air filter oily

[rabi_lj]

I just bought a 07 m35x with 130k on it. when replacing the air filter, I found the old one in deep black, and more astonishingly with some oil splash on it, seems the oil mixed with dust making the filter heavier. Is this alarming or quite normal? what should I do now? Thanks

[EdBwoy]

It is alarming to me. The first step would be to replace the air filter, preferrably with an OEM one from whichever source.

Could you take and post a picture of the air fillter in its current state?

[rabi_lj]

It is alarming to me. The first step would be to replace the air filter, preferrably with an OEM one from whichever source.

Could you take and post a picture of the air fillter in its current state?

Thanks bro. I will replace a new one this weekend. Will load the photo after I took the old one out.

[MM...Good]

I just bought a 07 m35x with 130k on it. when replacing the air filter, I found the old one in deep black, and more astonishingly with some oil splash on it, seems the oil mixed with dust making the filter heavier. Is this alarming or quite normal? what should I do now? Thanks

Sounds like you have a K&N filter vs. a standard paper one. Get a kit from Amazon to clean and oil it and put it back in. It is designed to be re-used.

[rabi_lj]

I just bought a 07 m35x with 130k on it. when replacing the air filter, I found the old one in deep black, and more astonishingly with some oil splash on it, seems the oil mixed with dust making the filter heavier. Is this alarming or quite normal? what should I do now? Thanks

Sounds like you have a K&N filter vs. a standard paper one. Get a kit from Amazon to clean and oil it and put it back in. It is designed to be re-used.

no, it's a paper filter. the last owner seems haven't changed the filter for 3 or 5 years. I have never seen a used air filter as black as this. really heart broken for such a nice car. I am waiting for the shipping from amazon to do the replacement. But I will need to wait another 1 week before the delivery. It's really slow in canada.

[Larz]

Not to cause undue worry, but you have to wonder ... If this person was too cheap / lazy to change an air filter, has every other maintenance item been ignored as well? I would slowly begin to change every fluid and swap out cabin and seat filters, replace wipers, etc. After you replace the air filter, you can check it to see if new oil is being deposited.
To your question regarding oil on the filter, I found this:
The First Thing to Check:
Oil in the air filter is an indication that there’s a blow-by problem. The first culprit to check is the PCV valve. These are vital components, but they can get blocked up pretty easily, especially if you’re working on a higher mileage engine (though it’s not uncommon to see blocked PCV valves on cars with less than 100,000 miles). Check the valve operation and for blockage in the PCV system as a whole. If it is blocked or only semi-functional, replacing the valve and cleaning the system is usually all that’s necessary to fix the situation.

Other Potential Issues:
If the problem doesn’t lie with the PCV valve, then there’s something more sinister causing the issue. Usually, this is a sign of bad piston rings, something common in car engines for sale that were sitting to long. To verify this, you’ll need to do a cylinder compression test on all cylinders. In most cases, you’ll need to tear down the engine and replace the piston rings (you might as well do them all if you’re going to do one or two as well). You might also consider replacing the bearings while you’re in there, as you’ll have the engine apart anyway.

[rabi_lj]

Not to cause undue worry, but you have to wonder ... If this person was too cheap / lazy to change an air filter, has every other maintenance item been ignored as well? I would slowly begin to change every fluid and swap out cabin and seat filters, replace wipers, etc. After you replace the air filter, you can check it to see if new oil is being deposited.
To your question regarding oil on the filter, I found this:
The First Thing to Check:
Oil in the air filter is an indication that there’s a blow-by problem. The first culprit to check is the PCV valve. These are vital components, but they can get blocked up pretty easily, especially if you’re working on a higher mileage engine (though it’s not uncommon to see blocked PCV valves on cars with less than 100,000 miles). Check the valve operation and for blockage in the PCV system as a whole. If it is blocked or only semi-functional, replacing the valve and cleaning the system is usually all that’s necessary to fix the situation.

Other Potential Issues:
If the problem doesn’t lie with the PCV valve, then there’s something more sinister causing the issue. Usually, this is a sign of bad piston rings, something common in car engines for sale that were sitting to long. To verify this, you’ll need to do a cylinder compression test on all cylinders. In most cases, you’ll need to tear down the engine and replace the piston rings (you might as well do them all if you’re going to do one or two as well). You might also consider replacing the bearings while you’re in there, as you’ll have the engine apart anyway.

Thanks for sharing. Yeah no doubt my car is way under maintenance. I plan to replace the necessary items gradually. Hope I can bring her up again.