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Draining the Engine Oil Sump, changing Oil Filter

Quick facts :

How to  :

Getting prepared
You'll need :
car ramps; 8 litres oil pan; drain tap adapter RR tool or 14mm adapter filed down to 13'5mm (pic 1); breaker bar; a 22 mm socket for the filter; empty oil containers; torque wrench.
It is good also to have :
chemical gloves; an o-ring pick; a hammer and a piece of wood; an oil seringue; lots of newspaper

1. Drain the engine sump
Warm the engine
Put car on a ramp (pic 2). Be aware that ideally  the car should be on level in order to perfectly empty the sump. So avoid too steep a ramp.
Open oil filler located in the bonnet
Place a container (7-8 litres) under the drain plug
Remove the drain plug with the adapter tool or the one you have made (see above).
You may need a breaker bar. But do gently because the pan is made of thin aluminium.
Slowly unscrew the tap, use chemical gloves : hot oil.
Lets oil completely drain into pan (pics 3 to 7).
It is an occasion to check that your oil level quick test button operates properly (pic 7b). Push button : on the "fuel" gauge the white indicatro should not move.
Check condition of the washer and replace if necessary (pic 8)

2. Replacing the oil filter
Support filter by hand and unscrew the setscrew at the bottom of the filter (pic 10)
Rem (from book by Waples) : "the bolt has fine threads so it will take quite a few turns to remove completely".
Carefully hold the filter with the setscrew in place while unscrewing for at least three reasons :
- holding upright you will avoid spilling oil,
- you will avoid damaging the threads by hitting them against against some metal part when  the axis detaches from the engine
- you will be able to slowly detach and read the sub-assembly of seals, washers, spring that are inside the filter housing.
Be sure that the setscrew is totally free before trying to pull out the filter housing.
Even in this case the filter housing may be stuck in the little recess where it mates the engine : use a little hammer and a piece of wood and gently tap it all around / twist it.
(Waples again : )
"Using a o-ring pick tool, remove the mating rubber sealing from the recess where the filter housing mates to the engine.
Be careful not to scratch the aluminium.
Disassemble all of the items contained in the filter housing (pic 14).
REM : as it is very easy to make a mistake in the correct assembly sequence of these items, please read here for further informations.
Clean the inside of the housing with a lint-free rag and reassemble the oil filter using the items found in the kit (pic 13).
Make certain that the filter housing lip and the recess for the sealing ring are clean.
Lubricate the new sealing ring with  clean oil and  and install it all its way into the recess (pic 15).
Refill half of the bowl with clean oil
Holding the renewed filter assembly, carefully turn the retaining bolt clockwise a few turns to avoid stripping (french  : foirer) the threads.
Once it is engaged sufficiently, push the housing into the sealing ring recess.
Tighten the bolt with the other hand  while holding the housing firmly in the recess.
The required torque tightening figure as mentioned in the Workshop Manual is 10 to 12 lb/ft or 1,4 to 1,6 kg/m
Be careful not to foul the seal."

3.Refilling with new oil
Pour a little new oil through oil filler and let it drop through the drain plug (in order to evacuate remaining wasted oil)
Fit drain plug and new washer if necessary
Fill engine with 3/4 of the total required quantity (about 5 litres)
Wait one minute
Start engine and let it run until extinction the oil pressure light
Add remainging oil little by little until it reaches the right level on the gauge
Fit the filler cap.

4. Extra : Fitting a Quick Valve drain plug
Quick Valve is a permanent drain plug (valve) which should make further drain easier / cleaner. It allows you to drain the sump by just opening a tap and directing dirty oil to a container using a long rubber hose (part of the kit). I've decided to test it. Read more about it here.
See pictures 17 to 19.

Refered pictures

Rolls Royce Silver Shadow 1 : filing down a drain plug adapter Pic 1 : filing down a drain plug adapter from 14 to 13,5mm

Rolls Royce SS1 on a home made ramp Pic 2 : using medium size home made ramps

Adapter in place Pic 3 : adpater in place

Beaker bar in place  Pic 4 : breaker bar in place (here with a 19mm socket)

Chemical gloves because warm oil Pic 5 : slowly unscrew with chemical gloves

Hot oil draining Pic 6 : hot oil draining

An 8 litres oil pan almost full Pic 7 : 8 litres pan almost full.

Oil level quick test Pic 7b : testing the oil level tester with empty pan.

Oil drain plug and its washer Pic 8 : oil drain plug and its washer (good condition here)

Rolls Royce Silver Shadow 1 Oil filter Pic 9 : oil filter seen from under the car. 22 mm - 7/8in bolt

Use a 22mm / 7/8 socket to unscrew the bolt Pic 10 : use a 22mm / 7/8 socket to unscrew the bolt

Unmounted oil filter Pic 11 : unmounted oil filter

OIl filter wish rubber seal Pic 12 : filter and rubber seal seen from top


Cleaning housing with a lit free rag Pic 13 : cleaning the housing with a lint-free rag

Elements inside the filter housing Pic 14 : seals, washers, spring inside the housing (see below for correct sequence)

Lubricating filter housing mating seal before assembly Pic 15 : lubricating filter housing mating seal before assembly

Rubber seal setting in its recess Pic 16 : seal in its recess

Quick Valve Pic 17 : left original drain plug and washer, right Quick Valve and washer

Fitting a Quick Valve Drain Plug Pic 18 : fitting the QV

QV in place Pic 19 : QV in place

Oil filter sub-assembly (filter housing part)

Informations were gathered from  the RR/ Bentley spare parts documents on filters  and an article Tee One Topics, gently provided by Geoff from the RR forum.

Silver Shadow 1 Filter Housing Assembly Sequence
Note that : on the picture the item#7 does look like a plain gasket : it is not. It may have been unproperly changed for a gasket on your filter (see Tee One Topic article).
Item #4 is a rubber element whose inside diameter appears to be slightly smaller then the one of the axis to make it fit closely.

More infos/tips gathered here

Condensation in engine
Six months is more than long enough to keep the oil, 3 months is better. Miles do not mean all that much on a car that gets little or short driving. Condensation collects in an engine and short infrequent trips will not heat the engine enough to get the water out.

Always change filter
I would NEVER recommend changing only the oil and not the filter. If for no other reason you are leaving maybe a quart of dirty old oil in the filter that contaminates your fresh oil.

The Sump Plug Adaptor is often missing in the tool kit. Here is what I found in RR Forum : "Quote: 13mm would be the closest size you'll find in metric. A 14-mm Allen wrench is a tiny bit too large and 13 mm just a tiny bit too small. Some have purchased a 14-mm and then ground it down a smidgen.
You might want to consider buying a Quick Oil Drain Valve so you'll never have to take the plug out again. The FG-5 or FG-5N sizes (The 'N' version has a nipple on the end of the valve) are the ones for Rolls-Royce and Bentley motorcars from the Cloud/S period up through the SZ series cars.

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