Stock Problems/Issues Discussions related to warranty related issues and repairs, or other problems with the OEM parts and software for MINI Cooper (R50), Cabrio (R52), and Cooper S (R53) MINIs.

Two oil change questions, grr....

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Sep 15, 2016 | 03:55 PM
  #1  
shipjumper's Avatar
shipjumper
Thread Starter
|
4th Gear
Joined: Aug 2012
Posts: 305
Likes: 1
From: graniteville, VT
Two oil change questions, grr....

Changed my oil today at lunch on a lift at the dealership I work at.

I opened the filter housing cap a bit before draining the oil. Put the drain plug back in, lowered it and unscrewed the oil cap.

Oil pukes all over the cooler and crossmember. I am used to this and stuff a rag below and inside the housing while I change the cartridge.

Anyone have a great trick on how to prevent this?

2nd question, it took every drop of the 5qt jug of lubrimoly 5w40.

Anyone else use exactly 5qts?

Thx!
 
Reply
Old Sep 16, 2016 | 12:15 PM
  #2  
sevin's Avatar
sevin
6th Gear
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 1,118
Likes: 25
From: North Carolina
No tricks. Maybe unscrew it slower and try to tilt the housing up as soon as you start freeing it.

You mean LiquiMoly? I put in the entire 5qt jug every time. It's technically a 4.5qt pan though.
 
Reply
Old Sep 17, 2016 | 04:52 PM
  #3  
ericfreeman's Avatar
ericfreeman
3rd Gear
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 170
Likes: 6
From: Bellingham, WA
If you loosen the filter canister just enough the allow the O-ring to be free, the vacuum will be released and most of the oil should drain out of the chamber. At least, that's what I do with minimal/no spillage.


Eric
 
Reply
Old Sep 17, 2016 | 11:31 PM
  #4  
Eric_Rowland's Avatar
Eric_Rowland
OVERDRIVE
20 Year Member
Liked
Loved
iTrader: (3)
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 13,382
Likes: 47
From: Santa Cruz, CA
What the other Eric said. Loosen but don't lift, let it drain while you pull the drain plug. No muss, no fuss.
 
Reply
Old Sep 18, 2016 | 01:30 PM
  #5  
Capt_bj's Avatar
Capt_bj
OVERDRIVE
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 7,037
Likes: 283
From: Melbourne, FL
I opened the filter housing cap a bit before draining the oil. Put the drain plug back in, lowered it and unscrewed the oil cap.

me thinks you make two minor errors ....

1. As mentioned earlier you probably are not loosening the can enuf to break the vac' ... loosen past the o-ring engaging but b4 the cap actually comes loose. If the o-ring is still making contact you probably still have a seal. I can tell by the 'feel' when the o-ring has come free ... it stops 'squeeking' when you turn the can. The idea is break the seal, and let it drain the filter ... AND

2. I always remove the oil fill cap during the drain ... again to prevent any sort of a vac' block from preventing a good flow out the bottom .....

you'll get better with practice! I did my first DIY GEN1 oil change in 2003 . . . . still do 'em for friends who don't have a garage ..... I still pack the area with rags just in case, but I can get away with just a few drops of spill now .... USUALLY

according to Haynes the capacity is 4.5 litres .... which is 4.75 quart .... (4.755096)

a quarter quart overfill is probably not going to hurt anything. I usually put in 4.25, do a quick run to get the filter full then top off as needed.
 

Last edited by Capt_bj; Sep 18, 2016 at 01:36 PM.
Reply
Old Sep 19, 2016 | 08:02 PM
  #6  
David.R53's Avatar
David.R53
5th Gear
10 Year Member
Liked
Loved
iTrader: (1)
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 735
Likes: 24
From: Maryland
It's not just vacuum holding the oil in the housing. The housing has a drain valve that opens as you unscrew the cap. Definitely unscrew as much as possible (but not too far, good luck finding the magic spot) and wait for it to drain. Also second opening the fill cap (and dipstick) to avoid retaining little pockets of oil.
 
Reply
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
jbourne
Stock Problems/Issues
19
Sep 12, 2016 12:17 PM
Oly
1st Gear
4
Aug 31, 2016 10:31 AM
sootyvrs
F55/F56 :: Hatch Talk (2014+)
7
Aug 26, 2016 05:35 AM
arunka007
General MINI Talk
1
Aug 21, 2016 12:28 PM
Sidewalker
JCW Garage
6
Aug 20, 2016 11:37 PM




All times are GMT -7. The time now is 06:53 AM.