How does this filter housing go back together?

I was changing my oil and the inside of my filter housing came out and I don’t know how it goes back together does anyone know? Here’s a pic attached

 

Where's the spring and metal tube? Who did the change before?

 

I’ve done the oil changes since I’ve had it, there’s never been a metal tube which I thought was weird. I have the spring and the other 2 pieces.

 

Did you purchase new or preowned? You're going to need a new cap. Some will say go metal but the plastic is fine. I would go OEM Toyota either way you choose but only the plastic will have the correct tube for the Runner.

 

It was pre-owned. I’ve got to have it back together by morning and autozone has the dorman version of it with a couple of metal tubes

 

That Dorman cap is known to leak. Use it to get you going but I'd ditch it ASAP.

 

yikes! it looks like the cap has been replaced already. doesn't look like it's made of plastic. as my esteemed colleague whippersnapper has noted, dorman as a temp but get the actual OEM plastic assembly ASAP.

 

Toyota dealer tomorrow morning for OEM oil housing.

 

What if I bought the Dorman one, and robbed the metal tubes out of it to fit the original one? Would that work?

 

Do you have a dealer nearby? Just get the factory original plastic one that is already put together the right way at the factory. If you need to be back on the road, just put the one you had back on, minus the loose parts. You’ve already been running unfiltered oil for who knows how long, so it wont make a difference.

 

I'd be warry of using the tube from the Dorman unit. It's well know to be a very poor replacement overall.

Dorman unit examined here. Video starts at the Dorman section:

https://youtu.be/G_vl2AYe7Yg?t=971

 

If it was me, I'd buy the OEM filter housing only. I'd stay away from an aftermarket. The difference in price isn't too much and you'll get Toyota quality and reliability.

 

Several people have already said it but it bears repeating: The Dorman is crap. I know, I’ve had one. The plastic OEM is the way to go. You could also go OEM metal but then you’d have to find the center tube from an OEM plastic version and swap it in. And you do not have one of those. Do NOT use the metal tube from the Dorman.

If you want proper oil filtration and parts that don’t fail, in this case you have to go OEM.

The only caution with the plastic OEM cap is don’t way way over tighten it. It only needs to seat against the housing, it does not need to be gorillad on there. Doing that is what causes issues later. Alas I’m also speaking from experience.

EDIT: To be specific, no big deal to over tighten the plastic OEM cap a bit. But if you do it too much it can be a bear to remove. And when you're struggling like hell to remove it you can end up cracking off the tabs on the side. And when you do that you can end up cracking the cap itself.

That's what I did. I didn't realize I'd cracked the cap until after I reinstalled it with a fresh filter and oil. I turned on the engine and that new oil started spraying out through the crack all over the suspension and my driveway. What a pain that was. So I understand why people would want the metal OEM version that's designed for other Toyota models, with the proper length tube from the plastic OEM version that's designed for the 4Runner.

But even with that you don't want to way over tighten it. Removing something that's stuck on from excess torque is often asking for trouble!

 

Lets scare the hell out of this guy.
About all that vid tells is that he doesn't like the aftermarket canister, nothing more.
I can dazzle you by popping apart the oem one just the same as he does in the vid.

OEM is always better, but the Dorman is not going to fall apart on you.
I have used 2 different ones and still using one and have yet to drip the first drop of oil.
And they work just fine without the center tube as long as the filter has not collapsed. That is the tube's purpose.
The bypass function still works.
I do suggest you buy the OEM fiber filters with orings included. They will not collapse with or without a tube. They are less than 4 bucks.

 

We are now officially past the deadline… what filter housing did you end up with @Goflyfish?

 

YMMV, as the saying goes, but my Dorman definitely did fall apart on me. The inner tube and spring fell out when I unscrewed the cap to access the dirty filter. Before that, oil was leaking from the drain valve.

I also do not buy that the tube is only there to prevent the filter from collapsing. Maybe. But I understand it’s also to facilitate the proper flow of the dirty oil through the filter, from the inside out. It’s also been said that it’s integral to preventing bypass, where your dirty oil is circulated around the filter instead of through it before reentering the engine.

Regardless, the fact that some of us have had terrible experiences with the Dorman should be enough reason to avoid it.

YMMV — or it may not.

 

This isn't something you should be thrifty on since it could mean a new engine.

 

https://www.4runners.com/threads/metal-oil-filter-housing.25404/

Everything you need to know can be found here.

 

Everything is there but the tube. Are you sure you didn't accidentally pull it off when trying to remove the filter from it, perhaps unaware that it was even there?

You can clearly see the spring in the op pic.

So you're saying you've been placing the loose parts back in the housing with the filter on top? They look oil covered in the pic. Back to my first point above, I think you may have removed it yourself when pulling the filter from the housing.

A good view at the 2 minute mark of how the housing parts go together.

Yes, inquiring minds want to know.

 

It was dark so I missed it. Still shouldn't be separate and still no tube.

 

not trying to scare the guy, just giving some advice. tube aside - the mere fact that the bypass has come apart during service means the bypass is not functioning and the oil passing through the can is probably not being filtered completely. is this a catastrophe? Unlikely. Is it something that should be addressed properly? Absolutely.

 

So how did oil filters work before this tube was part of the housing? On other vehicles I don’t recall having these tubes as part of the oil filters.

 

Do you mean spin on filters? There was a tube inside the canister.

 

And this is the direction of oil flow. Outside to inner tube.

 

Isnt the tube the thing that makes the oil flow through the filter media? Otherwise, wouldnt the filtered oil and unfiltered oil mix. I’m not sure you could even guarantee a loose filter will accurately locate itself underneath the proper oil port on top. I think that tube goes into the center hole inside the filter assembly on the engine to line everything up.

 

Besides oem cap, grab oem filter too. They're only 6$ at my local dealers vs $12 aftermarket

 

Here’s how it works (more or less). Under normal use, the bypass spring presses the top of the tube against the engine. The only path for the oil is around the outside of the filter, through the filter medium, into the tube, and up into the engine. In the event that the filter gets clogged, pressure will build up around the outside of the filter and compress the bypass spring. This pulls the top of the tube away from the engine and now unfiltered oil can pass from the outer side of the filter housing, across the top of the filter medium and back into the engine.

Therefore, in a situation like this where the tube is missing, or when the plastic housing has been replaced with a metal one and the short tube that came in the metal one has not been swapped for the longer tube in the plastic housing, the oil is bypassing the filter. It’s worth noting that when swapping the tubes when one exchanges the metal housing for the plastic one, it might be prudent to exchange the springs too, because the springs are calibrated for the engines in which they are meant to be run.

 

Well said. I butchered it before. I think this is exactly right.

 

I'm sure you meant metal housing with plastic housing since there is no plastic tubing out there. And yes I agree with that assertion and I chose to use the original spring in my 2019 when swapping to the aluminum housing.

 

Thanks for catching that. Corrected.