MAHLE issues fitment advice for spin-on oil filter
Latest technical bulletin highlights problems with the installation of the OC 248 spin-on oil filter in minibus campers
MAHLE offers simple tip to help these issues
MAHLE Aftermarket has issued its latest technical bulletin to offer advice to technicians to help overcome any problems when installing the OC 248 spin-on oil filter in minibus campers.
When an additional oil cooler is installed in a minibus that has been converted into a camper, installing the OC 248 spin-on oil filter often becomes much more difficult. MAHLE offers technicians a simple tip that can help with any fitment issues.
The OC 248 spin-on oil filter is suitable for a wide range of vans with a variety of body variants from manufacturers such as Fiat, Opel, Renault, and Citroën. Generally, it can be easily replaced during an oil change to ensure that the engine oil is once again cleaned properly. In special cases, however, replacing the filter can be much more difficult.
If an additional oil cooler is fitted, such as when a minibus is being converted into a camper, the oil filter area usually becomes much more cramped. And often, this is exactly where the new oil cooler is connected to the oil circuit.
Feed and return lines, additional oil pressure switches, and oil temperature sensors then get in the way when the filter needs to be replaced. In such cases, the new oil filter either cannot be fitted at all or can only be fitted at an angle. This often causes the thread to get jammed, preventing the filter from being properly mounted.
Alan Povey, Quality, Warranty and Technical Manager at MAHLE, comments: “An oil filter adapter shifts the oil filter connection by a few centimetres so that it can be properly installed. Several versions of these adapters are commercially available for a variety of vehicles.”
Povey adds: “It is important to note that when fitting oil filters, the rubber seal must always be coated with clean oil in order to prevent damage and leakages caused by dry assembly. Spin-on oil filters may only be screwed on by hand and tightened to the torque specified by the manufacturer.”