milliel

I have a 2015 ES 350 and much to my surprise,I find out that it has a canister style oil filter.
Does anyone know why Toyota/Lexus went away from the convenient spin on ,throw away oil filter
to the canister style ,somewhat difficult to change unit. I have a few ideas myself, but would like to
know the official reason for the change. tks

bc6152

The canister has been used on this engine since at least 2006. I had a 2006 Avalon with the same engine.
IMO the canister is no more difficult to change than a spin-on filter. The entire canister spins off with any filter wrench and then the cartridge inside is changed along with the "O" ring. If you choose, you can drain the filter first thru the smaller fitting in the bottom of the housing then remove the canister. I just loosen the canister (housing), let it drain, spin it off, change the cartridge and "O" ring, and spin it back on. I don't know why Toyota changed this setup. My best guess is that it provides increased filtration.

milliel

BC , Thanks for responding to my question about why the change away from the standard spin on style filter. My thought for the filter change is that Toyota /Lexus wanted to reduce the amount
in the waste stream. This is just my best guess,possibly someone will give us an official answer..
Thanks

jda2000

For model year 2014+, the filter canister no longer has a bolt to drain the filter.
The new canister is one solid piece, which I think is better since the filter is drained along with the canister in one step.

bc6152

OK, I didn't know of the change. I never used the drain hose and fitting in the bottom anyway. So now it's exactly like a spin-on filter. Thanks for the info...

milliel

I have to tell ya,on my 2015 ES350 ,I have a bolt or drain in the bottom of the
aluminum oil filter canister. Possibly they changed the canister in mid year
production. If you use the little plastic piece that is provided with the new filter,
it keeps the work area a bit cleaner. tks

jda2000

Weird, I thought they changed the design in 2014 since my 2014 ES350 has a canister with no bolt at the bottom.

bc6152

Well JD, looks like they changed it back to the original design where a hose is inserted to drain the filter before spinning it off..