Forester oil filters

[Frank]

I noticed my wife's '08 Forester takes a different oil filter than my
'03's. I wonder if they are smaller? I change mine but have not
touched hers or bought one for her car.

I ask today because when I went to change the oil in the '03, the dealer
had put on a smaller filter that I could not remove with the clasping
type wrench I use or even a Sear's rubberized strap wrench. The oil plug
had also been put on by Hercules because it took a pipe extension on the
socket wrench to get it off.

I had pulled the plug, drained the oil and replaced plug with new washer
and when I could not remove filter, added new oil and called dealer's
service manager. He said they only used Subaru parts but I had changed
oil before and my wrench fit any filter they had used before. He was
kind enough to remove his filter and put mine on gratis. That's why I'm
wondering if new '08 filter is smaller.

I was tempted to title this post "Ten miles between oil changes." I
said he could put mine back but service record says they used new oil.

BTW, I really like the looks of the '09 Forester.

Frank

 

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

I noticed my wife's '08 Forester takes a different oil filter than my
'03's. I wonder if they are smaller? I change mine but have not
touched hers or bought one for her car.

I ask today because when I went to change the oil in the '03, the dealer
had put on a smaller filter that I could not remove with the clasping
type wrench I use or even a Sear's rubberized strap wrench. The oil plug
had also been put on by Hercules because it took a pipe extension on the
socket wrench to get it off.

I had pulled the plug, drained the oil and replaced plug with new washer
and when I could not remove filter, added new oil and called dealer's
service manager. He said they only used Subaru parts but I had changed
oil before and my wrench fit any filter they had used before. He was
kind enough to remove his filter and put mine on gratis. That's why I'm
wondering if new '08 filter is smaller.

I was tempted to title this post "Ten miles between oil changes." I
said he could put mine back but service record says they used new oil.

BTW, I really like the looks of the '09 Forester.

Frank

Um, what is your question again?

I know Subaru changed vendors once before(a few years ago - filters were
seeping at the crimp), but I don't know if the size/shape changed enough
to cause a cap wrench to no longer work.

maybe email Jamie at www.subarugenuineparts.com and ask her if Subaru
has changed filter suppliers.

Carl

 

[M.J.]

Um, what is your question again?

I know Subaru changed vendors once before(a few years ago - filters were
seeping at the crimp), but I don't know if the size/shape changed enough
to cause a cap wrench to no longer work.

maybe email Jamie at www.subarugenuineparts.com and ask her if Subaru has
changed filter suppliers.

I have an 2000 Impreza and the dealer no longer stocks
the white Subaru oil filters made by Purolator; instead they
sell the japanese Tokyo Roki which is a significantly smaller
filter.

It used to be that these filters where exclusively for WRX's.
Smaller because the location of the filter in the WRX is
supposedly close to some hot exhaust piping.

Now these filters are to be put on all Imprezas, not only WRX.
That is what my dealer told me. Perhaps these also go on the
Forester.

They seem to be fine filters but cost more (USD 9.50, or 10.50,
cannot recall). I kinda like bigger filters, more oil = better cooling,
so I ordered a few oversized Hastings LF386. Though I haven't
had a chance to install one yet. I'll comment on my experience with
this filter in the future.

M.J.

 

[Frank]

I have an 2000 Impreza and the dealer no longer stocks
the white Subaru oil filters made by Purolator; instead they
sell the japanese Tokyo Roki which is a significantly smaller
filter.

It used to be that these filters where exclusively for WRX's.
Smaller because the location of the filter in the WRX is
supposedly close to some hot exhaust piping.

Now these filters are to be put on all Imprezas, not only WRX.
That is what my dealer told me. Perhaps these also go on the
Forester.

They seem to be fine filters but cost more (USD 9.50, or 10.50,
cannot recall). I kinda like bigger filters, more oil = better cooling,
so I ordered a few oversized Hastings LF386. Though I haven't
had a chance to install one yet. I'll comment on my experience with
this filter in the future.

M.J.

