Fram is a junk filter, I have seen it.

[Black_Thunder]

after i had problems with startup noise on my first t-bird i switched to Motorcraft/Purolator and haven't looked back.

never bought an orange can since.


I still use the air filters though, but not the cone style.

 

[Hermann]

Originally Posted By: NightRiderQ45
Originally Posted By: Bill in Utah
Originally Posted By: xBa380
Yeah, I saw a picture of one cut up one time and it looked horrible.

I use OEM Toyota Filters for my xB. Cheap and high quality!



You use Denso filters which for many are built as cheap as a Fram.... (no end caps)

(I've cut open a few and posted photos in the oil filter area)

Take care, bill

Exactly...you oil filter (toyota) is built horrible.



Did not look so bad to me, did you go look at Bill in Utah's pic. The design does have end caps. They are plastic not cardboard, and the design does not appear to need a full coverage endcap. It had a good quality bypass, and is decently constructed. Not a top of the line filter,but good for 5K OCI's IMO. Reasonably priced to boot for a factory backed filter.

 

[ffracer]

HAving raced cars and driven many miles on the same vehicles, I have seen the insides of what happens.

Now racing, is a lot different than road driving, but some issues show up immediately with oil and oil filters.

There are better filters out there, and is saving $1 worth the risk of the engine life? I don't get it. I stopped using Frams on Hondas and Ford Rangers because of the drainback valve took waaaay too long to open. Switched to Motorcraft/Purolator or the 'right' Honda OEM and gone.

For racing, I wouldn't ever consider a cardboard cap filter. No way would it last when things got bad like a radiator clogging, etc. Fram racing filters are made totally different and much better, and are a lot more expensive. I still used Purolators or WIX. They worked great.

 

[dan3952]

Anybody tape this for upload to YouTube or such?

This makes me wish I had cable again.. only on the Discovery Channel

Originally Posted By: GMGuy
If any Canucks are reading this right now, "How Its Made" on Discovery will be showing the construction of a Fram filters in 5 or 10 minutes.

Alex.

 

[cos]

Agreed, they're poorly made (I've cut open quite a few filters). I've personally seen one ruin a Suzuki bike engine (air cooled Bandit) and another one collpase internally on a Chevelle causing the oil pressure to drop to zero. I wouldn't use the orange can of doom if they were free!

 

[Gary Allan]

Might I offer that the Chevelle's owner had his internal block bypass defeated. That's what makes the practice so unsound. You need to use only the lame racing filters (sieves) in the hope that they don't collapse.

 

[cos]

Gary,

This happened at the track, luckily he was just idling and he immmediatly shut it down and then installed a Purolator (his buddy had a spare) - problem solved, the pressure was back to normal.

 

[Gary Allan]

But think about it cos. At "best/worse" this common technique (where some clown pulled this out of his behind - I'd love to know ..and the reasoning behind it "way back in the day") could have any filter breach the media ...all to the ignorance of the driver for the entire use of the filter. If they don't cut open the filter after each use, then it could occur multiple times.

There is no benefit to this technique that can't be safely handled with better/bigger/remote multiple filters while leaving this feature intact. That is, to make it (maybe) work, you need to use the coarser/lower filtering racing filters. So, what did you gain forcing all the poorly filtered oil through them ..when you could push 95-100% of the oil through a standard filter safely and only bypass a fraction of the oil flow during transitions and whatnot?

Do you see Fords and Mopars grenading routinely due to NOT having this defeated bypass option? I'd like to hear about it.

Although it rarely causes issues, this has potential (as your pal experienced) to cost LARGE and has no upside advantage that I can see. Your pal is (probably) refreshing every 2-3 seasons anyway ..so there's no "wear" factor anyway. The cheese cloth sieve of the racing filters lets enough big stuff through anyway

I'm not saying he's an idiot for doing this. He's in very good company Chevy-wide. It's shown its ugly side a few times and really has no productive side of merit to it. It's just something that some famous engine builder did once ..and got adopted widely as a "must do" ..when I really don't think anyone thinks about why. That's all

 

[cos]

I hear you but still wouldn't use a Fram Extra Guard if, like I said before, they were free. Just my two cents.

