Alright, so finished up the oil filter relocation kit, I was getting angry about getting oil all over my rack and front cross member every time I change the oil, the filter's also a PITA to get to so I wanted an easier place to get at. I know there's lots of tricks to getting the filter off without any mess but the location is still a PITA and I change the oil very regularly with my setup so I want simple and easy. It was pretty straightforward to install, tool requirements were very minimal: a drill, 5/16 drill bit, ratchet with socket (or flat head screwdriver bit), and a crescent wrench (or proper sized box-end).
I used the
Tansdapt 1127 remote filter kit, it's not listed for the Ram, but the filter kit works perfectly since we have a 22mm x 1.5 thread pitch with a 2 1/2" ID filter flange. I got my kit from Jegs for $70, very reasonable price I think.
Now, the kit comes with all the hoses and fittings to install everything except the teflon tape for the threaded fittings. Since I'm a stickler for how it looks as well as how it functions, I changed out the brass fittings for some 90 deg -10AN fittings and some Hose Candy hose wrap to clean it up for a better looking install. If you don't care about looks as much, the install is the exact same, just use the supplied brass fittings instead of the -AN fittings.
I installed the remote filter base vertically on the passenger's side inner frame rail but it can be installed horizontally as well with no issues if you want a cleaner install with the brass fittings. I made a paper template of the filter holes and transferred it onto the frame rail then drilled the 5/16" holes and used the ratchet to tighten it to the frame using the supplied screws. I tightened the 1/2" NPT to -10AN fittings into place before installation because of how close I wanted it to the radiator. 90 deg fittings in place just for clearance testing
Then I installed the filter by-pass base onto the block's oil filter mount. This just threads into place, the instructions say that if it doesn't thread on all the way that a few threads will need to be cut off the factory nipple, but this wasn't required. They say to just tighten it as a normal oil filter, but I did take my filter wrench to it to get it the last full turn since there's less to grab compared to a normal filter.
Both the bypass base and the remote base are labelled for the hoses IN/OUT so it's not hard to set it up, but I still managed to do screw it up the first time.
I attached one set of fittings to one end of the supplied hoses, I then attached the hoses to the bypass base and laid them out to get the proper length, marked them and cut them. I then installed the hose wrap and the other set of fittings.
Install the OUT hose from the bypass base to the IN on the remote base, and the OUT from the remote base to the IN on the bypass base. So easy I managed to screw it up, I know.
After all is said and done, I installed a new RP oil filter. It should be noted that the remote base does not use the standard Dodge 22mm x 1.5 oil filter, it uses the more common 3/4"-16 filters which happen to be cheaper too.
Once it was all installed, I fired up the truck, had zero oil pressure because I'm an idiot. Swapped the hoses on the remote filter base and retried, oil pressure jumped right up and all was good with the world. Once I shut it down after running for a while, I checked for leaks, had none, topped up the engine oil as required. My oil changes will now need 7-8 quarts instead of the normal 7 to account for the additional hoses and filter volumes.