Thanks to you and Carl for responding. Service manager did not know and
I did not stick around to find out. Next time I visit store I will look
at after market Forester filters for '03 and '08 side by side. This may
not be significant if what I need to compare are the OEM filters.

My post was part question and part lament. I had gotten hosed on the
30,000 mile service and talked into dealer recommended items which
raised price considerably then to find later the filter change and
tightening to the point of not being able to remove the smaller filter.

At my advanced age, I'm still learning how to work with car dealers.

 

[Rick Courtright]

I noticed my wife's '08 Forester takes a different oil filter than my
'03's. I wonder if they are smaller?

Hi,

Could be...

It also could be, that as I've seen w/ some Toyota and Honda models, the
original factory recommendations for multiple part numbers eventually
morph into only one or two. (Probably a function of the bean counters
more than the engineers!) In the cases I'm familiar w/, the
"supercession" number reflects the smallest of the lot, so it will fit
the tightest apps, and by extension, all others.

The last few years, I've been using mostly Wix filters. They have one of
the better websites when it comes to giving enough technical info to see
if "Filter B" can substitute for "Filter A", 'specially if you don't
mind surfing a bit. Try www.wixfilters.com and see if they have an
answer for you.

Also, though I'm not as good at keeping it up as I should be, I started
a list of filters from several mfrs for each "new" car that comes to
live at my house so I can keep track of the substitution and
supercession numbers. This is helpful in cases like my Toyota pickup
that came w/ a fairly sizeable filter, but the "current"
recommendation's for a sorta dinky one. Most aftermarket mfrs update
their book recommendations to follow factory changes, but continue to
make the older number. So, if I want the older "bigger" filter, I can
just ask for its part number, instead of specifying what vehicle it's
going on and getting the newest one.

Another thing I've found to NOT be a waste of money is to get a proper
fluted cap wrench from the dealer if I'm using the OEM filters, as it
seems too often their diameters and flute counts don't match what the
"fitzall" wrenches work best with (when something gets stuck, it's
almost a guarantee the local parts shop won't stock the wrench that fits
the OEM filter), and the engineers seem to delight in placing oil
filters where only one kind of wrench will work!

Rick

 

[Frank]

Hi,

Could be...

It also could be, that as I've seen w/ some Toyota and Honda models, the
original factory recommendations for multiple part numbers eventually
morph into only one or two. (Probably a function of the bean counters
more than the engineers!) In the cases I'm familiar w/, the
"supercession" number reflects the smallest of the lot, so it will fit
the tightest apps, and by extension, all others.

The last few years, I've been using mostly Wix filters. They have one of
the better websites when it comes to giving enough technical info to see
if "Filter B" can substitute for "Filter A", 'specially if you don't
mind surfing a bit. Try www.wixfilters.com and see if they have an
answer for you.

Also, though I'm not as good at keeping it up as I should be, I started
a list of filters from several mfrs for each "new" car that comes to
live at my house so I can keep track of the substitution and
supercession numbers. This is helpful in cases like my Toyota pickup
that came w/ a fairly sizeable filter, but the "current"
recommendation's for a sorta dinky one. Most aftermarket mfrs update
their book recommendations to follow factory changes, but continue to
make the older number. So, if I want the older "bigger" filter, I can
just ask for its part number, instead of specifying what vehicle it's
going on and getting the newest one.

Another thing I've found to NOT be a waste of money is to get a proper
fluted cap wrench from the dealer if I'm using the OEM filters, as it
seems too often their diameters and flute counts don't match what the
"fitzall" wrenches work best with (when something gets stuck, it's
almost a guarantee the local parts shop won't stock the wrench that fits
the OEM filter), and the engineers seem to delight in placing oil
filters where only one kind of wrench will work!

Rick

Wrench I was using fits a socket wrench and clamps down on filter when
twisted counter clockwise. It has worked with every car I've owned in
the last 20 or so years. Maybe if I had spent more time, I could have
wrapped the new skinny filter with duct tape to get a grip on but
adjustable rubberized strap wrench would not work.