Filters that mount vertically = PITA

[Drew99GT]

How do you guys deal with oil filters that mount with the open side facing up? I just changed the oil on my mom's Impala, and yet again, oil splashed out everyone, all over my hand, and droplets splattered all over the garage floor! It takes half a roll of paper towels to clean the mess up.

I'm think about smacking a hole in the filter with a sharp object and a hammer next time so it'll completely drain before I unscrew it. Either that or drill a hole in it and let it drain.

Any thoughts on that? Anyone have any tricks?

Thanks!

 

[Hermann]

Have thought about that on my 4 cyl Tacoma, but have found a decent alternative. I loosen the filter just a bit with a ziplock bag over the filter and mounting area. When it gets a bit loose, I wiggle the filter back and forth a little and enough oil comes out that you can wipe off the filter with one paper towel. then it is possible to unscrew the filter the rest of the way off without spilling more than a few drops. but a nail in the bottom might be a good way to drain the filter into a container also.

 

[hate2work]

My Tacoma filter is mounted like that, and you're right, it's a PITA for sure. I tried poking a hole in the bottom of the filter, that didn't help much at all, oil still came out the top and all down my arm.

The best thing I've found is to use an old plastic grocery bag and hold it up over the filter as you unscrew it, and most most of the oil goes into the bag.

 

[Hallmark]

The plastic bag trick works for me too. As a flipside, I prefer vertical filters 'cause I prefill the filter to avoid the dreaded startup rattles.

 

[casperfun]

YEs, any bag, grocery, wal-mart, ziploc is great and easy, never a mess.

I never pre-fill because its hard as heck to screw a filter in vertically without making a mess. So I never do. I would if I could but I don't have the power to control gravity.

 

[Captain_Klink]

i PREFER it that way. i like prefilling the filter, and that it is always full at startup time. i don't like to rely on a flimsy anti drain back valve, i prefer the gravity approach.

i first drain the oil via the plug, then move the pan to under the filter, undo it, and usually there is only a tiny bit of spill on my hands. so BEFORE you start, lube up your hands with vaseline, so that cleaning your hands afterwards is very easy. piece of cake. another tip for cleaning your hands, is to use vegetable oil to clean the motor oil off, and then regular soap to clean your hands after that. i find the BIGGEST PITA is hands that smell like motor oil afterwards, or some kind of organic solvent, or "dried out" skin on hands.

 

[5sfe91]

Yeah i like the fact that its easy to fill up the filter, and i don't mind getting a little oil on me. I usually take the filter off after all the oil has drained and its usually not a mess, on both the 07 Corolla and 05 Celica

 

[o2man98]

I cut the top off a 2 liter soda bottle and hold it up to cover the filter. Finish unscrewing the filter and let it drop right into the plastic bottle.

 

[901Memphis]

Using something sharp to puncture and drain it might be a good idea but drilling could cause pieces of metal to get in bad places.

 

[hate2work]

Originally Posted By: o2man98
I cut the top off a 2 liter soda bottle and hold it up to cover the filter. Finish unscrewing the filter and let it drop right into the plastic bottle.


How do you unscrew the filter when the pop bottle is around it? I mean how do you get a grip on the filter?

 

[ZeeOSix]

Originally Posted By: hate2work
Originally Posted By: o2man98
I cut the top off a 2 liter soda bottle and hold it up to cover the filter. Finish unscrewing the filter and let it drop right into the plastic bottle.


How do you unscrew the filter when the pop bottle is around it? I mean how do you get a grip on the filter?


Cut the bottle out like a boat ... then you can still get on the filter. I use to do the same trick with an old 89 Toyota truck with the V6. Hated changing the filter on that thing.

 

[TheLaughingMan]

My VW has a spin-on filter that is at an angle, which I think is worse than the vertical. Somebody on a forum a while back had rigged up a pretty cool tool to make filter changes easier. He had taken a brass hose coupler (see pic for idea of item), stuck a couple feet of rubber hose on one end, and sharpened the other on a grinder. When he wanted to drain his filter, all he had to do was stick the hose in the catch basin, and jam the sharpened end up into the filter. It would drain out and then he could unscrew the whole thing and proceed merrily. Best of all, should be about $3 or less at the hardware store.

 

[chubbs1]

Aren't the horizontal ones worse? I think the verticals are cake compared to those. Talk about oil getting all over the place with nothing you can do. Is that what the OP means? or am I wrong with my geometry?

 

[Virtuoso]

Draining the filter may help some. Having an ADBV will keep some oil above the filter regardless if it's been punctured or not, I think. (Correct me if I'm wrong though!)

I've only changed one car that had a vertical filter ('91 Beretta 3.1L) and thought it was really a piece of cake. Great for those that like to pre-fill too. Our Malibu mounts horizontally, and while I can't fill the filter full of oil, it does drain nicely when it's time to remove.

The Windstar mounts at about a 45* angle, the worst of both worlds. Oil on the filter and a PITA to mount. Location doesn't help there either.

 

[Cyclops]

Originally Posted By: Virtuoso
...
The Windstar mounts at about a 45* angle, the worst of both worlds. Oil on the filter and a PITA to mount. Location doesn't help there either.


You're right, no filter I've experienced is as annoying to deal with then my '02 windstar. Arghhh!

Doug

 

[charleshickman]

I wear nitrile gloves, put the drain pan under the filter as I'm taking the filter off and have a good sized piece of cardboard under the drain pan. I unscrew the filter a little and let it drain to avoid the oil running down my arm. The cardboard protects the floor from filter and drain plug splash. I put the cardboard up against the wall of my garage between oil changes. One piece lasts me for years.

 

[heavychevy96]

After having a '96 4.6 T-Bird with a horizontal mount that was difficult to get to, I welcome a little oil down my arm with my vertically mounted filter on my '96 Caprice.

The ease in changing the filter far outweighs the little mess made.

 

[Texan4Life]

Eh it doesn't really bother me, I guess I'm used to getting oily.

Yeah the filter on my car is the biggest PITA ever. not only do you have to take the intake off and dodge a wiring harness, but it is at a 45 degree angle. AND the little bit of oil that comes out dumps right on top of the transmission.

 

[Hokiefyd]

I've never had a vertically-mounted spin-on filter "splash" oil when I unscrewed it. I break the seal, let the oil that drains out drain into the pan, and after a few seconds, I unthread the filter and turn it over into the pan. I think they're among the easiest oil changes. My Dakota, now, has a filter on a 45*, and I agree: that's tough.

 

[AuthorEditor]

On my Impala with the 3.4 the filter is not really vertical, it's probably about a 45-degree angle. I use a really big drain pan (the big Blitz one), and I have a folded plastic tarp that covers the entire area between the wheels to catch the drips. The tarp makes it easy to wipe up the oil, also makes it easier for me to slide in and out under there, and keeps my tools off the ground and clean. The worst problem is the oil that catches on the frame and other bits and then drips down later.