cavman54

Just replaced the oil filter on my 2003 Cavalier LS. The handbook says that the oil filter cover should be Torqued to 25 Nm (?)......

Does anyone know how critical this is?....Any reported mishaps because of it not being torqued accurately ?

PsychoJJ

All Ive ever done is cranked it down a bit and called it good. Yet to have any problems. About the only thing I would ever listen to torque spec wise is wheels other then that meh.

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Einsfluger

meh? are u nuts.. all engine parts usually have a torque at which they should be tightened to.. do things the right way so they dont kick u in the ass later.

cavman54

Well....two very different opinions. Any Pros want to butt in here?

Ryan066

there is no torque...
its tighten untill it makes contact then 3/4 turn 1 full turn..

but the best way it just to tighten by hand to however tight you can put it... nothing will damage anything unless it is tightened with a strap or cup to like 30-50 ft lbs.

I am a pro when it comes to oil changes btw lol..
and always check to see if the old rubber seal is on the old filter.. some stick and causes a huge mess.

PsychoJJ: id never let you do a HG on any cars.

edit woa hold on .... this is an ecotec isn't it?
okay well its pretty much the same thing ... tighten it down with an 1"1/4 shallow socket and ratchet once it makes contact (gives a little resistance) then turn it about 1/4 -1/2 turns... so its snug... the way them covers work is it pretty much bottoms out and its done.
and make sure the filter is clipped into the cover.. then put 5 L into it

PsychoJJ

Meh, I have been turning wrenches since I was a kid and have yet to have any problems with any of my work. Spose its a good thing I always tighten the piss out of everything I do.

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Thor06

Use the torque specs, they are given for a reason. Overtightening can cause warpage or damage to the part and undertightening might allowed the part to rattle itself off. Heres an example of not torqueing bolts right that I encountered just this week: I was changing the oil pan on my friends Talon (see sig) on Tuesday/Wednesday. We got the oil pan off and took it to a shop where another friends mom works to get the tube and a half of silicone spread all over the oil pan. Once all that shit was off, a mechanic looked at the oil pan and saw where the metal around the bolt holes was pushed up. You know what caused it? Over torqueing. The warpage of the oil pan made it leak about 1 qt every 500 miles, so the retard who had it before us caked that silicone sealant shit all over the oil pan in an attempt to stop the leak. Heres another: on the same car, some genious decided to just impact the caliper mounting bolts. We had to use our torque wrench to get one of them off (~180ft lbs) and the other had to be heated and still barely came out. An oil filter isnt that big of a deal and besides, how the hell CAN you torque on an oil filter? If you are going to work on your car, do it right and torque all your shit down to spec, it could come and kick you in the ass later if you dont.

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Build on hold until I get a good paying job, either in school or once I get out. At that time a full tear down and complete rebuild should be in order.

The Purple People Eater will ride again... January 2011 can't come soon enough.

public

On an oil filter use the snug +1/4 to 1/2 turn mentioned above.

When you are new to this (mechanical work) it is a little more critical to use the torque wrench on everything. With experience you will be able to judge torque pretty accurately just by feel on most jobs(plugs, tire rotation, etc..) You will still need a torque wrench for critical stuff like rod bolts or head gasket jobs. Good Luck.

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Yes, I am retarded.

cavman54

The oil filter on this model is in top front of the engine. It is basically a paper filter that drops inside a mounted canister. Said canister has a plastic cover which DOES have torque specs written right on it. I guess all I really wanted to know was whether the Torque rating was there just to stop you damaging the the plastic cover - it IS rather soft plastic - or whether it was pressure related and therefore possibly more critical.
As it stands, i have basically hand tightened it and - touch wood - it has so far shown no signs of leakage....

But hey.....thanks for all the entertaining input, anyway!

deadBird

Just turn it as hard as you can by hand. Not a problem. Don't forget to put a tiny amount of oil on the gasket too before hand.