As a multi-Toyota vehicle owner who has performed over 100 oil changes across Toyotas with the cartridge style filter and nearly all of them with the "composite" or "POS plastic" filter housing, I have this to say -
Those of you who can't figure out how to properly use this style of filter to your advantage, to keep raging, hot oil from pouring down your arm when removing the filter, to make much less of a mess overall, I don't know what to say. Those of you who exclaim hate over this style of filter, the housing, etc., - I bet you also boast your intelligence here and elsewhere.
No, I didn't like it, either, when I first owned a Toyota with this. I hated it. But after 3-4 oil changes, I developed a plan that seems so simple and elementary, I don't want to change a vehicle with metal canister filters that require spinning them off while full of molten, hot oil and in the process, sling that hot oil in a 6-12" radius pattern everywhere.
Have I struggled at times to remove the plastic filter housing THAT I INSTALLED? Yep. Sure have. I mean struggled, but I didn't break anything or such. It just took a little more force than I expected.
I'll say this - I've learned to STOP tightening the housing when it stops. If you know, you know. I've also learned that through heat/cold cycles, whatever... the housing tightens itself even more. I know this, I expect it. The O-ring swells. This contributes.
What's my magical process? This-
Gather my tools (3/8" ratchet, 6" extension, 14mm socket, filter wrench, pick), 3 gallon bucket (there's 2 gallons in my 5.7L engines), oil filter box with filter, drain fitting and two o-rings, crush washer and handful of paper towels.
First thing I do is take the filler cap off and pull the dipstick. Then crawl under and break the drain bolt loose, nothing more. Just break it. Next thing is break the button loose on the bottom of the filter, then the filter housing loose and then do about 3-4 full turns. This lets some air into the housing. Then I remove the button on the bottom. There's a teaspoon of oil there. Then I put my bucket under the filter, push the drain fitting up into the filter and let it drain. So far I have little to zero oil all over me.
Meanwhile, I'm breaking wrapper off the o-rings and getting the filter out of the box. Filter is almost done draining, I take a piece of paper towel, grab the drain fitting, pull it out, soak up some oil and put it in the filter box. Then I spin the filter housing off, take the filter out, wrap a paper towel around it and shove it in the empty filter box. Take a paper towel and wipe/clean the filter area. Take the pick, remove the o-rings, put new o-rings on, wipe some oil on them, put the new filter in and re-install the filter housing. So far, little to no oil all over me, my hands, my arms.
Next I position the bucket about a foot forward of the drain plug, hand loosen the plug a couple of turns, take the pick and loosen the crush washer and then finish taking the plug out. At this point, I'll crawl out and start cleaning up, getting the two 5-quart jugs ready. Many times I'll remember to tear the cartridge filter apart while I still have 'dirty' gloves on and look for wear in the pleats. LOOK - you can easily look in your filter media for debris/damage/warning signs with these types of filters!!!
Crawl back under after however long, clean the drain hole area, new crush washer, tighten drain plug goodentight, make sure filter housing is tight, crawl out. Fill'er up, crank'er up, back off ramps and clean up.
Oh yeah - if you bought that POS Doorman filter housing, that's a big mistake. Just saying. There's plenty of info out there about that.
