Fitting a modern filter / autoclean stuck

[DavidLaver]

I thought this was worth a fresh thread.

David


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David/all

I am interested in fitting a more modern oil filter to OVS. Any options??


My autoclean Semundat filter is wired off and not operated by the clutch and advice from martin Cliffe is not to touch it but to have regular oil changes (which i am happy to do).

I have tried to remove said vane filter to clean it but it is stuck in the block. I was thinking of removing all 4 studs but one is difficult to get to so I didnt bother. Any ideas of how to lift off??

Tim

[DavidLaver]

As for removing and cleaning what's the advice of John Savage?  He'd be my first port of call.

David

[lancialulu]

Thanks David

Good idea!

Now for other ideas please on matter(s) in hand...

Tim

[chugga boom]

auto cleans seem to work well on our augustas, modern oil is the key secret to engine wear these days because its advanced so much since these cars were built, vw beetle has no oil filter at all which i wouldnt say was a good thing but supprisingly works, if it were me i'd repair your auto clean and regular oil changes and atleast the car's kept origional 

[Sliding Pillar]

If you undo the 4 bolts it should lift out.  You would need to be careful if it is seized due to corrosion of the vanes, you don't want that in your oil. That would be why Martin said leave it alone. Don't forget there is a drain plug at the bottom of the autoclean bowl where any gunge should collect.
On my old Aprilia I did not have the connection rods to the clutch pedal, but would give the autoclean a couple of turns every time I stopped.

[lancialulu]

Ade

Thanks for this. I cant easily pull it out thats why I was asking. The engine has been stripped and professional rebuilt some 5 years ago so I would assume this was well looked at (my motto: don't assume...). It turns OK and some sludge and not bits came out when I undid the plug.

You know, its just that curiosity thing...

BTW I am not turning routinely like you advise it just in case - I want to see its condition. changing the oil (Comma Classic 20/50 - seems like the old Duckhams...) every 800 miles or so.

Tim

[ben]

   Hi Tim
   There is a school of thought that these old engines should be run on monograde oils rather than multi-grades like 20-50 because of sludge formation as the viscosity enhancing additives break down.It needs a modern filter to deal with this so the argument goes.
   Personally I have always used 20-50 and my car has only(?) the auto-clean vane unit 'tho this is active and working.Two points to note however; 1)I don't have modern shell bearings(yet!) which are generally considered to need better filtration and 2) when I have had the sump off there has usually been lots of sludge!
   If I were you Tim I would  be uncomfortable not knowing if the vane filter was working. I have known them to be siezed solid but for the mechanism to be sheared so that the operating arm on the top still went around. As Ade says however you have to be very careful to suck out all the debris if you resort to brute force to get it out.
  At the purely practical level if you are really changing the oil at 800 mile intervals this probably pre-empts sludge build up and minimises the dangers of poor filtration. Ref. your original question however there are several cars around with adaptors and  piped-in modern filters so if no-one responds directly I can give you some names.
                                Ben

 

[davidwheeler]

I use semi-synthetic 10/40 in all my cars, changing at about 5000 miles and do not have any sludge at all.  If you use a high temperature oil it does not break down unlike the old fashioned stuff.  I can see no good reason for ignoring 60 years of development and using crude mineral oil.  They are all on shell bearings except the VIIth Lambda and the Lambdas have been converted to modern filters but the Aprilia is still on its vane filter which I turn from time to time.

[lancialulu]

Thanks Ben and all

I think I will try to gently remove the autoclean just to satisfy that it is working. Sludge can build up if the engine is not working at high enough temp due to emulsion forming. I cannot get my Aprilia up to 80 deg without shutting the rad blinds so I generally run a bit cooler than I would like.

I am thinking or rigging up some small "screw jacks" to just free the auto clean from the block. we will see. Maybe next autumn I will drop the sump and have a look at the bottom end to see if there are shells or not.

Tim