First let me say: I don't believe removing the adapter and screwing the filter directly to the engine is to blame. It can work. Usually will, is my guess.

That said, I did it last week and there was a major problem. Car fire and stuck at a busy intersection in rush hour traffic, and a tow home.

I spent two days working on the XJ - fixed a radiator hose leak, changed the oil & filter and fixed the huge oil leak from the oil filter adapter, removed the crappy greyed trim from the sides of the car, replaced the broken antenna, and repainted (Krylon Fusion) the front & back bumper trim pieces that were faded.

Things looked good. No oil leak for two days! Everything going well!

I left work and was stopped at a red light when I noticed smoke in the rear view mirror. I jumped out of the car and saw smoke everywhere and oil just pouring / spraying out underneath the car, right onto the exhaust pipes. I shut it off and grabbed the large fire extinguisher I keep in the car, and just as some small flames started I put them out. (I think some cloth/fiber tape was wrapping an electrical component and was against the pipes - it became soaked in oil and lit, like a wick. That's my guess.)

There was a trail of oil for the last 150 yards down the road, I later saw. All my oil just dumping out.

I believe I have isolated the problem. When I pulled the oil filter adapter, there is an O-ring between the adapter and the engine. This O-ring fits into a groove on the adapter. It had become hard and brittle, and was stuck to the engine. I couldn't see it, but found it after all the problems when I took the filter back off.

So when I put the filter onto the engine, the old O-ring was still there on the engine. So the filter's rubber ring was butted up against the old adapter O-ring. It held temporarily, but then slipped out of place and began massively leaking.

So if you remove this adapter, be SURE to get that old O-ring off the engine!! It nearly ended in disaster for me.

Pics: my car stranded (notice the oil trail on the road), filter with built-in seal, filter with old adapter O-ring laid on top to show size, and old O-ring in the adapter's groove, where it should be.

 

Get rid of that FRAM filter if you like your engine.

 

Is...that...an...OCOD!?

 

Yes. As a test. It was the only filter I had read recommended for sure as an exact size & model, for when you remove the adapter. If it worked without an issue for a few days, I was going to replace it. I wanted a cheap one to try in the meantime.

 

Orange Can Of Death.

Sucks what happens man but why would you eliminate the OFA instead of fixing the leak? Pretty much stuck with the stock tiny filter and looks like a PITA to change.

 

Always check for stuck o-rings! Chunk the FRAM...

 

Got it, I edited it right after I posted. I had to Google though

I don't know what "OFA" means however, unless you mean 'orthopedic foundation of America', or something similar, which is what Google revealed.

At any rate, I doubt any of that pertains to the point of the thread.

The thread was about eliminating an unnecessary adapter and not noticing an O-ring (which I didn't know even existed) was still there in a place I couldn't see due to location.

 

Cruiser will agree: best use for a Fram




OFA= oil filter adapter

 

I've seen those oil filter cans, not a bad idea

 

I eliminated the OFA because it WAS the cause of the leak.

It isn't needed, and you aren't stuck with the new filter size any more than you were with the old. They both allow the same flow and pressure rates. Again though, that debate isn't relevant to the issue. The issue is that since many recommend doing this, I wanted to advise to check for the O-ring being stuck or there can be problems. No tutorial that I read for either fixing or replacing the adapter even mentioned the outer ring. They only mentioned the 3 internal rings.

 

OFA = Oil Filter Adapter.

It's not useless. You think it would be on there costing the manufacturer money if it didn't serve some purpose? Remember these are the same guys that spec electrical so bottom-dollar that well performing headlights melt most of the factory setup!

The OFA lets you do this without bashing your filter open against the uniframe if your motor mounts die:

 

Egg-zacky!

 

I hear you.

I guess what I'm trying to do is make sure people know to look for that ring, whether they are repairing OR replacing that adapter.

Either way, if you don't know to look for that ring (and no threads I read about it mentioned it) you could be in trouble if you don't get it out of there.

 

Oil change 101...ALWAYS look for old stuck o-rings on filters, adapters, etc....such a simple thing to do, but if you miss, can be catastrophic

 

Rarely, in the autmotive industry, are two pieces of metal in which oil is held inside or passed through ever joined without a gasket or o-ring.