Cannot remove oil filter

It is their fault, I drive mine 2 hours to Prius meet ups and have no problems removing filter with $4.99 filter remover Other posts in another thread said after not going to dealer anymore, they we’re successfully able to remove filter consistently.

 

1/2” Snap On cordless impact driver will get that sucker loose...700 ft lbs of torque works wonders...

 

I suppose it'll either do that, or frag the plastic cap and/or the non-impact-rated cap socket.

-Chap

 

If you buy a forged filter socket they are almost indestructible. The cheap cast filter socket not so much.

 

The Honda automotive oil filter socket is compatible, very heavy gauge. I've had one for donkey's years.

 

do not know Grid. I put it on my self and it took a floor jack to back it off not that many weeks later.

 

How was the engine temp: fully warmed, cooled off, somewhere in between? I know the oil change rule-of-thumb is to drain the oil with warmed-up engine.

I'll be doing an oil and filter change in the next week or two, will stay cognizant of all this. One thing I can do without extra expenditure, is carefully measure the diameter at the bottom of the O-ring groove (with a caliper). It'd be nice to track down the "new" spec. for this.

With that info we could put to bed the recent speculation: is the oil filter housing soaking up oil, swelling, over the years. I'm sceptical, but who knows.

If anyone has a brand-new spare cap, and can do a measurement of the O-ring groove for comparison, that'd work as well.

For reference, part number for the cap: 15620-37010

 

Hey ML! Long time no type.

Before draining, I let engine run until it turns it self off. So operating temp.

Thing is, it was a bear getting it off last time so after oil change, I had tightened maybe 3/4 to one full turn past when it felt snug. I then backed it off about a quarter to half a turn. (Shade tree mechanic's torque spec.) Deliberately so it would come off easily.

Taking it off this time, it was considerably cooler outside. Oil should have been about same. Morning start, wait for ICE engine to run and then shut down, drain oil, loosen filter.

The floor jack actually lifted the engine. Not kidding and I got worried. Let it down, waited and then pumped it very slowly. It turned.

It was in no way over tightened when reinstalling. As a tech said to one of the posters in this thread. It is an issue.

Post Script & edit;

The cap socket tool from autozone is still firmly on the thing. snork.

Welp, saves space and I'll always know where it is.

(unless it falls off, snicker)

 

I wouldn't deem the engine fully warmed if you start it and wait for shut down. Not that it should make much difference, either hot or cold it should come off relatively easy. I invariably do the oil change on ours after coming back from a drive. I've been finding I need to use the wrench, all the way backing it out. It takes a bit of oomph to break it loose at the start.

@Georgina Rudkus is postulating that plastic housing absorbs oil, swells over time.

Have you heard of a conversion kit, to make it spin-on filter style. I have these part numbers:

Filter Housing p/n: 15609-0T060 ($75.43)
Filter Housing O-Ring p/n: 96723-24020 ($2.36) (2 req'd.)
Oil Filter Adapter p/n: 90904-04006 ($11.00)
Oil Filter p/n: 90915-YZZF2 ($3.75)

The prices above are from McGeorge Toyota, US online parts retailer.

Here's a link to where I found the above info:

The 2016+ Toyota 2zr Engine oil filter conversion - Armstrong Family Blog

 

This is what I did after my oil filter wouldn’t come off. Now my Prius takes spin-on filters.

 

Are those part numbers right then?

 

Awesome, ML! Thanks (again and as always) It got to the point of being a concern.

Might put the filter cap/ removal socket on the wall in the shop, LoL.

The thing is still hanging tuff! 2 dang funny.

 

I change the oil hot, and have no difficulty getting the cap off with a cheap stamped steel cap wrench. Not even my first time, after the dealer last changed the filter. I suspect one reason they're switching back to canister filters is the trouble caused by idiots (reportedly including some dealership employees) overtightening the plastic cap. Just in case, I bought a spare cap ($23 through Amazon).

 

Really odd thing. I had to replace brake pads so didn't (read forgot) warm the engine before last oil change. The thing spun off like nothing. LoL. Still has the cap socket tool firmly melted to it. If I ever have another car with this sorta deal, might just melt one on from the git-go.

The absolute only difference was that the oil was completely cool when I easily removed the filter canister this time. Gasket, same location.

Now if I could just get the head lite bulbs to last more than a few months!

 

I could write a hundred page book on awful incompetent "improvements" that were the opposite of that to gen 3 Prius... This particular oil filter cap wrench of yours would of failed on the current Gen3 nightmare in my driveway right now.

I'm up close to 200 ft. pounds of torque of force on breaker bar that made my better than yours junk tool slip... And maybe I'm overly cautious, but with the forces involved at this failure this close to the engine block is not something to make light of.

After visiting a 1/2 dozen auto parts stores, to make up for the failed tool I bought at one store, which on the back said it was good for Prius 2010-2012. Wish I saw that before I believed person at auto parts store's computer said this would work because it seems as though 2013 iteration is slightly narrower diameter? Is that true?

I returned tool because like yours I suspect it's 0.5mm wider than 64mm and slipped. Unlike yours it had notches at the base for extra force circumstances and those notches were dumbly flaired out by 1/8" wider and so they didn't catch and it slipped due to dumbass stealership overly-high torque levels.

Another auto parts store had exact same tool and on the back it said it was good for Prius 2002-2012?

Wth?

Tomorrow I'll buy near same tool but slightly different at nearby auto store that doesn't flair out and bend it in a little and hope it works.

It's so entirely unfiriating and truly humiliating to not even be able to do a basic oil change to a gen3 Prius due to the imbeciles at Toyota design changing things that not only didn't need to be changed but in the process normalized the unconscionable use of massively powerful high torque impact drivers into the oil filter change process.

I've replaced oil filters on Prius C that were no different than Gen2, I've even changed an oil filter on a 2017 Plugin Prius that was the exact same as Gen2... But a 2013 Prius... So offensive and incompetent!

Why make something simple into complicated that turns into a vector for poorly trained Toyota mechanics to further destroy the perfection of Gen2 Prius?

So incredibly pissed off right now!!!!

 

Yeah the third gen (and the first year or two of fourth gen) oil filter style was an unfortunate whoopsie, in hindsight. The O-ring on the barrel can jump it's groove, for starters. And if some gorilla puts it together with his impact on full tilt, good luck getting it off.

FWIW, since posting here I converted our 2010 to spin-on (info in my signature).

The Honda socket fits snug, they couldn't dial-in the fit any better, but as you say, when the oil filter's insanely over-torqued you pretty much have to destroy the thing to get it off.

 

It's not the fault of overtightening. Over time the glass filled Nylon PA-66 from which the housing is made, absorbs moisture from the air and expands. The cast aluminum equivalent has no such issue.

 

Mine never seems to show much resistance to turning, except during the few turns when the O ring is in contact. It always can be reinstalled in civilized fashion using the freshly-lubed new O ring that comes with the new filter element. For those reasons, I have always assumed the O ring is what swells.

 

If it wasn't someone else's vehicle with a deadline to finish by I'd be willing to simply wait to get the most heavy duty cap wrench I can find and buy a pneumatic impact driver and get my air compressor rebuilt... But at this point going to try to buy another one nearby and see if I can modify so slots grab securely and hope my breaker bar pressure doesn't break anything...

 

How much did you pay for your metal spin-on adapter? The folks website you bought that from is gone? Last time I researched it the adapter I saw was a plastic screw on type and cost over $180, which is nonsense.