Glass in oil filter?

[Lobo1186]

So i changed my oil today and when i cut open my filter there were what seemed to me little pieces of brown glass in the filter.

Now Im not saying that is what it actually was... but it was transparent, brown and fairly sharp like little glass shards. anyone got any ideas? i know it sounds a lil wild but im just calling it as I see it. I would have taken some pics but really it wouldnt have helped cuz it would have just shown small brown specs.

[Rdward]

It could be the variocam chain tensioner guides, they are known to wear and possibly fail. How many miles is on your car?

[Lobo1186]

true but would it be a clear shard? there are 60200 miles

[Lil bastard]

Assuming you're not drinking brown bottle beer when changing the oil, it's not glass, it's 'varnish', a by-product of gasoline as it chemically breaks down. Unburnt fuel does end up in the oil as do pieces of varnish that break free from interior surfaces of the engine - it's why oil contains detergents. They circulate to the filter and are captured. Perfectly normal.

You can confirm this by placing the pieces in a saucer filled with a solvent, even alcohol. Leave it overnight and you'll find that the 'glass' magically disappears.

Cheers!

[Lobo1186]

good. I was hoping it was something to that effect but honestly I didnt know what. other than those specs the filter looked clean no metal or plastic. its a good sign (i hope) for a box around 60K miles. thanks for the help

[Flavor 987S]

For about $23 you can send your used oil out to a lab for analysis (Blackstone for example). A cheap way to build a database on the "health" of your engine.

I just pre-purchased 6 tests from Blackstone for about $19 each, this will last me 3 years, since I do oil analysis on both cars at the yearly oil change prior to winter hibernation. They are having a price increase soon.