Sealing "Old Style" Filter Canister on 3.4 Liter Engine + Spin-On Oil Filter Adapter

I decided to change the engine oil after having put 1,000 miles on my recently restored XK 140 FHC. I spent about 2-1/2 hours under the car putting in the canister O-ring and starting the car to make sure there were no oil leaks. I ran the car for about 5 minutes at its normal 55psi, no leaks at all. Then, just to make sure, I took it on a test spin and the 0-ring seal failed, spewing oil on the underside of the car. Not worried about the oil coating the underbelly, but now have little confidence in the O-ring staying sealed. Had I not noticed the oil streaming out onto the ground, a catastrophic failure would have occurred.

I’m looking into spin-on oil filter kits, which is my preference, but it appears there are few, if any, available without a substantial wait. Two questions:
1. Does anyone know how to properly seal the O-ring on the oil filter canister?
2. Does anyone know of a kit that I can order and have it delivered in a reasonable time? My oil filter adapter is an early XK 140 style, having a rounded “bulge” in the center of the adapter.

Contact Bill Bassett. That’s where I bought mine

Pat H

It can be a little tough getting just the right alignment/seal on these buggers, and IIRC, there was a change in O-ring cross-section shape along the way so getting the correct rubber piece could be problematic.

It is difficult. The problem that I’m having is that the old gasket was completely removed, the seat examined for any scratches, and the new gasket was installed without any apparent bulges or high spots. I even assembled the canister “dry” two times to help even things out. The only solution I can come up with right now is that the canister may have been installed at a very small angle, where one side was tightened more than the other. Incidentally, the O-rings are square in cross section, and I ended up using the thinner one of the two.

I also contacted Bill Bassett and he said he had no adapter kits in stock but the delivery was around a week to 10 days. I’m waiting to hear from another supplier before I commit to Mr. Bassett as I had contacted them before Bill. I owe them some patience as they are also looking into the delivery time for me. I wasn’t aware of Bill Bassett’s company.

Thanks for the replies.

I bought a supply of 10 square o-rings from McMaster-Carr.
The canisters for 120 and 140 are different in that I have a curled over top where yours is straight cut.
I believe for an XK140 you could use an X-cross section, and your size would be #241.
part no. 90025K523
Or they also have square cross sections in the same size. Viton would be a good material to choose.

I seem to remember using a seal with a round cross-section on my engine…one of the two seals(O-rings) supplied with the filter I bought.

This is almost certainly a sealing ring problem. I have always managed to obtain new old stock filters. These always contain 2 rings. These are oblong in section and you need to use the thinner of the 2. I’ll measure one up tomorrow.
I find it easier to remove the complete filter housing from the engine block rather than fiddle around underneath trying to remove and fit the seal.

Here’s a photo of the sealing rings.

Thanks so much for taking the time to reply to this and to send a photo along. It helps illustrate your earlier comments. I did indeed use the correct O-ring, the one you show on the left in your photo. Had I known I would spend 2-1/2 hours flailing around under car seating the O-ring, I probably would have removed the filter housing and worked on it at the bench. While I was under the car, the thought did occur to me to do this, and in hindsight I should have removed the entire bracket, but that would’ve entailed removing the right front wheel, the battery box plate, an oil pressure switch (a safety item I installed for the fuel pump), and the oil pressure line to the gauge along with the two bolts holding on the housing. Right now I find myself backing into purchasing an adapter kit for a spin on filter as I have no confidence in the original design. So, I believe next week I’ll try to locate one and just keep the car on the jack stands until I’m able to receive the adapter kit. I consider myself lucky to have stopped the car on my test run and checked under the hood.

Two words: dental picks! Makes removal a doddle.

Like you I had doubts regarding the original sealing arrangement and was considering a spin on alternative. Then remembering that during the 70’s I never had any issues with my mk2’s and SType etc I decided to stay with the original setup, in particular you can more easily examine the contents of the paper element with the older type. Like the advise already given I take the housing off the car and set it up on the bench, HOWEVER I now also only change the seal at every second oil change without any leaks occurring.
My preference when installing the cover is to screw the housing on (via its long bolt) until it just starts to make contact with the seal, I then rotate the housing by hand slowly increasing the tightening of the bolt. this ensures the housing goes on parallel. Anyhow it works for me!
bet regards
Phil D.

Thanks for the comments Phil…much appreciated. For info, I just purchased an adapter kit with a delivery time of roughly 2 weeks, so I think, at least for now, I’ll wait and try my luck with the spin on filter assembly.

Also, I followed precisely the same procedure as you mentioned, going through 3 “dry” fit ups prior to adding the filter and oil to the canister and tightening the assembly by hand first to “ensure” an even pressure, then tightening the upper bolt. It worked fine, after letting the car idle for 5 minutes, without a drop leaking beyond the seal. Then, with my confidence built up with the extra effort I put in on the assembly, I took it for a longer test drive, and the canister seal began to leak profusely. I’m lucky that I made it home. Obviously, I did something wrong; perhaps I twisted the square cut O-ring a little, and as the oil heated up, it was enough to cause a leak.

When the adapter kit arrives, I’ll remove the assembly and do a little failure analysis on my fit up to see if I can actually determine what the problem is. Right now I’m just a little gun-shy with the original set-up, and want to try a solution that, for me, seems to be more fail-safe.

You won’t regret it: the spin-on filters are better at filtering, and WAY easier to change. One of the Top Five Best things I ever did to Tweety.

Did you smear the seal with new engine oil? If not then the twisting motion that you imparted may have bunched up the seal. I only lost one seal on a series one Standard Vanguard when I left the original seal in place,(I was young n my defence) having said that I still apply a smear of oil to the filter housing when doing changes. Interestingly the wifes Mazda 6 now has a replacement cartridge rather than the spin on,

Since I was working upside down, I needed to keep the O-ring in place so that it wouldn’t fall back into my face. I squirted dielectric grease into the slot as a means by which I could keep it in its approximate location while I pushed it into it’s slot. After the O-ring was in place, I smeared the grease around the circumference to lubricate the seating surface. Then, I began the “dry” fitting to make sure the seating surface was pushed in place uniformly. Somewhere along the line I made a mistake. I won’t know exactly what I managed to mess up until I take it apart. Until then, I’m afraid all I’ll be able to do is guess what my Boo Boo was.

Just by way of interest did you notice what your oil pressure was on your test drive? obviously I am wondering if your relief valve is actually working.

My eyes were glued to the oil pressure gauge. During startup and while the engine oil was cool, the oil pressure was indicating 55psi. After the engine oil was warm and until I returned to the garage after noticing the oil leak, the pressure would be 55psi when the rpm was 1,500 or higher, and when at idle, at a stoplight, the oil pressure dropped to 40psi. Is that normal? I assumed it was as the oil pressure on my other cars follows a similar track.

Pretty normal, plenty pressure.

I thought so, but wasn’t confirmed until your note, thanks.

I couldn’t wait any longer, I had to find out what I did wrong, and in the process of removing the canister and bracket, the problem was obvious. This photo (I hope it works, my first upload) illustrates what happens when you use the wrong tool to push the square O-ring into its seating surface. In this case, I took a “shortcut” and used a screwdriver to push the O-ring in place. A really bad idea any time, but especially bad when it’s on such a critical component. I’ve learned my lesson, but still am going to go ahead with the spin-on oil filter kit.

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