I use a fully synthetic 15w40 which in the end is a very thick base oil. The filters do retain this oil much better than the 10w60 I was previously using. The mechanic were I made my last oil change is usually dealing with truck & snow groomer maintenance. The guy was expecting an horrible mess when we dropped the inverted filters. He new what he was talking about as he had a pile of regular Mann filters and knows how much oil can be retained in these. He just couldn't believe how little oil came out (and how clean I left his workspace...). Needless to say he asked me to puts tons of rags in the car just in case
Thanks for all the responses. To sum up, in order to change the oil filters I have to leave the engine off overnight (pr maybe for a few days), put some rags to cover the engine especially near the oil filters, unscrew the old filters, try to put some oil in the new filters and on the o-rings and screw the filters on. Am I correct? How tight should the new filters be? Thank you again Mic Del Garda
Best practice is to drain the engine hot. Drive the car until warm / hot, unscrew the filler cap and then drain the oil (be aware that the engine takes approx 18l of oil, so you need a very big pan!). While the oil is draining you can unscrew the oil filters. Use a rag, but it doesn't make that much of a mess. I wouldn't bother pre-filling the new filters, but do oil the rubber gasket. The filters need to be hand tight. Cheers Esben
Thank you Esben, the oil in my car has just been changed so I only need to change the filters. I will use some rags and hand tight the oil filters as you said.
Run the car so that the engine head is fully oiled, but do not run it too much ( if the oil is hot, the filter will be painfull to remove). Stop engine. Place some rags in the valley, remove filters, install new filters, cranck the engine while it is still full of oil. Stop engine. Check level. Add oil to compensate for the filter loss. Done.
Removing the filters is easy since they have a drain back valve and so all you need to do to remove is unscrew using a filter wrench and flip up as soon as you clear the thread. To install, you should just make the filters hand tight. Like a filter on any other car, spread a little oil on the rubber gasket before installing the filter. I never experienced any kind of prolonged return of oil pressure upon startup after an oil change. I did pre-fill the new filters with maybe a half a quart of oil each before installing them. A quick flip into position and start to tighten and you will lose a very small amount of oil. No question those two filters on top might look intimidating and cause you to think that oil will spill everywhere but the reality is not bad at all. Welcome to 400i ownership!
