OK, so I thought I would be a nice son and clean my mom's 1997 Toyota Avalon and change the oil. So I drain the oil, and then I run into the worst designed oil filter placement in the world. Far worse than the B14. I try to take it off with one of those filter tools, but it doesn't budge. I get desperate, and start trying to cut it open to get some leverage on it or something, and this is what I've ended up with.
Sorry, I would've taken a few more pictures but the camera just ran out of batteries.
If you've got any idea of what to do, then HELP.
Also, which way do you turn to loosen the filter?
Thanks.
Lefty loosey, rightey tightey. Hard to say. I don't know how much room you have to work with. Get some vice grips and grab the lip of the filter. Get a hammer and hit the vice grips. Hmmm...get some thick leather gloves, grab that bad boy and twist like hell. The sharp edges will dig into your gloves and give you some grip(as well as keep you from busting your knuckles if it comes loose).
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Don't you SAS me boy.
Please wheel responsibly.
Damn that bad boy sure doesnt want to come off. Who ever did the oil change last time should get hell. They prob tightened it up too tight and used a tool and never put oil on the oil filter seal. Follow TcmaBoy's advice. The worst filter placement that i have seen is on the Caddilacs. They have them upside down so when ever you take it off oil will spil all over the engine.
Also, which way do you turn to loosen the filter?
Thanks.
You gotta be kidding???!!!!!!!!!! That's probably your problem, you are tightening it when you think you are loosening it.
Lefty-loosey, righty-tighty.
When under a car use this. I do quite often. Use the 'right hand rule'. Using you right hand, the thumb will point the direction you want the nut to go, your fingers will point in the direction to turn.
I'm sorry but that's probably the stupidest thing I ever heard on a "car" site.
You gotta be kidding???!!!!!!!!!! That's probably your problem, you are tightening it when you think you are loosening it.
Lefty-loosey, righty-tighty.
When under a car use this. I do quite often. Use the 'right hand rule'. Using you right hand, the thumb will point the direction you want the nut to go, your fingers will point in the direction to turn.
I'm sorry but that's probably the stupidest thing I ever heard on a "car" site.
I KNOW. I was definately thinking lefty-loosy righty-tighty and then my dad told me "the oil filter is the bolt that goes onto the nut" in a sense, which is true if you think about it. He then told me that because of this, it's backwards. I visualized it, demonstrated it with a regular nut and bolt, to show that it's the same both ways. He's still unsure. I am a n00b. This question may go down in history for stupidity. But uh... don't pin it on me please.
I tried in vain with those circular wrenches for a long time. I'm gonna go look for one of those cap-type filter wrenches that use a socket wrench. With the limited space, that might do the trick. The vise-grips sound like a good idea too (gloves so far didn't cut it). Thanks guys.
I KNOW. I was definately thinking lefty-loosy righty-tighty and then my dad told me "the oil filter is the bolt that goes onto the nut" in a sense, which is true if you think about it. He then told me that because of this, it's backwards. I visualized it, demonstrated it with a regular nut and bolt, to show that it's the same both ways. He's still unsure. I am a n00b. This question may go down in history for stupidity. But uh... don't pin it on me please.
I tried in vain with those circular wrenches for a long time. I'm gonna go look for one of those cap-type filter wrenches that use a socket wrench. With the limited space, that might do the trick. The vise-grips sound like a good idea too (gloves so far didn't cut it). Thanks guys.
It just like openning a jar, replacing light bulb, removing a gas cap, and 99% of the stuff in this world.
Worst case scenario, remove the exhaust manifold and you should have more room to play with it.
By the way, I've never thought that someone will complain about changing the filter on Toyota V6.
You should see the oil filter on the 3sgte on the my Celica.
Trust me, my wife's 1mzfe is 10 times easier.
I don't even have enough room to turn a ratchet, let alone using other fancy tools.
You are right. That's the filter. It takes a hell of a maneuver to get the oil filter wrench in that. Otherwise, alternator duct (both rubber and the metal one with heat wrap), dipstick, O2 sensor must come off first. And it'll take a special maneuver to get the alternator duct (one with heat wrap) out consider that there are 2 nuts on the bottom side.
One thing you also could have done was jam a long screwdriver through it (since you'd massacred it already, anyway ) That's an old hillbilly trick. Glad you got it off -- I saw that first picture before reading the story and was thinking, "oh jeez, did they drive like that?"
when I first saw the pic I thought it exploded :O I was like WOAH!
then I thought omg from good son to hated one since she couldn't drive her car until this was resolved lol
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all done. That cup-type filter wrench really did the trick. I think I might get a short, stubby wrench to make it easier though. Thanks guys.
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