Maybe somebody here can answer this, Everytime I replace my oil filter I fill the new filter with with fresh clean oil before installing it. My father inlaw says I am wasting my time and oil. He claims it makes no difference and I say it shortens the time for the new oil to start flowing through the engine even if its only a second its still one less second of dry engine cranking. Any thoughts?

 

How are you "wasting your oil"? You still have to put it in until it's full..and it doesn't use any more or less if you fill the filter first or not..total capacity of the system does not magically change and need more if you fill the filter..and as far as time.. uhhhhh...sure..what..30 seconds per change? 45 maybe? I can live with that.

Your doing right by your motor by filling it. Think about it.. oil from the pan comes up the pickup to the pump, from the pump it goes through the filter then into the galleys..if the filter is full, the pump has to move that much less to get flow into the galleys. Why not fill it and save what life you can? (Unless you have an old Rover..they lose the prime on the pump if you don't fill the filter and swap them fast...really fast..they cook in about a minute if that happens. On those, it's a requirement)

Anyway, in short, your father in law doesn't seem to have a real good grasp on how the oil system works, and you are right in your thoughts. The huge debate is how much it REALLY helps. I ain't willing to find out considering how easy it is to fill it.

 

tell your father-in-law to put his apron on and get back in the kitchen

 

I do the same.. everything I know says starting an engine with no oil pressure is bad.

 

One day on a cable reroute job where I was an inspector they were using a backhoe and at lunchtime the company mechanic came out and changed the oil in it and as we ate lunch I watched him and he filled the oil filter before installing it and I asked him what for and he responded,"so the oil will be picked up faster". Never thought of it before then, so I usually do it now. They had a whole fleet of construction eqpt,trucks,etc so I guess it made sense.

 

Yeah, but you talkin about a 5qt system VS a 5-10gal system.

 

I always put oil into the filter when I changed filters even though that was not in the service manual. It just made sense to me to have the filter saturated so the engine did not run for long without oil pressure.

 

if you have an oil pressure gauge and not an idiot light, next time you change oil experiment. fill the filter up and then start the engine. the gauge will probably take less than 5 sec to go to full pressure. next time don't fill the filter. i bet the gauge takes twice as long to reach pressure.

just have to do that experiment once to convince yourself to fill the filter up before you install it.

Rgds
Mike

 

In addition to filling the oil filter you can also (on the pre computer vehicles) disconnect the ignition wire to the distributor and crank the engine until you build oil pressure. This prevents firing without oil pressure. I tried it on a computerized car and got a check engine light. I don't remember where I read this tip

 

For some vehicles, disabling the ignition is required as part of the oil change to prelube before it fires. Limits damage to the bearings. It is documented everywhere in every type of use that prelubing the motor for normal startup significantly reduces engine wear. Keep doing it

 

I always fill the filter.. but i want some of his magic filters... I could win some money with that

 

I was always taught by my father and uncle to do the same thing. Even on motors where the filter goes on horizontally or angled like a 302, I still put what I can in there, just shy of it spilling out.