Uh oh...Oil change overfull

[GRRRR8]

I don't believe I've ever done this with any of my cars. Is this a "must do" or a "good idea to do"?

Filling the oil filter on any car helps with the initial priming of the oil and is always a good idea. Now on some cars this is very hard to do due to filter location and angle.

On all my cars I always put some in regardless and if they are vertically mounted I fill them. It just saves that few seconds it takes to build oil pressure.

[Sephiroth]

it's also on the image directions on every box Ive seen fyi..

[I12XLR8]

Couldn't hurt. It's only 'necessary' on Turbo'd cars and mid to late 2000's Ford trucks (to avoid lifter damage on the Ford's). Considering the amount of effort involved I would suggest always doing it. It will obviously only affect the first start-up after the oil change so any negative effects of not doing it will be negligible.

[todds87ss]

The LS motor oil flow is from pump suction, through the pump, then to the filter, then to bearings. A dry will filter cause air/aerated oil to travel to bearing at startup, reducing engine life. Even a full filter will have some of this effect, but why not minimize it.

[Eidolon]

it's also on the image directions on every box Ive seen fyi..

Actually, I always assumed that little icon, of an oil dropper, was indicating you should lube up the O-ring on the filter with some oil to allow you to seat the filter. I learned oil changes from my dad, and while he never pre-filled the filter, he always lubed the O-ring with a bit of the used oil before installing it.

Filling the oil filter on any car helps with the initial priming of the oil and is always a good idea. Now on some cars this is very hard to do due to filter location and angle.

On all my cars I always put some in regardless and if they are vertically mounted I fill them. It just saves that few seconds it takes to build oil pressure.

It makes me glad I haven't been doing deadly damage to my cars, then. But it does seem like a simple enough thing to do. I have yet to do my first own first oil change on the Pontiac. I always had it done at the dealership, since I had a "free oil changes" coupon. I'll make sure to top up the filter, then, on my first change. Thanks for the tip!