Interesting Pentastar oil filter failure

[dlundblad]

My brother was doing an oil change on his 2016 Jeep Wrangler. When removing the old oil filter, the end with the pyramid-ish structure and small o ring broke off inside the bottom of the housing. He was able to get it after 20 minutes with some needle nose pliers.

My first thought was that he either bumped it or removed it at an odd angle and this caused it to break. He said that wasn’t the case. It’s really not possible to remove it at such an awkward angle that it would break either. Either way, glad he noticed it.

I believe it’s a Dorman filter. He took it to an indy shop last year to have the oil filter housing replaced. (Normally I’m an OE fan and try to convince him of such, but OE in this case would have been the same warp prone plastic part. The Dorman part is metal.) The filter came with the new housing. We’ve used Mopar filters in the past. Hopefully that’s what he used after this.

 

[demarpaint]

That rubber oil ring at the bottom of the 'pyramid" structure might have been installed dry into the new replacement filter housing. That could cause it to bind up a bit when the cap was screwed on, and it broke as a result. Odds are it might have been broken the entire OCI. I always lube that and the O-Ring on the housing cap when I change the oil filter in my Wrangler. All we can do is guess the cause, it could also have been a defect. Next time tell him to turn the filter by hand before putting the cap on to see if it turns freely.

 

[dlundblad]

That rubber oil ring at the bottom of the 'pyramid" structure might have been installed dry into the new replacement filter housing. That could cause it to bind up a bit when the cap was screwed on, and it broke as a result. Odds are it might have been broken the entire OCI. I always lube that and the O-Ring on the housing cap when I change the oil filter in my Wrangler. All we can do is guess the cause, it could also have been a defect. Next time tell him to turn the filter by hand before putting the cap on to see if it turns freely.

I can honestly say we’ve never lubed it before. Granted, that was with the old style joint too. I’ll share this with him for next time.

 

[demarpaint]

I can honestly say we’ve never lubed it before. Granted, that was with the old style joint too. I’ll share this with him for next time.

Sounds good, and I hope it helps!! It lives in oil, however when he replaced the housing it was probably dry. That in and of itself can be a problem. I dip my finger in oil and oil that seal along with the O-Ring on the cap always. My logic is the housing is problematic to begin with and my "hope" is to extend its life or avoid a problem. So far so good. I also use very little torque on the cap, I set my torque wrench to 90" lbs. Fire it up and check for leaks. I think people over tighten the cap, and over time it takes its toll on the O-rings under the housing. OTOH some are going to say it is going to fail no matter what, time will tell.

 

[DCDG]

If the vehicle has the aluminum housing cooler upgrade the filter for 2015+ must be used. Possibly wrong filter used?

 

[racer12306]

I can honestly say we’ve never lubed it before. Granted, that was with the old style joint too. I’ll share this with him for next time.

It probably doesn't really matter when you are removing and replacing just the filter, but if it was put in dry, into a new metal housing, I could definitely see it binding up. Because there will be oil in it in the future, there may never be an issue again.

However, I do as demarpaint says, oil all o rings.

 

[racer12306]

If the vehicle has the aluminum housing cooler upgrade the filter for 2015+ must be used. Possibly wrong filter used?

View attachment 343007

The difference between the filters is too significant to use one over the other.

 

[dlundblad]

If the vehicle has the aluminum housing cooler upgrade the filter for 2015+ must be used. Possibly wrong filter used?

View attachment 343007

The filter came with the housing kit.

 

[dlundblad]

Sounds good, and I hope it helps!! It lives in oil, however when he replaced the housing it was probably dry. That in and of itself can be a problem. I dip my finger in oil and oil that seal along with the O-Ring on the cap always. My logic is the housing is problematic to begin with and my "hope" is to extend its life or avoid a problem. So far so good. I also use very little torque on the cap, I set my torque wrench to 90" lbs. Fire it up and check for leaks. I think people over tighten the cap, and over time it takes its toll on the O-rings under the housing. OTOH some are going to say it is going to fail no matter what, time will tell.

The shop said the housing failure is more heat related (warping) than over torquing. I’ve done the oil changes on this since new so I know it’s always been torqued properly.

It’s a 2016 with 53k miles. Yearly changes since he bought it in ‘17.

 

[demarpaint]

The shop said the housing failure is more heat related (warping) than over torquing. I’ve done the oil changes on this since new so I know it’s always been torqued properly.

It’s a 2016 with 53k miles. Yearly changes since he bought it in ‘17.

I heard that too. I know quite a few people who had an oil change place change their oil due to bad weather or health issues and found out later when they did their own oil change the cap was on gorilla tight. So I'd say it can fail from heat and/or repeatedly over tightening it. I also read the O-rings on the underside of the housing can fail too. Lets say it isn't the greatest design. I'm trying to take every precaution possible to get mine to last as long as possible or until I decide to trade or sell it.

 

[DCDG]

The filter came with the housing kit.

oh ok so this was the first oil change since the cooler upgrade.