Do most folk change thier oil filter every oil change ?

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If one uses a premium filter like a Mobil 1 or equivelent & does 3k mile changes , is it OK to use the same filter for a couple changes..?
Many people myself included have a hard time shelling out $ 12 bucks for an oil filter but if it stays on through 2 changes then it's not more expensive then using a fram every change, is this a good idea ?
dunno.gif

thanks,

[ October 03, 2003, 01:30 PM: Message edited by: Scali62 ]
 
This has been discussed several times.

To me it just seems weird to leave a grubby filter on with new oil.

I say use a less expensive filter and change it often, 2x or more during an extended OCI or everytime with short intervals.
 
if your changing every 3 thousand, go with a supertech oil filter. Dont' waste your money on a filter if your not going past 3k when you can save that money for w/e else you need for your car.
 
Jimbo, I'm using a Hastings with Dino, maybe not quite a Mobil 1 filter but better then a Fram & I guess I consider it a premium filter .
Pablo, my ex wife has me on a strict budget, I'm always trying to save some bucks. Also I recently cut open 2 Frams last 2 changes after doing an Auto-Rx treatment to check them out & found that they were hardly dirty @ all, just some surface crud, so it seems overkill to change the filter every oil change. My truck is 10 years old also.
I was just wondering if this was common practice ,thanks for the replys
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I have always changed the filter every oil change and used AC's when I found them reasonable. The particles that clog filters and wear engines are too small to see. Your dark, but crud free filter may have been bypassing most of the oil. The Hastings and other lower priced filters I have cut open had significantly less filter area than AC. Fram is the worst. ST is next to the worst, but close enough behind the others that for the money I am using them on my truck since PF 1177's are so hard to find.
 
When I cut up the 4 cyl Camry filters I found for filter area:
Purolater 94 sq inches
Supertech 71
and wix only 64

So Supertech at least in the camry 4 cyl (1994) size is in the middle of the pack.
 
quote:

Originally posted by Pablo:
This has been discussed several times.

To me it just seems weird to leave a grubby filter on with new oil.

I say use a less expensive filter and change it often, 2x or more during an extended OCI or everytime with short intervals.


His oil filter shouldn't be too grubby with only 3k on it. I know this will sound weird, but I think if someone is doing oil changes every 3k, if they are using a decent filter they could probably leave it on for 6k. Think of it as a 6k oil change interval with 4-5 quarts of makeup oil in the middle!
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I was wondering about the same question not too long ago. It does seem that an oil filter can safely go to 6,000 miles. I think 3 Mad Ponchos has shown us that an oil filter can easily go the distance, of course this is assuming a properly running engine.
This is the main reason I would only use something like a Wix/Napa Gold filter when doing extended intervals. Now that I am doing ~3,500 miles oil changes and still have a few Wix filters left, I was thinking I could just change it out every other oil change.
My manual states that under normal conditions the oil and filter do not have to be changed for 7,000 miles, so that must mean there are a lot of people out there who follow the manufacturers recommendations and get their oil changed at Jiffy Lube/K-Mart every 7,000 miles and use whatever filter they put on and you can bet it is not top quality.
 
owners manuals used to call for a filter change every other oil change.
Can not remember when that recommendation changed - maybe in the 70s?
I never saw any study saying why the change.
Probably jiffy Lube marketing
 
I'm sure at 3K the filter would be in good shape. It's the used oil that bugs me.

I know the used (soaked in) oil in the filter will be diluted back and with a good oil will be in pretty good condition - but to me it's a more of a practical matter. When I change my oil, getting every microgram of the old stuff out is just so important.

Scali - I hope you aren't paying $12 for the Hastings filter. I say if you are on a budget (me too!), let the Mobil1 go 6K (easy really), pick a less expensive filter such as a Motorcraft or Purolater - it will make it 6K. I pay $2.88 for my FL1-A's at Walmart. Even if you worry about 6K, replace just the filter and top off the oil at 3K (mid point) for $7 and you'll still be ahead ($-wise), plus the oil will be refreshed.
 
I'm with HondaRD and Patman. With the same oil & a 3K change interval, I'll bet you could skip a change for one interval.

