Oil Filters On New Corollas And Camrys

Depends on the engine and market - pretty much all the newer ones I've seen have gone to the cartridge based filters instead of the spin on types. Supposed to be better the for the environment (more oil will drain out), less raw materials (no need for high pressure oil case), easier to inspect for contaminants, etc.

Cartridge filter example with o-ring for filter housing:

Basically it looks like the "guts" inside the spin on filter. In the case of the ones I've seen from Toyota - the cartridge ones are significantly larger (available filtering media) compared to the spin on ones.

Comparison with a cut open spin on type:

In case you are curious - here are side by side pics of the OEM Toyota and TRD equivalent - some like the TRD one, but it can cost 3-4 times as much per filter as the OEM or similar:

(From BITOG forums - more pics here: http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=3117205)

Not really harder to change - though definitely tougher to get the housing off, compared to a spin on filter. That's why I got the TOY 640 wrench. Fits the housing perfectly and strong enough that it won't break when trying to remove the housing. With really stubborn spin on filters - you can drive a screwdriver through the side of the case and twist this off. With the cartridge filters - you have to make sure you don't damage the end cap or you will have issues with leaking / fitment. Once you see the endcap, you'll understand what I mean.

Doubt it was a move to make it harder for the DIYer's to due their own oil changes. Other than potentially needing a heavy duty oil filter wrench and have slightly higher overall costs. The cartridge filters generally run in the $8-$20 price range - depending on the brand. OEM one cost me about $12 (retail) or $8 (cash price) - spin on filters for those vehicles are about 1/2 that.

In the case of the Toyotas - the cartridge filter is located in the same location as the previous generation's spin on filters - right on the bottom. Removal is pretty close to the same steps as a spin filter. You drain the sump the same way as in the conventional spin on filter case. When you get to the oil filter housing, you have the option of removing the filter drain port cap and drain the filter prior to removing the housing endcap or just remove the endcap like you would a spin on filter. Depending on which way you do it - will require either one or two o-ring replacements. Just lube them up with some clean oil, like you would the spin on filters, carefully place them on the housing grooves - insert new oil filter element and reinstall.

Kind of funny as cars used to all have cartridge filters. Spin on filters were done to simply the oil change process, make it almost goof-proof. But now we have come around to the cartridge ones again - maybe in 30-40 years, we'll go back to a new and improved spin on filter.

As far as I know - cartridge filters are what manufacturer's are going to from this point on. Granted, there will likely be some models with spin on filters - but what models that will be on and for how long is anyone's guess at the moment.

Yes - they make spin on filters for your cars though they can be little hard to find.

I've used them once before, just to see how they would work - but didn't see much difference between them, filtering performance wise. Was also pretty hard to justify the price difference as well - around $8 (retail) for Toyota/Denso OEM vs $25 (retail) for the TRD one, can be found online for less ($10-$15), if you can find them stocked. Still about 3-4 times more than the OEM filter at online prices. I could almost get a block of filters (10 pack) for the cost of 2 TRD filters.

As for the cartridge ones - the TRD specs look much better on paper, but that generally never translates well to something tangible in the end for street use. Only real advantage I see with the TRD one is the metal core - as in extreme cases (ie, running exceptionally high oil pressures - higher than stock pressures or failure in the bybass valve), some of the cartridge filters collapse inward. That metal core will help prevent that from happening.

Big drawback IMO is the filtration media - even though the synthetic media has higher performance than the paper element (higher filtering efficiency) - there is less filtering material in there. So overall potential particle holding capability will be less. TRD filter is made specifically for high oil flow and resists extreme pressure differentials - something you'd see in a race car but never in a road going car. The better gasket and o-ring materials will be less likely utilized (silicone and Viton for exceptionally high heat and fuel contamination - stock cars won't get that hot, don't generally see fuel contamination levels of a race car, Viton actually under performs Nitrile (used in the conventional filter) in colder temperatures).

Won't hurt to run the TRD one - but I couldn't recommend it for use on an extended oil change application. For conventional OCI - filtering capacity will be fine - but be not very cost effective.

OEM one uses glued endcaps - just like the picture. No worries, that glue is specific to constant oil immersion and high temperature environments. Same glue they use to attach the endcaps to the filter media (If you look closely to the TRD filter, you can see the glue on the inside of the bottom endcap).

Inside the housing - there is a spring metal plates on the bottom and plate at the top that press against the filter elements - so it won't make much difference if there are endcaps or not, they will both fit snugly against the housing. As mentioned earlier - getting a filter to collapse inward is pretty tough. Unless the filter is poorly made or you are running excessively high oil pressure (ie, high RPM or running very thick oil) - filter will hold up no problem.

So far, I've used WIX, Purolator, NAPA Platinum, and FRAM Ultra on the oil changes on the Rav4 - all seemed to work well on the Rav4. Wix and classic Purolator looks just like the OEM - glued end caps, though WIX was better constructed. NAPA, Purolator, and FRAM Ultra had endcaps - NAPA and FRAM looked pretty decently constructed - the Purolator was the biggest disappointment, worse constructed one by far. All of these were short OCI runs (5K miles) - just wanted to see how they held up - UOAs all looked about the same. Next run will be OEM on a 50% longer OCI and then pull another UOA compare it to the first OEM on 5K mile run. If it looks good, I might just rotate the filters around and see how they hold up to longer OCIs. I'm a big fan of Purolator, but after seeing the cartridge ones - FRAM just moved up to take its place. Maybe FRAM turned their QC around - as that FRAM Ultra was pretty decently made.

Was mentioned here some time ago - here is a link to a site where the owner documented it well - for a Toyota Prius, but the steps are nearly identical.

http://www.paulstravelpictures.com/Toyota-Prius-Engine-Oil-Change-Filter-Replacement-Guide/

There might be some youtube video of a DIY cartridge oil filter change. Since more and more models are moving to the cartridge filter setup - definitely going to more available DIY tutorials online somewhere.

Don't have an answer for that. But I'd be shocked if Toyota changed to a different sized wrench for the newer cars. I wouldn't put it past them - tool companies have to make money as well - but since Toyota stuck with that form factor for so long, be a very low chance that the tool will change.