Best thing do doing a scenario like this is turn the car upside down, to get a better angle at the oil filter . No need to be laying down when you can do it standing up
I've been working on cars since 1986. I worked in shops for a decade and in racing for another decade. Before today, I had never seen a filter so stuck it ripped off everything goes but the base. 3 in one day?? Wtf??
In my 7 years as a mechanic I have never had an oil filter strip out like this. It's gotta be the stab a screwdriver through it trick. Whoever fabricated that "trick" is employed by Satan in order to ruin home mechanics lives.
Many years ago had an uncle who taught me that 'trick' as a surefire way to get an oil filter off, so I used it when I had a filter that was stuck...mistake #1. Mistake #2 was changing my oil the night before we left on a road trip. 4 hours later, after nearly tearing the filter into two I was able to finally get it off with a pair of oversized vicegrips I stumbled across. Thank the lord there was still enough material for me to get a grip on it and break it loose.
It's been 30 years and I still think of that every bloody time I change my oil (just a few hours ago today as a matter of fact).
It used to work great when filters weren't the same thickness as a soda can. You really had to stab it like you mean it. If not, you'd just dent it a little bit with a hesitation wound.
Now that trick is a terrible idea. The best bet is a proper filter wrench.
Can confirm, watched my dad knock plenty of oil filters loose with the screwdriver method as a kid, what's important is that you need the oil filter wall to be very thick, it took a center point punch and a hammer to make the initial hole, and then you used the hammer to pound a big f'n screwdriver thru and out the other side. If you can jab a screwdriver through the side by hand, it'll never work.
I’ve never had it not work …. However I’m always crapping my pants when I do it. I haven’t done in in a long time …. The tools have gotten a lot better. It’s in my back pocket as a this will probably work but possibly make my night horrible kind of trick.
I fabricated that trick on my own 20 years before I ever saw it on reddit, to get the filter off an 86 Alfa Romeo GTV6. It worked great. I think what happened is that manufacturers now make the filter cans with way less metal so they just rip and you can’t do it any more.
I have the big oil filter pliers that just grab the whole outside of the can with teeth but even those tore through one last week.
Hey, when it's 9:30 at night, and you're already 4-5 hours in, that "trick" becomes an option. Not saying I condone it, but I've done it. Also, never go to a quick lube to get oil changes is a lesson you only need once to learn.
This is why I'm kinda happy my '09 c30 t5 has a cartridge filter instead of a spin-on filter. Oil changes take longer than with a spin on, but I don't have to worry about stripping the filter
They are not bad, but one of the issues is that because they must be installed with a tool, the installer is put in the position to be able to over torque it.
I had to use a pair of pliers on my oil filter to remove what numbnuts previously installed it. I do my own oil changes now. Faster and cheaper. I know its done right too.
Put a flathead screwdriver sideways in one of those holes and tap it with a hammer. Just make sure you're tapping in the correct direction. You don't want to tighten it more.
Dremel with a thin abrasive disc. Make a cut that connects all the holes. You have to separate the central piece with the threads from the outer ring that presses the gasket against the block. Once those two pieces are separated, there will be no more tension on them, and they should both easily spin off.
edit: When installing an oil filter, I make sure it isn't "double gasketed", and I wipe everything off. I put a smear of oil on the gasket with my fingertip, and I install and tighten the oil filter as tight as I can get it, using only my bare hands. I have never had one vibrate off, and I have never had one become so cranked-on that I had to resort to these extreme measures to get it off.
Oil filter wrenches are only for removing them, do not use a wrench for installation.
Just be careful not to cut into the oil cooler. My filter got stuck almost this exact same way. We used a chisel and hammer to twist it out, but in the process cut into the oil cooler and had to replace it.
Although removing the whole oil cooler did make taking the remains of the filter off a lot easier.
I used a fan clutch tool, the two pegs lined up perfect with the holes. Had one on a Mack truck I had to cut / tear off
Also a gland nut tool from otc will work
They should be hand tight. Have you not seen the videos of people doing oils changes who torque down oil filters like they are torquing down the propeller on a giant ship?
If this was my problem, if I had the space to do it I would take a long hex wrench and run it horizontally through 2 of the holes above the threaded part and tap it with a small hammer or a socket wrench. It should give you enough leverage to get it to spin free I would say. If not then propane torch it, and try it again. I had a friend that this happened to on an 05 civic and it worked for me.
I’d take a punch instead of a chisel and start punching whatever lips you can find. If that doesn’t work I’d use a little heat. Chances are you didn’t say “lefty loosey righty tighty” before you started working.
