Thom

Perhaps this was already obvious to most, but while doing an engine oil change I noticed that not a single drop of oil would come out of the oil filter while it is being loosened and pulled out of the engine bay if the oil cooling circuit was previously flushed.

If flushing the oil cooling circuit may not be an obvious included step when replacing engine oil, it makes sense to avoid used black oil trapped in the cooling circuit from mixing with fresh oil when the engine is being run again. I thought the detail about keeping the engine clean using zero towel or brake cleaner was a nice little bonus worth sharing. Also, after a few hundred miles the engine oil looks about as clean as when it went in. Win-win situation.

ramius665

Could you expand on how to flush the oil cooling circuit?

Thom

Disconnect the hoses from the oil cooler, let them spill and the cooler until the last drop. Flush them with fresh oil if you want to get rid of the old oil to its last drop.

ramius665

Makes perfect sense. For some reason I thought there was a drain valve I had somehow missed over the years. Thanks!

V2Rocket

Might be worth investigating fitting some type of drain-**** fitting to the lower oil cooler port.
The fittings on the cooler/hose aren't really made for repeated on/off, since draining the oil cooler isn't part of a "standard oil change".