I finally got the car on the road saturday after an oil change and some other random cleanup type stuff...well, I pulled out of the driveway yesterday and got a call from my mom a lil later saying I left a trail of oil for about 1/2 mile

I wasn't leaking anymore, so I figgered I was ok . Well, I added about a quart just now, started it up, and it did the same...it was leaking from somewhere above the oil filter. I took off the filter and the I guess "base" that it attaches to and seals against was kinda loose and wobbly. The threaded shaft that the filter screws on to was loose, I could tighten it a few turns just with my fingers.

I assume that if I tighten this back up, that should fix me up...but I have 2 questions:

1) is there a torque spec for that? I'd assume you torque it tighter than the filter itself, so taking off a filter doesn't unscrew that shaft (like it did for me ).

2) is there any kind of gasket or seal on the top part of that base that I should be worried about, or go ahead and just tighten things back up and hope it seals right?

hurry, my baby's sittin in the driveway drippin into a drain pan

 

grab a pic....

 

can't, no cam plus I have it back together. (got impatient after 3 minutes of waiting ) I ran it for a few minutes and it doesn't seem to be leaking, so apparently "tight but not too tight" was the proper torque setting . But still, if anyone reading this knows of anything I should look out for, or any other parts that mighta shifted cuz of things being loose there, lemme know...but for the moment I think (hope?) I'm in good shape...

 

i dont see how that would cause a leak when its not running though

maybe i'm thinking of something different?

 

It leaked when it was running. Apparently I started my car and it ran all over my driveway while I was sittin there for a minute playin with the radio and whatever, then left a trail all the way through my plan and out onto the highway. Everywhere I parked after that, I never left so much as a drop, which is weird...I guess the oil had to be at a certain level to leak the way it did and after about the first quart it quit leaking...who knows...

The threaded shaft that the filter screws onto was loose...on the other end, where it screws into whatever...the oil pump? dunno, I don't know the anatomy of that whole area too well...but basically the shaft goes through the whole black piece with the surface that the oil filter gasket seals against, then screws into something above there. The piece that it goes through was really loose because the shaft was loose, and the oil was actually leaking out between the oil pump or whatever's up there and that black piece.

at the moment things seem to be ok, but if anyone smarter than me knows of something I should look out for, lemme know...I won't be driving it til prolly friday, so the gurus can take yer time thinkin it over

 

the oil pump is your oil pan. if your oil pump leaks your in BIG trouble as your pressure would drop quiet a bit

 

yeah yeah, I said I didn't know what it was attached to at the other end...didn't think it was the oil pump but couldn't think of anything else...maybe it just screws into the block there, I dunno, shaddup

 

Its normal. Well, so to say. That thing has a habbit of comming loose from oil changes and driving and such. Tighten it, it'll be good for a while, eventually it will leak agian. Do it again. At one point, you might not be able to stop the leak. Then, get rid of the cooler and just run an oil filter. Happend to me too.

 

damn...that kinda sux. I wonder if there's a way to keep it from working loose...loctite? I'm guessin the part it screws into eventually got stripped?