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Discovered a trick for stuck oil filters that saved me hours last week
Had a 2015 Honda Civic come into my shop last Wednesday with an oil filter that was seized on tight. I tried all the usual wrenches and straps but nothing would budge it. Finally remembered an old trick from a guy I worked with 3 years ago: drive a long screwdriver straight through the filter body and use it as a lever. Came right off in about 30 seconds. Has anyone else found a weird hack that works better than the proper tools?
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kelly_west745mo ago
My old boss swore by the screwdriver trick and I always thought it was too crude, but after fighting a Toyota Camry filter for 45 minutes last month I finally caved and tried it. That thing twisted off like butter and I felt kind of silly for avoiding it for so long. Now I keep a long flathead in my oil change kit just for those stubborn cases.
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nancybailey3mo ago
Hang on though... once you punch that hole in the filter with the screwdriver, doesn't it make an absolute mess? I mean sure it gets the filter off but now you've got oil leaking out of that hole while you're trying to turn it, plus all the crap that might have been trapped in the filter element gets loose and goes straight into the oil pan... are you not worried about that?
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felixlee5mo ago
My buddy Dave had a Subaru Outback that he swore was cursed because every oil change took him an hour just on the filter. He tried every wrench and strap from Harbor Freight before finally stabbing it with a screwdriver out of pure frustration. After that one success he bought a whole set of cheap screwdrivers just for oil filters and calls them his "anger management tools.
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