29 April 2015, 15:07
- The first thing you will need to do when you replace your oil filter is to drain your engine of oil. To do this you will need to lift the car off the floor using either jacks or ramps.
- Then you will need to turn on the engine to let the oil warm up. Leaving the engine running for 3 minutes or so will heat the oil enough for it to drain easily when you remove the plug. Letting the engine run also allows any pieces of dust or specks of dirt which have sunk to the bottom of the oil to come back up to the surface. This improves the chances of thoroughly cleaning the oil in your car, improving performance once the new oil is put in.
- Turn off the engine and remove the oil cap. Then, you will need to look for the oil pan. It will be a flat metal dish located close to the bottom of the engine (you will need to get underneath your car to be able to access it). There will be either a bolt or a plug on the bottom of it. Once you have located the oil pan, place the container you will use to catch the oil underneath it so that it doesn’t spill out all over the floor.
- Remove the plug. Be aware that the oil will start to flow out as soon as you do this! Once the oil stops coming out, then you will be able to move on to changing the filter.
- Firstly, you will need to locate the filter in your engine. The exact positioning of the filter will vary according to each different make and model of car, so you may need to refer to your owner’s manual in order to find out where it is. Take a look at the replacement filter you have bought if you need an idea of what you are looking for.
- Make sure that the pan you used to drain the oil is still in position; you will need this to catch any oil which is still trapped inside the oil filter itself. This will start to spill out as soon as you begin to unscrew the filter.
- Once you have found the filter you should unscrew it from its position. Twist the whole thing anti-clockwise and it should start to come loose. If you need to get a more solid grip, then using a rag can help.
- The rubber gasket ring, which helps to seal the oil filter against the car, should come off when you unscrew the filter. If it is left in position stuck to the car then it will cause problems when you come to fit the new filter. It will prevent it from creating a tight seal and will therefore start to leak which can cause all sorts of damage to the inside of the engine. If you find that the ring does get stuck to the car then you should use either your fingers or a pencil or a screwdriver to help you get some leverage to peel it off. If you need to avoid any oil spills when you remove the filter from its position in the car, you can use a plastic bag to prevent any oil from reaching the floor. Simply wrap the plastic bag around the whole filter and this will catch any trapped oil as you remove the filter.
- You will then need to prepare the new oil filter which you have purchased to replace the old one. Firstly, you should wipe some oil on the new gasket ring. Spreading just a fingertip’s worth of oil on the new gasket ring will lubricate it properly and will help to make sure that it creates a good seal against the car. Oiling the ring slightly will also make it easier for you to peel it off again the next time you replace your filter.
- You should also pour a small amount of oil into the filter itself before you install it in place. This will greatly reduce the time it takes for your car to reach the necessary oil pressure after you have re-filled the oil in the engine. If the filter fits into the car in a vertical position then you will find that you can almost fill the filter all the way to the top with oil before you put it back in place. If it sits at an angle then you may not be able to put in quite as much.
- Take care when screwing the new filter back into place so that you do not cross the threads as you are twisting it into position. The instructions on the box of your new filter should let you know exactly how tight you should screw it into place, so make sure that you read these before you install it. If the box doesn’t tell you, the general rule of thumb is to twist the filter until it or the gasket touches the car and then twist it a further quarter of a turn more.
- Then all that remains is to refill the oil in your car and to start the engine to make sure that the oil light goes off!
