First oil filter change on a recently purchased 98 Pathfinder XE 3.3L. What a mess. What's the trick to avoid the oil that pours out of the filter? Catch cup cause the catch rag didn't work? Oil all over everything underneath. On my back in the driveway. Got to be a better way. Just now thought of the catch cup - not much working room in there. Suggestions?
First oil filter change on a recently purchased 98 Pathfinder XE 3.3L. What a mess. What's the trick to avoid the oil that pours out of the filter? Catch cup cause the catch rag didn't work? Oil all over everything underneath. On my back in the driveway. Got to be a better way. Just now thought of the catch cup - not much working room in there. Suggestions?
I can't remember at the moment if those have a vertical filter, but if they do, punch a hole in the bottom of it. The oil will drain out of the filter before you take it off. If it stops draining, loosen the filter a bit and it'll drain some more out. It's a neat trick - I do it all the time. Prevents a lot of messes.
Yes it's a vertical filter with suspension and other asssorted parts directly below. Maybe a hole off center in the direction of greatest clearance would work. That and something to catch it in. Drain pan under the oil drain plug is too far away. Tapping a hole makes it necessary to change the filter, always shyed away from those solutions in case the filter would not budge with available tools. Next time I'll be better prepared.
Yes it's a vertical filter with suspension and other asssorted parts directly below. Maybe a hole off center in the direction of greatest clearance would work. That and something to catch it in. Drain pan under the oil drain plug is too far away. Tapping a hole makes it necessary to change the filter, always shyed away from those solutions in case the filter would not budge with available tools. Next time I'll be better prepared.
Ahh, true. It's good to have a good set of filter pliers when you do that, though. But yes, punching a hole works very well for me. I bought me a set of punches and chisels, mainly because we see a lot of F-250 diesels. The filters on them are vertical, and HUGE. When they get covered in oil, they easily slip through my hands, and since it's full of oil, it makes a huge mess. Hah.
Anyway, try that next time. It makes life easier, and that's what it's all about.
First oil filter change on a recently purchased 98 Pathfinder XE 3.3L. What a mess. What's the trick to avoid the oil that pours out of the filter? Catch cup cause the catch rag didn't work? Oil all over everything underneath. On my back in the driveway. Got to be a better way. Just now thought of the catch cup - not much working room in there. Suggestions?
I've never used one, but what about a remote filter kit.
My dealership has said that would void the warranty, but if I pressed the issue, I'm thinking that might not be a supportable claim. I'm just coming up on the first oil change, which is free, so I guess I've got another few months before I have to deal with the problem. I think my 2.4L will be just as bad to deal with. I've never understood why the manufacturers set it up like that
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Jerry
2004 Frontier, King Cab, XE, 4x1, 4-cyl, 5-spd
I also maintain a Subaru and Chrysler, both with verticle filters. Nothing is directly below either and my drain pan fits under the filter and drain plug at the same time on both. Not so the Pathy. Took a look after the first reply, not a lot of room to direct the stream of oil from holing the filter. Challenges make life interesting. Perhaps threading a small spigot into the filter? I've got 3k miles to come up with a plan.
Now that you've all got me thinking about the mess my Z24I and VG30E made when taking out the filter, a hole in the filter would be a good idea. How about a funnel specifically used for transmissions under the about to be punctured filter? They have a long hose attached to it and it could be easily pointed towards the used oil pan. If not suitable, a rounded funnel probably would have to be used with tubing strapped to the short spout.
I'm glad my 5.7L doesn't have that problem in my Jeep, only a few drops.
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98 Pathfinder - Messy Oil Filter Change
What's the trick to avoid the oil that pours out of the filter? Catch cup cause the catch rag didn't work? Oil all over everything underneath. On my back in the driveway. Got to be a better way. Just now thought of the catch cup - not much working room in there. Suggestions?
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