 

[Pete C.]

Originally Posted By: gfh77665
Before anyone gets riled up, let me say this: I do not presume to be an "oil expert". I do however, have a technical background and most importantly, common sense.

Now, with that in mind, I have seen a cut-a-way of Frams, and they are junk. Any reasonable person could determine that by seeing what I did. While I cannot recommend another brand, I am sure there are plenty of informed opinions/suggestions here. I would gamble with anything BUT a Fram. JMHO.

Big RANT on.
You've seen squat. I've seen them ALL cut apart and we don't consider Frams to be junk. Rant off.

 

[OVERKILL]

Looks like (some?) of FRAM's motorcycle filters also have the metal end-caps like their racing filters:

 

[MrMeeks]

From what I see the extra guard nearly always has the ADBV glued to the base plate.Oil cannot get into the filter if the valve is stuck.This caused my Ford to knock at startup.Now I use NAPA or puro. filters without the knocks.

 

[webfors]

I've seen worse filters than a fram and have cut open lots of them... if fram is junk then ecores are incredible-super-junk. Some here that bash fram would defend an ecore, which is funny as heck and defies logic. Do I use them right now, no. I currently have a stash of Tokyo Roki's and Purolators, but will probably use the blue subaru OEM in the future.

 

[motorguy222]

I havent used a Fram oil filter for some time but I used to use them most of the time and if there was a problem,I didnt know it.People bring up that they have cardboard end caps and that they will fall apart.If that is so,why is it that the elements dont fall apart in most filters?

Most filters have elements made of paper and or a combination of paper and something else.If the cardboard endcaps cant take the oil,how do paper elements stand up to it? If you look at the endcaps in a Fram,it isnt the cardboard that you would find in a cardboard box,it is what Fram calls,a fiber,something different than regular cardboard.

I am not saying that Frams are the best but I dont think they are as bad as some try and make them out to be.If they were,I would have probably ruined an engine or two over the years,I would have had to.If they are as bad as some say,the chance of getting a bad one all of those years would have been very high.

 

[Prelude]

Fram filters which are made in South Africa, Korea and EU are of decent quality. They never have flimsy end caps, valves or incoplete threads. The even look better.

 

[Hermann]

Ran a Fram PH3614 OCD two changes ago and the Tacoma is still running. My old 1991 Toyota PU used dozens of them, and at 180K, the engine ran perfect, when totaled it for me.

 

[db500]

geez, aren't we past all this "fram is death" [censored] yet?

They are a cheaper filter and made cheaper, but still meet OEM standards and nobody is going to deny a warranty claim if you use a Fram. There are better filters out there and they cost the same or more.

I think the original poster maybe was trolling.

 

[tinmanSC]

Originally Posted By: MrMeeks
From what I see the extra guard nearly always has the ADBV glued to the base plate.Oil cannot get into the filter if the valve is stuck.This caused my Ford to knock at startup.Now I use NAPA or puro. filters without the knocks.


This thread is a month old. And the topic is 30 years old. Can't we put this one to bed?

 

[Steve S]

Originally Posted By: GROUCHO MARX
It's a good thing that oil filters are largely unnecessary. This fact keeps Fram in business.
Other than to at least double the engine life at least I guess I would have to agree.

 

[Steve S]

Originally Posted By: ffracer
HAving raced cars and driven many miles on the same vehicles, I have seen the insides of what happens.

Now racing, is a lot different than road driving, but some issues show up immediately with oil and oil filters.

There are better filters out there, and is saving $1 worth the risk of the engine life? I don't get it. I stopped using Frams on Hondas and Ford Rangers because of the drainback valve took waaaay too long to open. Switched to Motorcraft/Purolator or the 'right' Honda OEM and gone.

For racing, I wouldn't ever consider a cardboard cap filter. No way would it last when things got bad like a radiator clogging, etc. Fram racing filters are made totally different and much better, and are a lot more expensive. I still used Purolators or WIX. They worked great.
The Fram HP1s other than higher burst look just like the orange cans construction, I have cut some open.