OIL FILTER RELOCATION
by Takeo De Meter
Historically,
engine designers and car manufacturers in general, have placed their oil
filters in the most impossible locations, as inaccessible as possible,
for all the wrong reasons. Main reason being cost of manufacture. Look
at our 3.5 V-8s, for instance: could one think of a more vulnerable location
? I am also thinking of my old SIII diesel: big pot with a bolt-through
fixation, located on the side of the engine, with a built-in spillage
generator.
Since frequent oil changes are one of the most important factors in engine
life, especially under harsh conditions, one would like to have that filter
in a convenient location.
So why not install an oil filter relocation kit ? The kit consists of
2 adaptor flanges; one to seal off the original location and to convey
the oil flow via 2 hoses to the new oil filter mounting flange, which
can be located at any convenient and accessible spot of the user‘s
choice, such as the inner wing, for instance.
From then oil, changing an oil filter will no longer be an annoying chore,
but just one more item belonging to an oil change, without any hassle
or major quantities of black oil down the sleeve of your overalls.
Note: engine oil change intervals, as indicated by the vehicle manufacturer,
are nowadays dictated by the marketing department, i.e. the moron gang
responsible for selling the lemons and not responsible for vehicle longevity.
People tend to prefer to buy vehicles with long maintenance intervals.
Listen guys; friction is friction, and oil is oil. Oil has improved over
the years but not to an extent that „normal“ oil change intervals
can be doubled or even tripled. If you own a Land-Rover, just use a good
brand 20W50 or equivalent and change oil every 3.500 Km and change the
filter every other oil change, no matter what the manufacturer says. Land-Rovers
are meant for hard use, so maintain your engine properly. It will last
MUCH longer. A Land-Rover is not a cheap consumable Kawazuki, a Land-Rover
is for life.