Oil Filter--engine seized

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There would be ample evidence of where this happened - I don't understand why you don't know what happened.

If someone took it off the car (vanadlism), where the oil filter was taken off would have a HUGE puddle of oil in it, both from the filter coming off, and from the oil being pumped out.

Was their oil in any parking spot you were at - home? work? school?

If the oil came off while you were driving, you would have left a large trail of oil behind you - have you checked the raods you drive on to see if you can find an oil slick, and maybe even the filter?

There is evidence out there - go find it!!!!
 
Is the sending unit pre or post filter? I have always seen post filter, but I haven't worked on every car in the world. 4 PSI is about the pressure they go off.
 
To remove the oil filter in a Solara you'd have to either lift up the hood or get under the car and remove the splash guard/shield before you could get to the filter. Even if you did get under the car, you'd have to at least jack it up a bit for someone (other than an extremely skinny and small person) to get under the car properly.

What kind of filter were you using? Did you go with an oversized filter that possibly didn't fit properly?
 
Could the oil change place have installed a filter with the wrong threads and maybe it gave away at once? I would like the know where the oil was changed so I can avoid that place. It would be interesting to see if the threads where the oil filter screws on had damage. Time for a cold case file investigation!
 
Originally Posted By: El_Vato
To remove the oil filter in a Solara you'd have to either lift up the hood or get under the car and remove the splash guard/shield before you could get to the filter. Even if you did get under the car, you'd have to at least jack it up a bit for someone (other than an extremely skinny and small person) to get under the car properly.

What kind of filter were you using? Did you go with an oversized filter that possibly didn't fit properly?


So your saying the filter just wouldn't fall off to the ground??

the OP NEEDS to find that filter!@!
 
Quickie lube places tend to wrench the filters on very tight, not likely easily removed, possibly stripped threads but again not likely.
The biggest evidence would be the oil all over the place....it would be very noticeable, oil all over the underside of the car, on the splash guard, on the road, in your parking spot...on your shoes.
 
The the filter tube that extends from the engine block is a bit long...usually takes me a good eight or so turns until the filter gasket makes contact with the engine block. If the filter would have come loose, you'd have lost all of your oil BEFORE the filter would have spun off the threads on its own (due to constant vibrations for the road and engine).

If the splash guard is in place, I'd say there's a chance that it wouldn't fall off to the ground...but it may have from all the bumps in the road.

But for the filter to come completely off the threads is far fetched to me...IMO I'd say someone deliberately took it off for this scenerio to have occured.
 
Either someone removed it or the wrong filter was used and the threads were just barely holding it on and let go all at once. Either case seem unlikely to me. How long ago did this happen? Did you have an oil trail? What did it look like?
 
This happened in November of 2008. I do not know if there was an oil trail, I do know there was oil all underneath my car where I pulled over. I did not find the oil filter...I guess there really isn't an explanation for my $5000 loss
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This reminds me of a time I was driving around and saw an oil filter lying in the middle of the road... I remember thinking to myself: "Sucks to be the person that lost that!"

Sorry to hear about the filter situation, I would suggest just doing it yourself but since you said you live in an apartment I'm assuming they don't allow you to do oil changes there.
 
Moral of the story: Do your own maintenance so you can rule out poor work and/or wrong/defective filter AND so you can inspect the threads and gasket surface prior to putting a new filter on.
 
Wow that sucks. It is also possible the filter was installed incorrectly, and in those 3-4 miles it finally came off. Since the OP parks the car in a lot it could have been dripping oil for a while and he never noticed it. Then it just came off and things got real bad, fast.

Tough to blame anyone without proof, every thing is speculation here. To hold someone liable, you need proof. It could be very easy for the last person to say he did everything fine, and maybe it was vandals. Doesn't take much to cast a little doubt. Good luck!
 
I see no typical way (without undercarriage damage) that the engine would stop running AND the filter would be missing simultaneously. Engine would have seized/stopped and set a MIL way before the filter came off unless the whole adapter broke off. You would also notice the oil loss before the filter spun off. The engine should have a low oil pressue engine kill also - my 1974 vega had that.
^v
As for a FMEA - Was the adapter on the car and the nipple and the nipple threads in good condition? Easy to prove negligence if damage on the filter mount area was seen.
Also, no reason the insurance Co would pay for engine damage - period - unless there was a fire.
Were you drinking alky the day this happened?
 
About 10 years ago now my brother in law drove the 3 hour trip from his home to visit for the weekend. After arriving they went shopping locally a short time later and when returning he got about a half a mile away from our residence and the vehicle starting making noise he said after driving it the rest of the way back. I checked the oil and there was none showing and it looked like it was just undercoated when I had a look under the engine on his Dodge Mini Van.

I checked the filter and it was loose on the threads but sloppy as well. Long story short he had the oil changed where he lived and they put on the wrong filter, but it went about 300 miles before leaking. The hole was too large but the threads held and the gasket was making a seal for that long until it let go for whatever reason....a bump in the road maybe. Your 2600 miles though is a stretch one might think for the same to apply.

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I walked out to the parking lot one day after work and noticed a huge oil trail leading out of the parking lot.

I followed the trail of oil out of the lot and onto the highway. After a few miles the oil trail stopped and there was the oil filter in the road.

I figured someone dropped their old filter in the trash and Gene (the guy that empties the trash into his dump truck) didn't notice it and when he drove off to the dump, the filter left the trail and then fell out the back of the truck.

A few days later, our tool designer came over to me and asked me if I knew anyone that would be willing to work on an Olds diesel. I asked Leo what happened? He told me he changed his oil over the weekend and on Monday, the engine seized and he and found the filter was gone.
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He drove the car from Salinas to Hollister and the filter held on until the trip home.
 
The only explanation I can think of is the threads let go and the oil filter blew off at once. Either because the filter was the wrong part or was just cheap and defective baseplate. I wonder what brand the oil filter was. Was it a Fram
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?
 
Most likely 1) wrong filter barely hangin on; 2) Drinking (alot) and drove over curb and cleaned it off. I know #2 because I did that mtself in the early eighties. The engine shut off immediatly though - it had a low oil ignition cutoff. 74 Vega GT 2.3L. Headers, Kal Kustom airfilter and Firestsone wide oval biasply.
 
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