Stuck oil filter...

I don't just hand tighten the filter, I hand tighten it with one hand as tight as I possibly have the strength for.
Then at the next OCI, I use the cup style filter remover to get it off and it removes easily. However, I can never remove the filter by hand no matter how much protein I've eaten. 😅
Protein?! not according to Popeye! Get the spinach man!
 
That's a great idea. No leaks out of the screw holes?
Full disclosure: I was in no hurry and I had no desire to get soaked in oil. I drilled a 1/8" hole in the bottom of the filter and let it drain overnight. I had pilot holes in the cap wrench, but I wanted the sheet metal screws to "bite" into the can, so I just used a hex bit on a battery operated drill and ran the self drilling screws in until tight. As can be seen by the picture, not much oil came out of the screw holes. I had the talon sitting nearby and I was ready to get destructive but didn't need to, obviously, once you have ONE hole in the filter there is no turning back.
 
Some years ago I drove a long screwdriver through a stuck-on oil filter for better leverage. It worked - the filter did come off, but I was obviously desperate. There was no turning back at that point.
Honestly, I thought of doing this AFTER drilling a "relief hole" in the bottom of the filter just to let most of the oil drain; but knowing the filter was already stuck on pretty tight and having watched a few Youtubers mostly destroy the filter can with a screwdriver or crush it with pliers, I figured six sheet metal screws could apply more "engagement" than one screwdriver or set of pliers; and I was playing because I already had the "talon oil filter" removal tool sitting there. I also have a grinder and access to welding machines....That filter WAS coming off, it was only a question of how drastic the surgery was going to be. Additionally, I posted a couple videos because I thought those guys also had good ideas but their filters were DESTROYED.
 
The Talon is a great tool, though not an easy button. I managed to cross thread a filter on my daughters New Beetle and needed a Talon to get what remained off after I ripped the van off with the screw driver poked through. I had never been so mad working on a car before.

Longer bolts installed in the Talon was the ticket to my success.
 
Why not just pound a large screw driver through it and use the screwdriver as a pry bar? That’s the fastest and easiest way to remove a stuck filter.
 
Why not just pound a large screw driver through it and use the screwdriver as a pry bar? That’s the fastest and easiest way to remove a stuck filter.

You have to be careful with this method because the screwdriver may rip though the flimsy housing, if the filter is really tight, and then you end up with nothing to grab onto with any sort of structural integrity.
 
You have to be careful with this method because the screwdriver may rip though the flimsy housing, if the filter is really tight, and then you end up with nothing to grab onto with any sort of structural integrity.
That was my fear the one time I had to do this. It tore a bit, but did come off.
 
My stubborn filter removal tools. Now that I only do filter removal on my own cars, I really don't have a need to get medieval on them.

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Ahh yep ^^^^^^^^^°^^^

That's the nuclear option there. My friend had to use that to get the oil filter off their Nissan that couldn't get off. Even with a Lisle oil filter tool.
 
All motor oil contains additives to control the condition (soften and swell) of gaskets, high milage motor oil usually has a bit more.

So after you put the filter on, the hot oil and heat cycles swell the gasket making it tighter. This is why they are all too tight to remove by hand when put on by hand. It is not a huge effect, but even a 1% swell will have a significant effect on a gasket that big and thick.

Rod
 
Honestly, I thought of doing this AFTER drilling a "relief hole" in the bottom of the filter just to let most of the oil drain; but knowing the filter was already stuck on pretty tight and having watched a few Youtubers mostly destroy the filter can with a screwdriver or crush it with pliers, I figured six sheet metal screws could apply more "engagement" than one screwdriver or set of pliers; and I was playing because I already had the "talon oil filter" removal tool sitting there. I also have a grinder and access to welding machines....That filter WAS coming off, it was only a question of how drastic the surgery was going to be. Additionally, I posted a couple videos because I thought those guys also had good ideas but their filters were DESTROYED.
A good strap wrench with a short pipe on the end can usually "break" a filter loose unless Mr BIg Foot installed it. ;)
 
A good strap wrench with a short pipe on the end can usually "break" a filter loose unless Mr BIg Foot installed it. ;)
Or like my son told me when he worked in one of those speedy lubes. One of the pit workers she used a filter wrench to tighten the filter on. My son asked what the heck? Her response was it wouldn’t leak or vibrate off. His response was and it won’t come off when you need it to either.
 
Or like my son told me when he worked in one of those speedy lubes. One of the pit workers she used a filter wrench to tighten the filter on. My son asked what the heck? Her response was it wouldn’t leak or vibrate off. His response was and it won’t come off when you need it to either.
yeah.... lots of folks do not realize. Simple HUMAN being strength tight with out wrench is tight enough and per most instructions. LoL
 
I had this nightmare....long story short is my wife's low side AC port is near the oil filter. Her car has the long PF63 equivalent filter. It's too long, it blocks the port. I suspect it was designed when they were using PF48s. So I took off the long filter, installed the AC hose, then put the filter back, BY HAND. Now, I could not remove it. Not only was it too hot to touch, but there was zero access by an end cap nor a strap wrench. Because the port was making light contact with the filter. The hose and its fitting had to come off, but in the interim, I had mangled the filter and was this far away from driving a screwdriver through it, which would have likely ended up with a tow to a garage...I have since bought some PF48 short filters for if I ever need to do this again. A filter has to be on because the engine has to be running when charging the system...
 
Here's a little old school 1970's mechanic trick with ole' strap wrench...take a piece of coarse sandpaper and fold it so the rough side is facing out on both sides, slip it between the strap and the filter, and FEEL THE TRACTION!
Thought of this one day while laying under my parent's 1972 Chevrolet Impala doing an oil change....must of have been close to 50 years ago....but a good trick....
I don't use strap wrenches on our cars anymore, I use cap wrenches but, that same strap wrench, is used to remove the big water separating fuel filter on my 1988 Chevrolet 4.3 V6 marine engine.....it's about the size of a large oil filter...
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Here's a little old school 1970's mechanic trick with ole' strap wrench...take a piece of coarse sandpaper and fold it so the rough side is facing out on both sides, slip it between the strap and the filter, and FEEL THE TRACTION!
Thought of this one day while laying under my parent's 1972 Chevrolet Impala doing an oil change....must of have been close to 50 years ago....but a good trick....
I don't use strap wrenches on our cars anymore, I use cap wrenches but, that same strap wrench, is used to remove the big water separating fuel filter on my 1988 Chevrolet 4.3 V6 marine engine.....it's about the size of a large oil filter...View attachment 130721
Great tip thanks
 
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