4thesporty
Active member
- Joined
- Jun 21, 2013
- Messages
- 41
- Reaction score
- 48
- Location
- Aledo, TX
- My Car
- 1971 Mach 1 (M code)
351C/4speed
Black/Black
Over the weekend I had my car in the garage idling while I was adjusting the electric choke and fast idle. I heard fluid and see oil pouring onto the ground so I immediately run over and turn off the car. It came from the oil filter where it screws onto the block.
I check the filter (WIX) and it was tight enough that I needed to grab my strap wrench to loosen it off. Once removed I noticed that the gasket/seal stayed on the block so I removed it and it seemed like it was oriented upside down from how it is supposed to be. It would not go back on the filter the way it was, but if I flipped it, it was able to fit in the groove on the filter like it is supposed to be.
Nothing else seemed out of the ordinary, so I went to the parts house and picked up a ford FL1A, lubed it and installed it; then topped up the oil (lost about a quart).
It just seems odd to me, as this oil/filter has been on since July or so when I started tinkering with the car again and has been run and driven many times. The only out of the ordinary thing is that the past week it has been very cold here in N Texas, getting down to 10F a couple of times and staying below freezing for a couple days.
I did drive it over the next day for an extended period of time, with one eye on the oil pressure gauge, and had no issue. Has this ever happened before to anyone? I am so glad that it happened idling in my garage rather than driving.
I check the filter (WIX) and it was tight enough that I needed to grab my strap wrench to loosen it off. Once removed I noticed that the gasket/seal stayed on the block so I removed it and it seemed like it was oriented upside down from how it is supposed to be. It would not go back on the filter the way it was, but if I flipped it, it was able to fit in the groove on the filter like it is supposed to be.
Nothing else seemed out of the ordinary, so I went to the parts house and picked up a ford FL1A, lubed it and installed it; then topped up the oil (lost about a quart).
It just seems odd to me, as this oil/filter has been on since July or so when I started tinkering with the car again and has been run and driven many times. The only out of the ordinary thing is that the past week it has been very cold here in N Texas, getting down to 10F a couple of times and staying below freezing for a couple days.
I did drive it over the next day for an extended period of time, with one eye on the oil pressure gauge, and had no issue. Has this ever happened before to anyone? I am so glad that it happened idling in my garage rather than driving.
