Cheapest way to remove a stuck oil filter stud
Tight engine spaces prevent wrenches from fitting, making a socket-based solution the best cheap approach. Because specialized single-use tools are too expensive, some end up just leaving the old filter attached and filling the engine with new oil.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Using a bolt extractor socket setDid this help you?
- 2Using a thread chaserDid this help you?
- 3Using vice gripsDid this help you?
- 4Jamming two nuts together (double nut trick) to turn the stud outDid this help you?
- 5Using a pipe extractor or easy-out extractorDid this help you?
- 6Filling the engine with new oil and leaving the old filter in place until the next changeDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“The problem is I don't know what the best way to remove it is cheaply. There is barely any space to fit a wrench, so a socket solution would probably work best.”source ↗
“I don't really want to spend too much money on single use tools like this, so I'm asking what y'all think is the cheapest way to remove it”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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