First let me say please don't waste your and my time by making comments if you don't change your own oil.

Not sure why Toyota designed an oil filter cap on the Camry that doesn't just spin off once you get it loose. And based on the comments I've seen from other Camry owners, you don't want to over tighten it unless you want to play hell to get it off. I'm used to an oil filter that you can spin off my hand once you get it loose. On my wife's Camry, you have to use an oil filter socket on it until it's close to being off. I suspect it's because of the O-ring that's on the filter cap where you have to get it down close to the end before you can turn it by hand.

Also, I've never tried what appears to be a socket plug in the end of the cap to get it off. Not sure if this is a drain plug that allows you to drain the cap before removing it. Give the amount of torque that's needed to break the cap loose, I don't want to mess up the cap.

When replacing the cap and filter, I make it a point to never tighten it very hard once the cap stops against the engine body.

Comments?

Have you checked Youtube? It's amazing the automotive DIY videos.

If it is the typical canister oil filter try to find the Youtube video on Fram. They sawed open a number of filters and Fram appeared to be pure junk.

Thanks for the reply. Yes, nothing like YouTube when it comes to learning how. In this case, I know how but just wondering if other DIY'ers who own a Camry have noticed the same issue. I've also seen quite a few comments about it various Toyota forums. Unfortunately, none of them included comments about the socket hole in the end of the cap.

Longtime Toyota owners like myself have learned that when it comes to maintenance, Toyota has traditionally made them easy to work on. I can remember the oil filter on my wife's first Camry, a 1989 model. The oil filter was on the front side of the engine and was the first one I have ever seen that was mounted up so that when you removed it, all the oil had drained back into the engine block. You could literally just reach down and remove it without spilling a drop of oil.

Looking at the you tube video for Camry oil change, it looks like the Camry uses the same cartridge type filter that is in my Tundra and Highlander.

For the screw cap on the bottom, that comes off and there is a valve inside you connect the little plastic tool that comes with your cartridge filter. The hole in the cap is the same size as a socket extender. So I just connect my socket wrench to it and unscrew it. I think the first time I changed my oil, that bottom screw may have been in there really tight. However, once I unscrewed it once, it wasn't bad to do afterwards. As you were thinking, that cap covers the valve you use to drain the filter before you take it off. I've skipped that part before and made a mess as oil spilled all over everything when I took off the filter assembly. The Toyota filters give you a plastic tool that you can push into the valve. I think the Fram filters give you one that screws into the valve. I have a couple of the screw in ones and prefer them over the push in ones.

For the filter assembly, go on Amazon and spend the $10 to get the filter socket/wrench (it looks something like this).
Toyota filter wrench

Connect it to the filter assembly and use a socket wrench to take it off. Is it as easy as the old fashion single piece filter, maybe not. However, it's not that terrible after you've done it 10 or 15 times. I actually think the filter socket makes it easier to remove the filter assembly than the old style filter on my daughters Honda. By the time I get to the filter on her car, my hands already have oil on them and I can never get her filter off without crushing it with a wrench.

Like gtrich94 said, remove the Hex Cap and insert the plastic tool that comes with the filter to drain the filter housing (put a hose on it or a bottle to catch the oil). Then use the Toyota tool to remove the filter housing and filter. I put a little bit of grease on the area the O-Ring will be sealing against and install the new filter, housing and Hex Cap. This is on a 2011 4Runner but has the same design and the grease has helped on the following removal. I wish they still had the spin on filter on the top like the one on my 2003 4Runner.

Dan

on a side note, what year is her Camry? I'm considering their HSE 6 cylinder, 301 HP.

Thanks for the replies. Sorry for being so late getting back to the conversation.

I've been removing the filter housing with the tool made for that purpose. What I haven't been doing is draining the oil out of the housing before removing it. Yes, it causes a good bit of oil to flow out with the housing but I have a large enough drain pan to catch it without creating a mess.

What confuses me is the Hex Cap that you mention. The top of the filter housing (which is positioned down when it's screwed onto the engine) has what appears to be a round (rather than hex shaped) steel insert with what appears to be a square hole for a ratchet. Does this steel insert unscrew from the housing so that you can insert plastic tool that comes with the filter? If so, what keeps oil from just draining out of the housing that's still on the bottom of the engine? I thought this socket hole might be another way to remove the housing without use of the special tool that fits over the entire housing itself. I've never tried to turn the steel insert in the top of the cap out of fear of damaging the housing.

After writing these comments, I found a YouTube video where the person who made it suggested leaving the drain cap alone and just do what I've been doing and just remove the housing. Other than the excess oil that comes out once you remove the housing, are there any advantages in removing the drain cap and using the plastic tool to drain the housing?

Buzzsaw - Sorry but all three of the Camry's we've owned were equipped with 4-cyclinder engines.

Been changing the oil on tundras since 2011. Buy the two tools below and you won’t have any more issues. It’s best to drain the oil filter housing first, strictly to create less mess. The other reason, and more importantly IMO, is the oring underneath the filter housing drain plug is designed to be replaced after every oil change. The other oring is for the filter housing itself. There is a reason two orings come with every filter.
The filter housing is independent from the pan and it will only drain out around 1/2-3/4 of a quart even if the pan is full.

Thanks for the info and photos.

The second photo appears to show a metal filter housing and tool that fits over tabs near the outside of the housing. The housing on my wife's Camry is plastic, meaning I strongly suspect the tabs will likely break off if I used that approach to unscrew it from the bottom of the block. While I make it a point to never over-tighten the housing when replacing it, it always takes some torque to remove it during the first six or seven turns. I suspect this is caused by what I'll call a "safety tab" that rests against the bottom of the housing with a small notch that keeps the housing from working loose. Not sure if you guys are holding this tab back when you unscrew the housing, which would definitely make removing the housing a two-hand task.

I'm going to try the drain-the-housing-first approach the next time I change the oil and see how it goes. I can't say I'll do it that way every time but often enough to get a fresh o-ring in the housing drain port. However, if all goes well and it appears opening the drain port doesn't create more hassle than it's worth, I'll likely take that approach with every oil change. Yes, the larger o-ring on the outside of the housing that mates against the block gets changed every time.

Here's a photo of the tool I use to remove the plastic filter housing on my wife's Camry. I've been using this type of tool to remove filters from every Camry we've owned, going back to our first one in 1989. Changing the oil in that '89 model was always a breeze because the oil filter was located on the front side of the block. It was also a traditional type filter mounted right side up so that you could reach down from the front of the vehicle and remove without spilling a drop of oil.



Thanks again for all the replies and feedback.

Fwiw, I’ve used that removal tool on both plastic and metal housings without issue. Good luck.

Another question for those still following.

I assume the drain plug on the bottom of the filter housing has right-hand threads. Will I find it torqued such that it will unscrew without the housing starting to unscrew as well, or will the housing need to be somehow held so it doesn't turn as well?

TIA