help please

[iowcamper]

in middle of doing a service, oil change to go - have emptied oil but cannot for the life of me get the oil filter off - the last mechanic to change it must have used some sort of power tool to do it up !! oil filter removal tool that i have will not work either ! have tried chains belts and anything else you can think of - last resort is to pierce the filter with a screwdriver to leverage off - have done this twice in my life once no problems the other it toor through the metal and completely sheared the bottom of the filter off !! dotn want to do that again - has anyone removed the mann filters this way and are they tough enough not to tear to easily?? gotta do something quick as i parked on the only flat piece of my road which has double yellows!! obviosuly cant drive off to halfords to get a chain style removal tool as i have no oil in the van!!!!

[Snozzy]

You have a choice now, provided that you've not butchered it already - leave the filter on & shove in your new oil, eventually getting a decent removal tool in the near future. Or.....get your screwdriver out!

Maybe there's a garage down the road from you.....if you ask nicely he may lend you something suitable

[CovKid]

If its really stubborn and even a screwdriver fails (and there sure isn't a lot of room to move), you may have to 'gently' persuade it to undo with a lump hammer and cold chisel.

[meehaja]

Just a thought, but wash the thing with fairy liquid to degrease it, making sure you're getting a decent grip on it? Screw driver works well but use a really big one so it doesn't just rip big gashes in the side.

[charlie brown syndrome]

i would use the screwdriver on it, stay away from the base of the filter and apply pressure whilst youve got the chain/filter removal tool allying pressure aswell.
just be careful, theres not alot else you can do, but i wouldnt leave the filter on and refill with oil unless absolutley last resort but by the time you get to the last resort stage, it'll no longer be an option because the filter will have wopping great holes in it!
the mechanic who put it on probably didnt apply a bit of new oil to the seal when he put it on or its been on for so long its sealed itself too much

[iowcamper]

ok here goes nothing given up trying now so gonna go at it with a screwdriver and hope for the best i think

fingers well and truly crossed

[charlie brown syndrome]

i know this might sound daft but the thicker the screwdriver the better ive found,
let us know

[iowcamper]

all done screwdriver did the trick but had to hammer it through 3 times and turn before was loose enough to do by hand must have been hercules himself who put that one on !!!!
have today changed air filter, fuel filter, oil filter, oil and sparkplugs - engine seems a bit rough when idling now smooth when accelerating but not so smooth when idling - is it anything obvious i may have done ?? have checked tightness of spark plugs etc and checked oil levels - maybe just needs a good run ??

[kevtherev]

the roughness may be due to the mixture..it could have been altered with a sooty air cleaner.
or the tick over speed needs adjustment

did you check the plug type and gap were correct?

[iowcamper]

yeah checked the plugs were the right type they were the same as what they were replacing, the ones that came out had a light grey coating on the tip which referring to haynes says the mixture is right and the engine in good condition? haynes says 0.7 gap which is what i set all of mine at - the ones that came out seem to be more like 0.9 though ??? went with whats recommended but i wonder if thats the difference?

[iowcamper]

forgot to say i also changed the alternator belt but have treble checked that and have exactly 10mm play in the middle of the longest run which is exactly what haynes manual recommends

[Snozzy]

the roughness may be due to the mixture..it could have been altered with a sooty air cleaner.
or the tick over speed needs adjustment

What kevtherev is saying, is that the mixture could have been adjusted at some earlier time to compensate for a dirty filter etc (maybe by the MOT man to get the emissions down..) so may need resetting.

[iowcamper]

ah right i understand, how do i go about that then?? or is it strictly mechanic territory only??

[Snozzy]

Initially, I'd give a good run to get it nice & warm.....with that shiny new thick oil in there - as opposed to the diluted wee wee that came out - it may not be at it's optimum working temperature at the moment. Just double check that you have all your leads on tightly & haven't disturbed any vacuum pipes (listen for faint hisses).
Plenty of tips on here about setting your mixture so I'm not going into it here, however if you don't feel competent about it - leave well alone & get someone to do it/help you out. That's not a slur on you......it's just that you can fiddle & fiddle 'till it runs like a bag 'o nails - & then find out that it was something simple like a vacuum pipe dropped off! Then you gotta start all over trying to get it back like it was in the first place

[kevtherev]

you need a gas anyliser to reset mixture..