I've a 2005 Passat TDI Wagon with the BHW engine. I'm not a mechanic; I'm just a guy who really likes his car.
Question
Is it possible to put the oil filter element in upside down, and would that result in ineffective filtering and damage to engine parts?
Background
The technicians at the shop where I've been taking the car for years said that my engine was making way more noise than it should, but were unable to tell me why without tearing it apart.
I took the car to another shop.
The technicians there also said the engine was making way more noise than it should. They brought that up themselves; I hadn't said anything about what the first shop's techs said. I'd actually taken the car to the second shop for unrelated issues.
After doing a bunch of digging, the lead technician at the new shop told me that, at the last oil change at the first shop, the techs had put the new oil filter element in upside down. He says this means:
I've got the returned filter, and yes, it does have very many, very fine metal "filings" in it.
Is that bulleted scenario above possible/likely? Do the metal filings and the loud engine necessarily mean the engine needs to be replaced?
Thanks,
-Ken
Question
Is it possible to put the oil filter element in upside down, and would that result in ineffective filtering and damage to engine parts?
Background
The technicians at the shop where I've been taking the car for years said that my engine was making way more noise than it should, but were unable to tell me why without tearing it apart.
I took the car to another shop.
The technicians there also said the engine was making way more noise than it should. They brought that up themselves; I hadn't said anything about what the first shop's techs said. I'd actually taken the car to the second shop for unrelated issues.
After doing a bunch of digging, the lead technician at the new shop told me that, at the last oil change at the first shop, the techs had put the new oil filter element in upside down. He says this means:
- the filter element didn't seat properly in the canister
- the oil didn't flow through the filter as it should
- the dirty oil then became dirtier and dirtier as it wore at the engine parts, and bingo
- I've got metal particles in my oil
I've got the returned filter, and yes, it does have very many, very fine metal "filings" in it.
Is that bulleted scenario above possible/likely? Do the metal filings and the loud engine necessarily mean the engine needs to be replaced?
Thanks,
-Ken