How can an oil filter come loose after 3K miles?

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Wondering if anybody has any data from a reputable source that might help answer this question for me... Fighting with a dealer that changed the oil on a Jeep Patriot, and then about 3000 miles later the oil filter came loose, the oil was pumped out and the engine seized. (This was a different dealership that said that the loss of oil was due to the filter coming loose and the oil being evacuated - pumped out - quickly.)

I have heard some say that if it does not come loose right away, it won't because it gets tighter as it heats up. I have heard others say that if it was not tightened properly, it can come loose at any time.

There was no double-gasketing or any visible defect in the filter either.

In my thinking, the latter could be true - if the manufacturer calls for 10 ft-lb of torque on the filter and the person used 9, then changes in the air temperature when the vehicle sits idle could cause it to loosen.

Does anybody recall seeing an article in a magazine or trade journal that can shed some light on this subject? If the filter is put on properly and the filter is not defective, what else can cause it to come loose?

Thanks much for your time and input.
 
I doubt any dealership actually uses a torque wrench when installing an oil filter. Chances are is was not tightened enough when first installed. Or, maybe someone loosened it up on you ... got any enemies?

Never seen any tests or studies to say how much under tightening results in a filter backing off and puking oil like what happened to you.
 
Wow, thats a [censored], never had that happen. I tighten filters as tight as my bare hands can get them. Its tight enough that I need to use a filter wrench most of the time. I would think it would be hard to over-tighten with your bare hands.
 
Did it all pump out at once, or did it start leaving spots here and there?

Is there even a way to torque an oil filter? I just feel until it's tight.
 
I've had the unfortunate occurrance of this happening to me, however, the van (2008 Chevrolet Express, 4.3) displayed low oil pressure and I was able to shut-down the engine before any major damage was done. The shop that last changed the oil, 800 miles ago, denied any fault of course. We changed shops that our fleet vehicles are serviced at. They lost a large account for simply not owning up to the bad oil change.
 
Originally Posted By: Donald
I tighten filters as tight as my bare hands can get them. Its tight enough that I need to use a filter wrench most of the time. I would think it would be hard to over-tighten with your bare hands.


This.
 
Originally Posted By: Donald
Wow, thats a [censored], never had that happen. I tighten filters as tight as my bare hands can get them. Its tight enough that I need to use a filter wrench most of the time. I would think it would be hard to over-tighten with your bare hands.


Same here and usually have to use some sandpaper for better grip or a filter wrench to loosen the filter when doing another oil change.
 
Originally Posted By: Colt
Originally Posted By: Donald
Wow, thats a [censored], never had that happen. I tighten filters as tight as my bare hands can get them. Its tight enough that I need to use a filter wrench most of the time. I would think it would be hard to over-tighten with your bare hands.


Same here and usually have to use some sandpaper for better grip or a filter wrench to loosen the filter when doing another oil change.


Ditto.
 
I only tighten filters to 2/3 to 3/4 turn after the oiled up gasket makes first contact. Have never had one loosen up. They seem harder to remove that they were to put on.
 
I have changed filters on used vehicles new to me and the filters were so loose I could not believe they had not been leaking. At least I saw no indication of leaks. Maybe they would have leaked later if I had not changed them.

I also tighten as much as I can by hand and I have never had a problem in about 50 years of oil and filter changing on many types of vehicles.
 
The oil filter gasket must be oiled to get a good bite. I even oil the P1 filter gasket which I think is teflon coated.
 
Oil filters are like head bolts. If you don't use the proper lube they won't torque (tighten) up right. I would bet the previous oil changer just spun the oil filter on with no lubed gasket and it felt like it was tight, when it wasn't.
 
I had a double gasket oil filter years ago. As the oil pressure rises it forces oil out in bursts. Also had engines run out of oil because of major oil leaks before. Survived them. Its pretty obvious before the engine goes, doesn't just seize. You get the red oil light for a minute or so, then it becomes sluggish and you still have time to do something. But I could see today how people on the [censored] phone, or have the pounding rap cranked full blast can mask off the engines final death throes.

Whenever I hear the exact 3,000 mile oil change interval mentioned when discussing an oil related problem I raise the maintenance flag. Me guesses part of the story is missing...
 
Originally Posted By: Kool1
The oil filter gasket must be oiled to get a good bite. I even oil the P1 filter gasket which I think is teflon coated.


The Mazda OEM filters I bought have the gaskets pre-greased with what looks like white grease. There is plastic shrink wrap on the bottom plate. Very nice. I still run a little oil around it. Old habits die hard.
 
I can't answer the "how" but in my driving life, so far anyway, I've had only 1 oil filter come loose and it happened on my old Malibu which had the change done at the dealer's. I don't remember the mileage but it was probably a little over 3000 since the change and I got lucky in that it happened after several long road trips, including a 1000-mile round-trip to MN.

I was visiting Mom's and as I was getting ready to leave I saw some oil spots on the driveway. I pulled out the ramps and found the loose filter so I wound up doing a quickie-change before I left. The filter came off without me having to use a wrench.
 
Originally Posted By: oldhp
Oil filters are like head bolts. If you don't use the proper lube they won't torque (tighten) up right. I would bet the previous oil changer just spun the oil filter on with no lubed gasket and it felt like it was tight, when it wasn't.


^agree, most likely cause.
 
I've had one engine that would loosen the oil filter, that was a '99 Ford Ranger 3.0L V6. I had to use a filter wrench to tighten the oil filter on that Ford. It never did leak oil but if I just used my hand to tighten the filter, I could take it off with two fingers in less than 1000 miles. It's the only engine that did that in my 45 years of changing oil.
 
Originally Posted By: Tink

Fighting with a dealer that changed the oil on a Jeep Patriot, and then about 3000 miles later the oil filter came loose, the oil was pumped out and the engine seized.


Either it was installed improperly or they didn't get the filter tight. Unless....somebody loosened it as an act of vandalism. Got any enemies?
 
Thanks for all of the responses thus far.

No known enemies - the vehicle was parked in a lot with about 400 other cars at a college campus. Even if somebody intended to do harm, it would be hard to find the vehicle, and with the cut-out on the skid-plate for the filter, you can barely get your fingers around the filter anyway.

The oil appears to have pumped out rapidly as there was no "check engine" light or oil pressure light. My son who was driving drove a couple of miles and heard a strange noise in the engine (but no low-oil lights!) so he called me when he arrived, and I told him to park it in a safe place (lots of tow-away zones at a college) and call the local dealership in the morning. The safest place to park it was back in the large lot a couple of miles away, but it seized up on his way there - again, until the actual seize up, no trouble lights were on. The dealership said that this could be the case since it sat for a while before being driven again, enough oil would have run down the block into the oil pan to give it enough pressure to prevent the light from coming on. Why it did not come on during the first drive is a mystery.

It appears that this happening so long after the oil change is as infrequent as I thought as only one person had a situation with a loose filter long after the change.
 
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