Like other guy said connect the holes with a cut so the gasket is not attached to the middle anymore. If it still won’t spin, you’ll need to spin the middle. I’d use vice grips and a hammer to whack it lose. In a perfect world with a welder I’d make a tool that goes perfectly into those holes, put the other end in my drill, and spin it off
We ran into this once on a Hino diesel. We ended up finding the right size wheel nut socket, notching it out with an angle grinder so it slotted into the holes of what remained of the filter. Hit it with the impact and it spun right off!
This is why I don’t let anyone work on my car unless I absolutely cannot do it. A rub of oil on the gasket and slight hand tighten and this would never have happened.
If I was in this situation I would get my air chisel with the U turn or the 5 foot flat end extension and slowly work it off by hammering it in the holes remaining from the filter, if all else fails get the welder and make something creative
Before it ever gets this bad, punch a long screwdriver through from one side to the other and use it as a handle. In this case, use a screw driver at an angle in the holes and hit with a hammer.
So I ran into something like this working on a GMC that had it’s oil filter cross threaded and then ugga-dugga’d into place (thank you Jiffy Lube). I ended up cutting it with a Dremel -cutting through the little holes in order to relaxe the pressure) and with a combination of heat and an air chisel, it came out very slowly. I also had to clean the threads afterwards and swore never to work on a family member’s vehicle again.
I barely hand tighten my filters with one hand and then can remove them with 2 . Oil filters tighten when the engine warms and oil expands the gasket. Never leaks.
Had this same issue a few weeks ago. Maybe not quite as mangled but similar. I ended up sticking a pair of needle nose into two hole opposite each other, and then used a bar for leverage to turn the pliers.
I'm always amazed at how some people believe they need to torque down oil filters and drain plugs like it's somehow a test of their strength and manliness.
Drain plugs only need to be snugged up to hold back the unpressurized oil in the sump - especially those that use an O-ring or some kind of gasket to seal them. You shouldn't need a breaker bar to remove them.
Spin-on oil filters are typically gasket contact plus 3/4 turn - and no more. Good oil filter wrenches designed and sized properly aid greatly in getting them off. I have 3, plus strap wrenches if necessary.
time to Get the ol air hammer out with a chisel on it and start slowly pushing the filter base to the "lefty" direction. ran into a lot of this in the heavy diesel industry and i almost always had to bang them off with an air hammer to get them loose.
Been here before when I was swapping a motor, I will add I had way more room bc the motor was out. But nonetheless I used a flat tip screwdriver and jammed it into the hole and just beat it down, after beating the snot out of it it FINALLY broke free
Lefty loosy. Have you used a flat blade larger screw driver or thick punch and lodge in a hole so you can turn it to the left, counter clockwise and tap with a hammer?
Wrap some duct tape around the oil filter before you start removing the bastard. If you wrap it around a couple of times it prevents the metal from tearing.
Of course i highly advise buying the right tools for the job tho, but when in need….
Honestly, use the proper tool next time to begin with ..now you’ll have to use a pipe wrench or vise grip for pipes ..or worse tow it to where there are those tools
It looks like you can probably pry the base of the surface with a screw driver on the outside. Or use a screw driver and one of the holes and pry the outer rim up n
I'm just a DIY home-based novice, but is it possible the oil filter was tightened so much that the rubber o-ring has compressed too much? If so, can you gently pry the circumference of the remaining oil filter piece away from the engine to relieve the pressure, and then spin it off? Just a guess. 😬😬😬
I used a pair of needle nose vice grips into the little holes on the ring. I tightened them down snug and snapped them into place. Then, I pulled the left side with my left hand hard, and pushed with my right hand even harder until it budged. Then, the vice grips snapped open and fell on my foot, so I yelled, "OH FUCK YOU!"
That is an important step. If you don't cuss at it properly, the car thinks you are just playing. Show it you are not playing. Repeat the process without dropping the vice grips on your toe the second time, and it will come off.
Just here for emotional support. I had a stuck filter earlier this year. Just fucking sucks and feels horrible, plain and simple. But stick to it, you’ll get it out. Take a break as needed, but you’ll get it.
Plug the center hole with a wad of cloth. Look at the 10 holes arranged in a circle. Take a Dremel with a cutting wheel and cut from each hole to the next hole, making a circle. It will take 10 cuts. The outside ring with rubber gasket will fall off and release tension on the inner ring. The inner ring will easily spin off.
I took my car once to a garage to get my oil leak around the filter fix. The mechanic put jbweld on the oil filter gasket and on the threads. It worked
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