that engine, but otherwise they seem decent.
 
Daughter loves her 22 Wrangler with the 3.6, she drives it like she's qualifying for the Indy 500, did her first oil change at 1K then she took it in for her 5K checkup and oil change. ;)
 
2017 Pacifica 3.6L with 90k miles. Not a single issue. I use mostly synthetic 5W30 and change every 5000 miles religiously. I really like this engine. The 8 or 9 speed transmission is GARBAGE though. Terrible shift quality with lots of banging , noises, and just terrible.

The 6 speed transmission I had in a Town and Country was way superior.

I’m at 95,000 miles now. I have the dreaded oil filter (oil cooler?) housing leak on top of the manifold. The plastic oil filter housing has warped and is leaking oil.
 
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I’m at 95,000 miles now. I have the dreaded oil filter (oil cooler?) housing leak on top of the manifold. The plastic oil filter housing has warped and is leaking oil.
Where did you get the oil changed? It was most likely overtightened repeatedly and that will cause the leakage. I’m at 78k miles and it is bone dry in there. All changes done by me though and I never torque the filter cap, just stop when it touches the housing.
 
Where did you get the oil changed? It was most likely overtightened repeatedly and that will cause the leakage. I’m at 78k miles and it is bone dry in there. All changes done by me though and I never torque the filter cap, just stop when it touches the housing.
Same here at 9.5 years/85K.
 
Any reason they shouldn't be like a spin on can filter, firmly hand tightened plus a little more? There's an inch worth of heavy threads and a nice new pliable oring there. They put that huge nut on top and psychologically you think man, I'm gonna turn it til it squeaks.
 
Any reason they shouldn't be like a spin on can filter, firmly hand tightened plus a little more? There's an inch worth of heavy threads and a nice new pliable oring there. They put that huge nut on top and psychologically you think man, I'm gonna turn it til it squeaks.

The torque spec is 25nm. And I don't think anyone has actually proven the leaks come from overtightening. Maybe some do but usually they come from the plastic welded plugs and/or the actual o-rings between the filter housing and block.
 
Where did you get the oil changed? It was most likely overtightened repeatedly and that will cause the leakage. I’m at 78k miles and it is bone dry in there. All changes done by me though and I never torque the filter cap, just stop when it touches the housing.
I’ve done every oil change . Oil filter housing has never been over tightened. It warps underneath the manifold away from the oil filter housing. Pretty common issue according to interweb.
 
I’ve done every oil change . Oil filter housing has never been over tightened. It warps underneath the manifold away from the oil filter housing. Pretty common issue according to interweb.
What do you mean by “never been over tightened”? Never went over the specified torque? Or you stopped once the cap touched the housing?

I know it’s a pretty known issue on various forums, but the cause is a not exactly that clear. I know it’s easy to blame the plastic, but I don’t think it simply warps by itself. The intake is also plastic and doesn’t do that.

I believe the torquing of the filter cap, even to spec, contributes to this issue quite a great deal.

Below is the passage and seal layout. The ports simply sit on top of each other. So any twisting force to the main body, which is exactly what happens when applying torque to the cap as I tried to picture in the second pick, will start lifting the seal. Since they sit flat on the mating surface, it doesn’t take much to have a leak since it’s all under pressure.

If this was a male to female type connection, there wouldn’t be an issue.
Anyways, that’s my theory and I believe no torque should be applied to the filter cap, after it made contact with the housing whatsoever. But I don’t blame people that do torque it, Chrysler has a spec for it after all.

It could also be the case of just the seals hardening and not compensating for thermal expansion. Or most likely a combination of all of the above. Therefore I think going with an aluminum housing may not prevent this issue. That whole interface is simply awful IMO.

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What do you mean by “never been over tightened”? Never went over the specified torque? Or you stopped once the cap touched the housing?

I know it’s a pretty known issue on various forums, but the cause is a not exactly that clear. I know it’s easy to blame the plastic, but I don’t think it simply warps by itself. The intake is also plastic and doesn’t do that.

I believe the torquing of the filter cap, even to spec, contributes to this issue quite a great deal.

Below is the passage and seal layout. The ports simply sit on top of each other. So any twisting force to the main body, which is exactly what happens when applying torque to the cap as I tried to picture in the second pick, will start lifting the seal. Since they sit flat on the mating surface, it doesn’t take much to have a leak since it’s all under pressure.

If this was a male to female type connection, there wouldn’t be an issue.
Anyways, that’s my theory and I believe no torque should be applied to the filter cap, after it made contact with the housing whatsoever. But I don’t blame people that do torque it, Chrysler has a spec for it after all.

It could also be the case of just the seals hardening and not compensating for thermal expansion. Or most likely a combination of all of the above. Therefore I think going with an aluminum housing may not prevent this issue. That whole interface is simply awful IMO.

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View attachment 137073
Our last few promasters we sent in for oil cooler leaks to be covered by warranty were repaired by just installing new seals. The service department told me there was a new TSB issued that for any oil cooler leak to be covered by warranty, the shop has to first replace the seals, clean, and recheck for leaks.

Most all of them were fixed by just installing seals, at least it seemed so. It’s really not an easy place to spot your leak immediately. It takes time to seep out and fill the valley up before the leak is obvious.
 
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