You may not be able to see any crud in a filter, but its there. Here is the latest info I've collected on particle counts for 4 different filters.

code:



P1 PL3001 FL-1A K&N 1010 Wix 51356

P/ML >2 59,197 48,021 53,805 45,753

P/ML >5 45,106 37,106 25,517 25,346

P/ML >15 75 36 37 232

P/ML >25 1 1 4 33

P/ML >50 0 0 1 1

P/ML >100 0 0 0 0



P/ML is Particles per Milliliter greater than the stated micron number



I'd use a less efficient filter however, like a Wix.

[ October 04, 2003, 09:31 AM: Message edited by: Roger ]
 
Pablo, I payed $ 6 & change for the Hastings.
I just graduated from the Frams. I picked up a Mobil 1 the next day for $ 11 bucks which I'll use in the coming months.
The only reason this thought dawned on me is I recently started opening up filters to check them out after 3 k mile changes & they showed some pretty minor surface dirt only, they looked good to go for @ least 3k more miles { if not more }.
I get your point about the old oil in the filter recirculating but most could be removed by just taking off the old filter & dumping it out .
The gist of my original question if I was to restate it would be is it better for the engine to go with a " Premium " filter & uses it through 2 oil changes then use a cheapo every change ?
That I'm not sure about but I think it most likely is better to go the premium 2 change route
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Well, in a few months I hope to have some evidence that filters are pretty much useless and can be left on for indefinte periods with a quality oil, and well functuning enigine. On my 2000 Buick GSE SC I am going 12,000 miles on this oil change with the same filter and will see how the results compare to previous UOA when I changed the filter at about 6000 miles in the OCI. those of you that keep saying that 20 microns or less cause wear, well, a true scientific study has never been done to prove that hypothesis and in todays modern engine the oil does all the work. Will see what the results are!

By the way, at the Mitsubishi dealer this week and their posted maintenance schedule is 7500 miles OCI with a fitler every other oil change. thats 15,000 miles guys from the manufacturer

[ October 04, 2003, 06:15 PM: Message edited by: Spector ]
 
Spector, another test we'll be seeing soon which will also prove that oil filters don't need to stop small particles to prevent engine wear, is Bob's upcoming UOA. He has been running without an oil filter entirely and will have a UOA on a 3000 mile interval like this.
 
I wonder about one thing regarding the post question. Bob just recently posted pictures of inlet vs. outlet pressure for a Purolator Pure One filter after ~3,500 miles of use from a Ford F150 (Hope my memory serves me right). I noticed that outlet pressure had only dropped 3 psi (net pressure loss of only 1.5 psi) but the inlet pressure had increased by 6 psi. While 3 psi may not be significant I wonder if the increase in required input pressure could be a significant factor over the long term.
 
HondaRD, so there's more to consider then just the fact the filter in service for 3k miles isnt that dirty. But I wonder just how many miles it takes to create the pressure changes & how the pressures would read @ 6k miles?
Interesting point ...
 
I understand what you're saying Pablo, at oil change time I want to get every last bit of the old stuff out, especially if I'm switching brands.

I just ran into a situation like this in my dad's Volvo. I changed his oil this morning but didn't have the right tool to take off the cover for his oil filter (he's got a cartridge one) so I had to just do the oil change with the old filter on it. I wasn't super worried though, as he only has 2k on that filter, he got his oil changed at 2k and they put in GTX 10w30 and a new cartridge, and now it's got 4k on it and I put in GC 0w30. He's only running this oil for 4k, then he'll be at exactly 12,000km and he'll be doing 12,000km intervals from that point on.
 
HondaRD

That was my F150 the PureOne filter was taken off of at 134,000 miles.

This truck was a daily driver , 100 miles per day 90% freeway, until a few months before that filter was removed.

100,000 miles with the oil changed every 3000 and I mean every 3000 with Penn 10w30 and Fram. Then two 5,000 mile changes on Mobil 1 10w-30 with PureOne filters. Then 5000 mile changes on Schaeffer's 15w-40 and PureOne till the present at 136,000.

Bob's demo made me realize extended drain with Schaeffer's was very possible. But no extended drains on a high beta rated filter for this country boy. That rise in the inlet pressure tells the tale.
 
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