My oil fell out this morning

[finkbuilt]

On my way to work, i lost pressure. I was about a block from work, so I continued on into the parking garage.

I can't exactly tell where the oil is coming from (too much damned efi crap in the way) , but it s seems to be the wettest right around the base of the oil dip stick. I have the rubber-hose attached style of dipstick. It is slightly loose, I can pull it in and out a bit, but it doesnt seem like a problem here would cause a massive oil loss. Nothing registers on the dip stick, and it looks like it was a pretty rapid loss. Oil filter housing seems OK, oil filter seal seems OK, drain plug OK.

would I lose a ton of oil from a fractured dipstick base tube?

I'll probably just fill it up, get it out of the garage and have it towed.

[TobyB]

Look carefully at the seal around your oil filter.

I'll bet that it's popped out or herniated a bit, and sprayed

all your oil out that way. You can unscrew it, push it back into its

channel securely, snug it back on, oil up and be on your messy way.

Now that oil pumps are headed down the unobtanium path,

I suspect this will be an increasingly common problem.

First guess,

t

[Guest Anonymous]

oil pump pressure relief sticking and allowing the filter to fail and blow the oil out through the base o-ring.

shermanmartinez@hotmail.com

[TEAEYE]

oil pump pressure relief sticking and allowing the filter to fail and blow the oil out through the base o-ring.

shermanmartinez@hotmail.com

That was my first thought when I saw the question earlier, it happened years ago with an beat up 1600 I had.

The 1600 had the old cannister filter and more or less did the same thing.

When mine exploded it happened at start-up and not while already driving the car though.

I just waited till a warmer day, cleaned up the mess with new gasket and never happened again in 2ish years that I had it on the road.

The piston you speak of if I remember is in the filter mount in both cases of filters and not in the block.

Like I said Temp be damned it never happened to me again but I remember there being an updated part available to replace the valve, man it's years ago but I think they found not the piston itself but the outer sleeve or body would sorta shrink and lock up the piston.

My concern is that his doesn't seem to have happened on start-up.

[finkbuilt]

Man, I wonder If I need to start going to a "winter" oil.

its in the 40's here today, not cold.

The filter seal is not hanging out or anything. But it is a WIX filter that I have not tried before (changed last week), maybe the gasket is thinner than spec or something.

I think that the pressure relieve valve that people are speaking of in in the oil pump.

[BillWilliams]

I would really suspect that filter, stay with the OEM ones.

[Swiftus]

Dan (Dutchie3719) had this happen to him the first morning that he started his *new* '02. I'd take the filter off, make sure that the seal is in good condition put it back on and snug it up real nice!

Then when you start it, have another person with their head under the car, just in case that doesn't fix it. That way they can tell you to cut the engine before you do something bad!

[SteveJ]

Now that oil pumps are headed down the unobtanium path...

Have these gone to Stupid Pricing as well?

We'll have to start a database of 2002 parts that have NOT gone to Stupid Pricing.

[osbourne]

I would really suspect that filter, stay with the OEM ones.

While I agree with you about sticking with OEM stuff, whenever possible, WIX is a very well respected brand in the world of industrial applications. I wouldn't hesitate to use one, if OE wasn't available.

I wonder how long a drive it was to work, how long ago that filter was installed, etc. Seems like the most likely time for an oil filter gasket to blow out would be upon start-up. If it blew out then, oil pressure would be lost pretty rapidly. For it to blow out after warm-up would be pretty strange, I would think. Is there anywhere else on that engine that could fail and cause the oil to leave, rapidly?

[Guest Anonymous]

On my way to work, i lost pressure. I was about a block from work, so I continued on into the parking garage.

I can't exactly tell where the oil is coming from (too much damned efi crap in the way) , but it s seems to be the wettest right around the base of the oil dip stick. I have the rubber-hose attached style of dipstick. It is slightly loose, I can pull it in and out a bit, but it doesnt seem like a problem here would cause a massive oil loss. Nothing registers on the dip stick, and it looks like it was a pretty rapid loss. Oil filter housing seems OK, oil filter seal seems OK, drain plug OK.

would I lose a ton of oil from a fractured dipstick base tube?

I'll probably just fill it up, get it out of the garage and have it towed.

If its not the pump, filter, or filter gasket, I have another thought.

How are you routing your valve cover vent tube? If it is kinked, bent or plugged, that pressure has to vent somewhere and it can cause leakage from any gasketed surface including the valve cover AND the dipstick.

You sound like a candidate for the Shamwow. Its made in Germany and will absorb all the oil - so you can sop it up from the ground and wring it back into the engine! lol.

[TEAEYE]

Is the large piston with the big spring actually inside the oil pump known to seize or stick on very cold days?

I didn't mean to mislead anyone. I was talking about the safety valve inside the actual aluminum housing, in case of clogged filters. Which I always believed was the case with my 1600.

If the filter is clogged through neglect or poor material the small valve I was talking up bypasses the clogged filter and returns oil to the motor, but if there is a filter fault and that valve is stuck in an closed position you can have a real mess.

I'll try and look into it the best I can, but I thought they came up with a revised filter housing at some point.

[finkbuilt]

So, I put some oil in in and started it up and sure enough, it was gushing out of the oil filter seal. The filter was on tight. Maybe too tight?

I put on a new filter, oiled up again, and problem solved.

I still dont know why this happened. It happened when the car was well warmed up, not at startup. If it was the oil pump pressure relief valve, then it unstuck itself, because oil pressure is normal ( I have an oil pressure gauge ).

The filter was a WIX 51374 (rated burst pressure 325psi), and I have another one on the shelf that I am thinking of tossing in the garbage. However, everybody always talk WIX up as if they are a premium filter, I am kind of surprised. I used Fram PH3816 for years before I was "re-educated" against them, and have only been using Mahle or Mann since. But I never once had a problem with FRAM.

Just one of those things.

[Mike Self]

the oil pressure warning light switch has been known to suddenly fail, and if that happens at speed you can lose all your oil in a matter of minutes. That's a smart part to carry on trips as a spare...

mike

[Napes]

I buy a six-pack of Mahle oil filters at a time from La Jolla Independent. Last time they were $3.50 +/- each. Seems reasonable.

And I'm for nixing the idea of a list of parts that have NOT gone sky-high in price. That'd be just the thing our "friends" at BMW Classic need. Guess what would happen if they were to get their hands on that list.

Bob Napier

[TobyB]

If it was the oil pump pressure relief valve, then it unstuck itself,

Yup, that's what they do. And what can happen is that, right when you start it,

it extrudes the seal somewhat. Especially if you goose it to get it off high idle,

set the choke, etc.

Then as you drive, it leaks whenever oil pressure rises past a certain

point.

As to aftermarket filters, I've had 2 Wix pop their seals like this. Seems

sometimes the seal isn't pressed all the way into the channel, and tightening

pressure isn't enough to do it. If it's not all the way in, then there's room for it

to be squeezed out. But if you push it in solidly- you can do it with your

thumbs!- then it can't get free.

Bosch and Wix appear to be identical filters as of about 2 years ago.

And both my car and Jenns have sticking bypasses now-

mine has a freebie motor in it, but Jenn's oil pump was new 10 years ago.

You have to be careful when it's cold.

t