[Acg_27]

Hello guys I noticed that my oil filter housing cap tip broke half of the piece when I was changing oil for my 2007 e90. I didn't take a pic of it but is this a concern?? Is the piece of plastic not going to damage the engine? please help

[Cloverdale]

[Acg_27]

Originally Posted by Cloverdale

@cloverdale Thanks might as well upgrade my cap to the aluminum one but the problem is that the tip of my plastic oil filter housing cap broke as I was taking it out, I tried finding the plastic piece but i couldn't find it inside the oil filter housing. Do you think it will damage the engine?

[autoart]

How much of the tip broke off? You could always change the oil and hope it comes out.

[Acg_27]

Originally Posted by autoart

How much of the tip broke off? You could always change the oil and hope it comes out.

You can see it in the picture i posted, I am a 2nd owner i bought the vehicle at 99k and now mileage is at 125k it was broken the whole time I think, prolly had to do with the previous owner, engine still runs great though with numerous oil changes ever since i bought it, thanks for responding

[e90yyc]

You’ll be just fine. No need to worry. I would replace it with the original part and move on.

Personally I would not be replacing such a critical component with an aftermarket part made of a different material. Why? Because this is NOT an item that fails regularly. By far the biggest threat posed by this part is the absence of it. Many stories of shops forgetting to reinstall the cage component, which can have major consequences. Fortunately for you it’s just missing the tip of its titty.

Again—having a properly-installed cap/cage fail is not a normal thing. Yes it’s made of plastic, but plastic isn’t bad. People seem to assume that replacing a “weak” plastic part with a metal one (of unknown composition and quality) is always an upgrade, but that’s not the case. This is just a general statement and is not directed at your or anyone else. In some cases metal replacements make sense, but I would take a pass on this.

While I haven’t watched the whole video, I know some of the points that are made in here, and they’re worth considering. Can’t speak to the video as a whole so I’m just including it in case it’s helpful.

[Cloverdale]

Originally Posted by Acg_27

@cloverdale Thanks might as well upgrade my cap to the aluminum one but the problem is that the tip of my plastic oil filter housing cap broke as I was taking it out, I tried finding the plastic piece but i couldn't find it inside the oil filter housing. Do you think it will damage the engine?

I only shared VehicularDIY's to share what the cap components do. I haven't gone to aluminum and likely won't after seeing 'Don't Buy' video. Not sure where that plastic tip could travel to.