bigBADbenny wrote:I doubt it's coming loose, it's either not tight enough or you have another oil leak.
Iirc the idea is to lube the o ring and get its as hand tight as possible, failing that use the Tq specced in the FSM with the appropriate wrench adapter.
Clean the lower part of the block, eg with a quality degreaser and lots of tooth brush action and rinsing, reinspect it after driving: the underside, to see the source of the leak, eg oil cooler/warmer, sump, valve cover gasket or timing cover.
^ Agree, with bigBADbenny! Filter is usually tight as a fishes whats-is-name
Assuming this is an EJ253 engine? (doesn't say? However 2.5i engine section?)
No.2 Junior had oily oil filter on his car. (MY09 EJ253 engine)
Turned out to be head gaskets.
It is easy to blame the oil filter, as this is where the oil accumulates.
Betcha it is the leaky EJ25 head gaskets. The drivers side (near the oil filter) goes first due to the heat off the exhaust and the Cat Converter
You gotta love those POS Subaru head gaskets in the NA cars!
Service centre cost in the range $1,500 to $2,000, depending on what other parts are changed while the engine is out.
Clean or replace the PCV valve. This will aggravate a head gasket oil leak.
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