How to spend 2.5 hours doing an oil change

1 - remove oil filter and not notice that the sealing gasket isn't attached to the oil filter 

2 - proceed with regular oil change procedure and start car

3 - wonder wtf that odd noise is and immediately shut it down 

4 - clean up the oil spill under the car and in the engine bay

sigh...

guess I'll be adding k&n oil filters to my E36 M3 list

Once I fumbled the oil cap in our Trailblazer starting an oil change and it fell and I was convinced into the frame or where?  Two hours later I had spun it into the fan blade wheel and it was in a blade I couldn't see.  Man was I mad....

That is not a K&N problem. That is operator error. Checking that the gasket from the old oil filter is not stuck to the sealing surface is something you have to look for.  I have seen it happen many times helping at my friends shop.   There is not a particular filter brand that is worse than another.  

dean1484 said:

That is not a K&N problem. That is operator error. Checking that the gasket from the old oil filter is not stuck to the sealing surface is something you have to look for.  I have seen it happen many times helping at my friends shop.   There is not a particular filter brand that is worse than another.  

Pffft... I don't make mistakes. :)

While you are probably correct, I'm still adding it to my E36 M3list 

How to spend 2.5 hours doing an oil change? Have me do it. 

dean1484 said:

That is not a K&N problem. That is operator error. Checking that the gasket from the old oil filter is not stuck to the sealing surface is something you have to look for.  I have seen it happen many times helping at my friends shop.   There is not a particular filter brand that is worse than another.  

This. They are a decent quality filter and this happens to all filters if the operator is t doing his job correctly. 

At least you didn't drive off and three miles later have the oil spraying on the hot exhaust causing a fire. 

This is usually how I end up doing a 2.5hr oil change.

I've got a similar story.  Changed the oil on my '04 MINI on Sunday late afternoon.  Drove to work on Monday.  Went to lunch with a buddy of mine and did not drive "gently".  Pulled back into the parking lot at work, into the same space.  As I was pulling up, I noticed a HUGE puddle of oil where I had just left.  Oooops.... 

Wife had to come to the office at the end of the day with a new filter, filter wrench, oil and kitty litter.  Turns out when I put the filter canister back on, the o-ring was in the wrong groove.  Got it changed and filled.  That was at about 20k miles on the car.  When I sold it at 77k, it wasn't burning a drop of oil.  Decided from then on to use synthetic oil in everything I could.

-Rob

When I was working at the dealer it was once a week someone left a old gasket. 

A mistake I have made once and it scared me into checking every time. At 17yo I did an oil change in my Comet at my friend's house(his dad has a lift). After the oil change I pulled the car off the lift and he started yelling for me to stop. I dropped 4qts in a stripe up his driveway. His dad was not happy and I did some Simple Greening.

Don't feel bad.

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm/today-was-oil-change-day/176067/page1/

Robbie (Forum Supporter) said:

Don't feel bad.

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm/today-was-oil-change-day/176067/page1/

 

I suspect that if I had done more oil changes yesterday, I'd have a similar story. Just one of those days... :)

buzzboy said:

A mistake I have made once and it scared me into checking every time. At 17yo I did an oil change in my Comet at my friend's house(his dad has a lift). After the oil change I pulled the car off the lift and he started yelling for me to stop. I dropped 4qts in a stripe up his driveway. His dad was not happy and I did some Simple Greening.

I did this same thing with one of the old D15 Hondas I used to own. Because of the filter placement(nearly out of sight on the back of the motor) I would use a plastic grocery bag as a "glove" to unscrew the last few threads, after which it would fall into the bag and usually keep my hands and garage floor clean. Buttoned it up and backed it out of the driveway only to hear this wild GULPgulpGULPgulp sound shortly before noticing the glistening 10w30 stripe from my garage down the length of my pristine white concrete driveway.

Little situations like that serve very well to keep one's wrenching ego in balance, that's for sure.

 

It happens...at least you realized it quickly before any damage was done.  Hopefully a few beverages made the cleanup a bit better!

Region_Rat said:

It happens...at least you realized it quickly before any damage was done.  Hopefully a few beverages made the cleanup a bit better!

No.  Didn't help.  Apparently, I need another bag of kitty litter / oil absorber stuff.  And more beer.

At least the spill was in the garage so it is out of sight.  I'd be really pissed if it happened in the driveway.  

Did it once, wondered what that long dark streak was as I backed down the driveway. Last time after driving my GMC pickup up on ramps and positioning the drain pan under the drain plug (on the side of the oil pan) and unscrewed it. The oil shot out the tiny drain hole, completely missed the pan and poured onto the side of the ramp and down the driveway until enough had poured out that it could collect in the pan.