Did an oil change over the weekend. Monday morning i start the car, start backing out down the driveway. Oil leaking out like a water hose! Oh my!

Turns out the o-ring on the filter housing broke. That's the first time this has happen to me.

Now i get to figure out how to clean oil off concrete

 

Yep it can creep out and split when you tighten it. Put a little oil on it before install. Other tricks.

" Another trick as feeling around the side so its even and the same gap , then tighten it on."

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...il-filter.html

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...r-numbers.html

Watch the drain plug also.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...very-time.html

 

Oh yes, after every oil change, while the car is still on the jacks or ramps, I fire it up and check around for any leaks. Good habit for sure.

 

I've had the O-rings break a couple of times, and I always pre-oil them. I always stock spare O-rings just in case, part number 11 42 7 562 249. Out Motoring, FCP Euro, and ECS Tuning sell them sell them, about $5 each.

 

thank you for the links sir.

i have a few drain plugs on the shelf just in case. Is this something that should be replaced proactively, or should i be looking out for a specific symptom?

 

good idea to keep a few extras on hand

 

Yep, welcome/

I just replace mine, it seems like the metal is soft and the integrated plug has a rubber gasket on it. I just change it.

Mike

 

Recommendation: Don't use oil on o-rings. Go to Lowe's or Home Depot, visit the plumbing department and buy a silicone-based lubricant made specifically for o-rings. Oil will degrade the rubber over time.

 

Don’t be ridiculous. It’s an oil seal. I’d guess maybe Viton, which has excellent resistance to petroleum products.

 

That O ring lives in motor oil. He got unlucky. It’s a good PSA - always check. The last oil filter gasket / O ring failure I had was in 1981…. What a mess. It stays with you.

 

People,
Stop with the "draining" of oil and start "extracting" the oil. Been doing this method for 20 years and I look forward to extracting the oil. No more jacking up the car, crawling underneath the car and wasting time. I can get the job totally done in 20 minutes! I have used this extractor for so many projects and I am always finding a new use for it. Warning: it takes 20 minutes to completely clean this unit after extraction, so to be honest, it's a 40 minute job including the my obsessive cleaning of the unit to make it perfectly clean. I even go as far as applying silicone grease to the o rings after each use; most folks won't go to that level of cleanliness but I enjoy maintaining things; like my 05 MINI S that has 152K. I got that longevity sine I "extract" the oil with a new filter every 2000 miles. ( I use only Royal Purple products ). Being I'm 68, this motor/car will outlast me.

 

It's called science.

 

 

Saying NOT to use oil to lubricate the oil filter O-ring is the most ridiculous thing I've heard in a while.

The factory procedure says to do just that:



Also, you "Should" be replacing that O-ring every time you remove the filter cap.

 

yes sir, i have one of these also. works surprisingly well!

 

for clarity, I should say, I thought you were talking about the oil filter housing drain plunger in your reply. I don't know why I thought that, you clearly wrote "drain plug".

I have a few of the plungers, are those something to replace proactively?

The drain plug stays in most oil changes these days. Do them from the top with extractor.

 

O-Rings and Crush Washers ... an inexpensive way of avoiding expensive leaks.

 

2¢ : Also helps to put a fair amount of oil on the inside of the oil filter housing unit. Sometimes oil on the o-ring isn't quite enough to help it slide safely into position because of all the rotations made on the filter cap to fully seat the darn thing. Spreading that extra bit of lube around in there, along with some on the o-ring, makes the job worry-free.

 

Yep i just replace it, its the only MINI with an integrated rubber seal.

 

yes sir. i did this when replacing it after the fail. I think i will do this from now on.