Achieving an oil change with no mess

[DW42]

My system for changing the oil filter on a 240 includes wrapping the engine mount with a small rag so the mount doesn't get soaked. I can usually get the job done with only a few drips on the ground. My wife's Toyota was designed so that it's really easy not to spill any oil at all. However... during today's Toyota oil and filter change I didn't notice that the old oil filter seal stayed on the car not on the filter. I put a new filter on. There was more resistance than usual when tightening the new one, but it seemed okay. I filled up the oil, started the engine, and oil literally sprayed out of the filter seal area. It hit the belt which distributed it widely. I was left standing in the middle of what looked like the Exxon Valdez disaster. The offending stray seal was easy to remove, and all is cleaned up and good now. There will be some residual dripping for a while. But it's amazing how the simplest of jobs can turn into a nightmare.

Of course, I'll be more careful and observant about the integrity of oil filter seals in future...

[loki_the_glt]

Originally Posted by DW42

My system for changing the oil filter on a 240 includes wrapping the engine mount with a small rag so the mount doesn't get soaked. I can usually get the job done with only a few drips on the ground. My wife's Toyota was designed so that it's really easy not to spill any oil at all. However... during today's Toyota oil and filter change I didn't notice that the old oil filter seal stayed on the car not on the filter. I put a new filter on. There was more resistance than usual when tightening the new one, but it seemed okay. I filled up the oil, started the engine, and oil literally sprayed out of the filter seal area. It hit the belt which distributed it widely. I was left standing in the middle of what looked like the Exxon Valdez disaster. The offending stray seal was easy to remove, and all is cleaned up and good now. There will be some residual dripping for a while. But it's amazing how the simplest of jobs can turn into a nightmare.

Of course, I'll be more careful and observant about the integrity of oil filter seals in future...

I should like to point out that my Exxon Valdez is a Volvo 940, not a Toyota, and it left its trail over several yards of Cheshire's finest(!) tarmac including a cycle lane.

[Clifford Pope]

I agree about the sense of wrapping a rag to protect the engine mount.

More difficult is pre-filling the new filter without making a mess. I think this is a good move, from the engine's point of view - an empty filter lets the engine run for seemingly ages with no oil pressure, so i always like to fill the filter first.

However, the design means it mostly runs out again before you can get it on.
My tips to minimise the mess are;

Good light, so that you can locate the threads quickly
Hold the canister level until as close as possible before tilting
Only half fill it, and then spin it fast. Centrifugal force spins most of it to the outside of the can and delays leakage.
Simply having pre-wetted the filter material lets it fill up faster.

I suppose you could disconnect the spark plugs, but it would still be turning over quickly.