Yes, OEM are 30mm socket I think - from memory - aftermarket/pattern parts could be anything.

28 minutes ago, Skrrrda said:

Any idea why the oil filter tightening size was different? Just different manufacturers specifications ?

 

Yeah,  the actual canister can vary between manufacturers, as wino says.

Edited 14 September, 20205 yr by TMB

1 hour ago, Skrrrda said:

Any idea why the oil filter tightening size was different? Just different manufacturers specifications ?

 

It's not for tightening, it's for loosening.

 

You should tighten a new filter using your hand otherwise it can be too tight and leak.

1 hour ago, sepulchrave said:

 

It's not for tightening, it's for loosening.

 

You should tighten a new filter using your hand otherwise it can be too tight and leak.

 

And if you wonder if that is tight enough? I've had to remove oil filters using tools even though i put them on hand tight myself a year prior. They kinda settle in overtime. My theory is that when you put oil on the new seal and install the filter. They slip on easy. When that oil "dries/burns in/heat cycles", is increases the friction required to loosen it significantly.

 

Dunno if anyone had a definitive answer to this phenomenon.

Edited 14 September, 20205 yr by Xsr

I just do them up to 20Nm like it says on the side of the filter (genuine ones anyhow). Never had any trouble undoing.

 

Saves guessing.

My hand-tight may be very different to the next guy's.

It isn't critical, the point is to tighten it enough to crush the seal but not so tight that you distort the tin can. Winos method is perfect if you already have a suitable torque wrench, my method is if you don't.

Incidentally I also fit new spark plugs using the hand tight plus a quarter turn method.

Cue massive heel drumming Aspergers tantrums amongst the non-ex-professionals!

Known as "calibrated" wrist. . Same reason that in certain industries( electrical installation e.g.) staff are issued with torque screwdrivers. No doubt in time ,the motor trade will be required to log calibrated tools used on work and the date of calibration on customers job sheets.

And on the topic of oil filter nut size - Outer canister on mine has ( from memory) a 36mm nut.

Edited 15 September, 20205 yr by VWD

When you torque things down repetatively you'll get a good feel for it. At some point you don't need the torque wrench anymore.

But when it comes to bolts that are under significant stress or cause catastrophic failure if they fail. I'll whoop out the torque wrench regardless.

Just for peace of mind and because its good practice.

But an oil filter is not one of those things. As long as you don't go caveman / ogre style on 'em you'll be fine. Its more difficult to under tighten them than it is to over tighten them.

I concur. Head bolts- I always get out the torque wrench. Even if it's a small percent out, it means that all bolts are equally tightened.

3 hours ago, Xsr said:

Its more difficult to under tighten them than it is to over tighten them.

Did you mean that to be the other way round?

Even with minimal effort they'll stay on. The rubber gasket makes for a great friction lock/fit that isn't prone to comming undone. When the oil between the gasket and mating surface dries up it'll even increase the amount of force required to make them come undone. Its easy to over tighten them as they slip on easy due to the oil on the gasket. But once that dries over time it requires more force to unscrew them. Even to the point it requires tools to undo them. When you use a tool to get them on. (Air ratchets especially) Chances are when you attempt to undo them a year later the seal is dry and you'll warp the entire filter trying to get them loose.

 

So in my opinion its easier to over tighten in this case than to under tighten. If that makes sense?

Yeah, it's the way you wrote it before, to my eyes makes it sound like you're saying people don't often overtighten them, which didn't seem right.

Makes sense. But that was not what i was trying to convey. Then again, English is not my native languages. Please forgive me for my occasional clumsy phrasing.

40 minutes ago, Xsr said:

Then again, English is not my native languages

Your English is so good I didn't realise.

A mate of mine used to tighten his oil filters with one of those chain type removers, until I educated him that he was massively overtightening them and that the tool was only designed for removal. Funny really

I remember the first oil filter i ever had to replace. I used one of those chain type removers and absolutely destroyed the canister as whoever put it on there must have gone absolutely berserk with an impact gun when installing it. I managed to remove it eventually by 'gently' tapping it with an air hammer on the rim while putting my entire weight on the chain tool trying to shock it loose. Luckily the threads were OK. And the shaft still straight. But i learned a valuable lesson that day. Don't ever over tighten an oil filter unless you hate the person that has to undo it. 

I've never heard of a canister oil filter being fitted with an impact/air gun. Crazy.

Edited 16 September, 20205 yr by TMB

I dont know for sure if that is how they had done it. But it was on there really tight. Also when i say canister i mean the metal screw on type. Not the filter cartridge type. Not quite sure what both are actually called.

2 hours ago, Xsr said:

Also when i say canister i mean the metal screw on type.

 

Yep.

Cheers to whoever told me to undo the oil can with a screwdriver and a hammer

At the end of the day all that matters is that it comes loose. Not how. Though the easy way with minimal chance of permanent damage is preferable. But if you have to call your local black magic witch doctor and sacrifice some goats to get it done... You gotta do what you gotta do.

5 hours ago, Skrrrda said:

Cheers to whoever told me to undo the oil can with a screwdriver and a hammer

 

I used to do that years ago before I had money to buy proper tools. Messy way to do it but it works

I have had oil filters spin loose on 2 occasions, both were hand tightened by myself to the usual torque.

 

The first was an XR3i and some 6 months after the oil change, I started the engine from cold and could hear a sloshing noise when I revved it up, (makes me feel old writing that as I dont do it with modern vehicles) I got out to investigate and found the whole of my new block paved drive covered in sump oil, I ran to the then local butchers and he gave me a packet of sawdust, I now make my own and always have it to hand. Never did work out what caused it unless it was a malicious act.

 

On my 1.8 Zetec engined Caterham there was a problem with the oil pressure relief valve (early production engine) and it would overpressure and the oil would blow past the O ring on the oil filter, I once flooded the whole starting grid at the Lydden Hill circuit, I was black flagged to the infield & the race start delayed, they use several bags of cement to soak it all up, rather embarrassing to say the least.

I forget what car it was on, but the only time I tried that I ended up just tearing the oil filter into two pieces as I turned the screwdriver, with the stuck end still stuck!

Can't remember how I resolved it either. 

10 hours ago, Skrrrda said:

Cheers to whoever told me to undo the oil can with a screwdriver and a hammer

My first method with the canister type is a bit of rag and a screwdriver. Loop the rag round filter  and tighten( as in Spanish windlass), then use screwdriver as a lever to loosen cartridge, levering screwdriver against the side of the canister to  increase pressure on canister. Seldom fails, but id it does, it's down to screwdriver though the metal.

But with Skoda ,there's not the fun as we got with the original Mini van. The car had ( from memory) a removable grill, making filter removal easy. But the van had a fixed grill. The sump plug was on the front of the engine, so raising the front meant that the sump did not drain fully. It was possible in my leaner days to drain the sump with the car on level ground, but there was no way to get the filter out with a container underneath. So it was undo the filter nut and holding the nut tight to the filter body ,manoeuvre the canister out underneath the bumper without getting hot oil on you wrist. I tried once to refit a filed filter to the car. Then gave up and fitted it empty to disable the ignition and turn the engine on the starter  in bursts till I'd got pressure. ( Pressure gauge worked wonders. Looked good on a Formica, wooden  dash with an ammeter on the other side of speedo. )

 

 

 

Edited 17 September, 20205 yr by VWD