Last spring I bought a 1986 Case IH 255, a 24 hp rebadged diesel Mitsubishi with 4WD, loader, and particularly, a Laurin cab installed on the chassis. Therein lies the tale.
Changing the oil filter on the 1400 hour tractor was almost impossible. When I finally got the thing off, it had grooves scored into it. Without an alternative, I forced another identical filter back on. It worked.
This winter I had the welder who was maintaining the loader take a look at the situation. He reported that the plumbing fittings for the heater in the cab intruded into the space for the oil filter. He suggested the solution would be to disassemble the plumbing and reroute it.
In late summer I tried another oil change with the “correct” filter in hand, but when I looked at the poor, scarred lump I had removed, I looked around for an alternative. In the basin of my oil drain tray sat a blue filter from a Subaru. It looked small, and the threads measured right, so I tentatively twisted it on. No problem. A perfect fit.
I removed the blue filter and took it to the local NAPA auto parts store, where a guy looked up the filter on his computer. It seemed to have a similar flow rate to that of the tractor, so I bought one, put it on, and it has worked so far without a hitch.
Today I read on a forum that in cold weather, tractor engines need larger diameter oil filters. I’m currently using 5W30 synthetic, but could easily go to 0W40 for winter use. Does anyone know anything about large vs small sizing of oil filters for winter frost?
Thanks,
Rod in Forfar, Ontario
