Replaced oil filter, caused sparks to fly.... ?

[sheliable]

Yeah so this is a weird one... I was replacing the oil filter on my truck this morning, as i went to use my oil filter wrench to break it loose (which is metal) the wrench also touched some sort of metal line next to it and sparks flew everywhere. The line had some shielding on it which was out of place but i moved it back before proceeding. This happened twice and was concerning as hell considering once the filter breaks loose there is a bunch of flammable motor oil with the potential of sparks in close prox with eachother in my engine compartment. Never ever had this happen when changing oil on any car or truck. Any ideas what I was splicing the oil filter together with to produce the sparks?

 

[MikeG]

You have a wire with the insulation missing / damaged. No clue how the wires run on a 3.0, sorry..... kinda thinking starter power wire, but I don't know if that is possible. On the 4.0 the starter and oil filter are on opposite sides of the engine. Trace the wire out, what does it attach to?

 

[19Walt93]

I suspect that's the power wire to the starter, it should be insulated well enough to prevent that. Is it about 3/8" diameter?

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

You might make sure that "line" wasn't the main battery cable to the starter.

 

[2drxploder]

i highly doubt some sparks would ignite engine oil, ignition point is higher than gas

 

[Guanfy]

If the '02 3.0 is roughly the same as my '94 3.0 then you should have two rather large wires in the area of the oil filter. One wire is a engine block ground, which shouldn't be causing the sparking. The other wire is the main power feed to the starter, which will make your life very exciting if you touch it and complete a circuit between it and a tool. As silly as it sounds, I disconnect my battery when I am working around the filter or the brake proportioning valve or the starter because it only takes a moment of inattention to make a light show when you least expect it.

 

[55trucker]

You've been initiated into the 3 liter oil change crowd,

the starter's heavy 12v terminal is right in the path that the filter needs when one pulls it down to replace. There should also be a plastic funnel that is right above the solenoid attached to the block to allow a path for the excess oil to flow past the solenoid. One has to be careful when removing & installing a filter & keep it to the chassis side & clear of the starter. Not much room up in there.

 

[sheliable]

You've been initiated into the 3 liter oil change crowd,

the starter's heavy 12v terminal is right in the path that the filter needs when one pulls it down to replace. There should also be a plastic funnel that is right above the solenoid attached to the block to allow a path for the excess oil to flow past the solenoid. One has to be careful when removing & installing a filter & keep it to the chassis side & clear of the starter. Not much room up in there.

Fun times! Thanks for the response. I almost shit myself first time I went to pull the filter...

 

[BRUDAHS]

Some liquid electrical tape should stop that from happening again.

 

[Uncle Gump]

Just disconnect the battery cable when changing the oil... wouldn't surprise me if it was step one of the oil change procedure.

 

[TinyTig]

Yeah so this is a weird one... I was replacing the oil filter on my truck this morning, as i went to use my oil filter wrench to break it loose (which is metal) the wrench also touched some sort of metal line next to it and sparks flew everywhere. The line had some shielding on it which was out of place but i moved it back before proceeding. This happened twice and was concerning as hell considering once the filter breaks loose there is a bunch of flammable motor oil with the potential of sparks in close prox with eachother in my engine compartment. Never ever had this happen when changing oil on any car or truck. Any ideas what I was splicing the oil filter together with to produce the sparks?

This literally just happened to me, too. Scared the hell out of me. Ended up dropping my wrench into the bucket of oil i just drained.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

Just disconnect the battery cable when changing the oil... wouldn't surprise me if it was step one of the oil change procedure.

Thats step one according to any book for anything. Changing a tire? Disconnect battery. Wiper? Better make sure the battery is disconnected. Vacuuming carpet? Disconnect that battery you mf'er

 

[rusty ol ranger]

This literally just happened to me, too. Scared the hell out of me. Ended up dropping my wrench into the bucket of oil i just drained.

Keeps the tool from rusting

 

[mc17eln]

This should also prevent sparks flying around oil filter...

 

[helpme]

Why are you using an oil filter wrench anyway? I just reach down in between the manifold and steering shaft and twist it off with my hand and pull it up from the top. I change oil in the morning when the engine is cold. Put a rag beneath the filter so oil won't drip down into the starter.