The Great Oil Filter Debate (fun & goofy)

[s1mp13m4n]

The idea behind this post is to simply have fun. The idea is to just have fun with the goofy stuff we do in relation to oil filters. Fram for example, people either love them or hate them. Fram oil filters seem to be hated because they cost more than a similar Purolator or Wix. They are also hated because the ends of the filter media are cardboard that is blued on. The funny bit, does the cardboard and glue have any bearing on how well the oil filter does what it does? It is funny that we get caught up on the glue and cardboard and then claim that the filter will blow up our engine.

Now lets move on to Puralator. People have been using this brand for years. Now all of a sudden with a few recent bad filters people want to dismiss them because of a tear in the filtering media. A handful of filters out of many millions are found to be bad and now people are afriad of the Tearolator. Alright so Fram is junk because of some glue and cardboard and ALL Puralators tear thus blowing up your engine. So that must send us all out to buy a Wix filter or one of the many named variants.
Now that we have our Wix oil filter installed, we are feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. Until, while driving the car the oil filter suddenly catches fire due to some chemical imbalance between the filter media and the motor oil that we have decided to use. Our beloved Wix oil filters have now been blamed for creating fear in people because the use of such an oil filter WILL cause your engine to spontaneously combust when a certain motor oil is used.
Now that we have decided that Fram is junk, the Tearolators blow up your engine, and the Wix filters cause fires, where do we go from here? Remember this is simply for fun and not about right or wrong or getting off topic and filter bashing.

 

[Olas]

Some stupid/weird/unnecessary I do with filters is;

Always use the most ridiculously oversized filter that fits and meets bypass spec
Stockpile way more than I need
Change them way too early
Religiously stick to two brands which have been the OEM on every vehicle I've owned
Siff them as they come outta the box
...and...
Make daily visits to a website dedicated to them

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Prefill when installing. I'm pretty sure it doesn't do anything.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

I think the fram issue was a pleat crimp opening up. ANY filter may go bust if you have too much h20 in the oil.

Don't forget the E core Champion hate. I've had good luck with non ecore champs over 40 years. Had can -to-base crimp weeping when I tried Pur-O Leaker in the 90's. Thus the name.

Had MAJOR bypass failure with NAPA Select with the garbage combo valve design (cheap wix), also, small form factor Wix have poor media area with the otherwise excellent base end bypass valve.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Full prefilling hurts - so I backed oof to 1/2 pprefilling. Like I said before, you don't want a big slug of reticent oil 1/2 way up the pumps mains when you are trying to move some oil to the main drill.

All You new Subaru guys with the FB engine - you have a dry, empty filter EVERTIME you start the car after a 1/2 hour sit

How does THAT make you feel? ~C.R.I.N.G.E~

 

[HerrStig]

Originally Posted By: s1mp13m4n
The idea behind this post is to simply have fun. The idea is to just have fun with the goofy stuff we do in relation to oil filters. Fram for example, people either love them or hate them. Fram oil filters seem to be hated because they cost more than a similar Purolator or Wix. They are also hated because the ends of the filter media are cardboard that is blued on. The funny bit, does the cardboard and glue have any bearing on how well the oil filter does what it does? It is funny that we get caught up on the glue and cardboard and then claim that the filter will blow up our engine.

Now lets move on to Puralator. People have been using this brand for years. Now all of a sudden with a few recent bad filters people want to dismiss them because of a tear in the filtering media. A handful of filters out of many millions are found to be bad and now people are afriad of the Tearolator. Alright so Fram is junk because of some glue and cardboard and ALL Puralators tear thus blowing up your engine. So that must send us all out to buy a Wix filter or one of the many named variants.
Now that we have our Wix oil filter installed, we are feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. Until, while driving the car the oil filter suddenly catches fire due to some chemical imbalance between the filter media and the motor oil that we have decided to use. Our beloved Wix oil filters have now been blamed for creating fear in people because the use of such an oil filter WILL cause your engine to spontaneously combust when a certain motor oil is used.
Now that we have decided that Fram is junk, the Tearolators blow up your engine, and the Wix filters cause fires, where do we go from here? Remember this is simply for fun and not about right or wrong or getting off topic and filter bashing.
You might want to Google "minimopar oil filter study" to get a less "amusing" take on this.

 

[FutureDoc]

Originally Posted By: ARCOgraphite
All You new Subaru guys with the FB engine - you have a dry, empty filter EVERTIME you start the car after a 1/2 hour sit

How does THAT make you feel? ~C.R.I.N.G.E~


As long as the head gasket(s) doesn't fail on me...

However, I love the filter placement. No more fighting with a stubborn filter only to bang contorted body parts against various exhaust/suspension components. Plus, oil flows uphill in a boxer and the pistons are always 1/2 submerged in oil.

 

[HerrStig]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
Prefill when installing. I'm pretty sure it doesn't do anything.
Doesn't do much when they mount base down.

 

[DemoFly]

I use oversized filters with synthetic media and silicone ADBVs, even though I do relatively short OCIs for synthetic.


I bought a bunch of 0w-40 for $1 a quart for the jeep...

...and now I really want to put 5w-30 in it...

 

[HerrStig]

Originally Posted By: FutureDoc
Originally Posted By: ARCOgraphite
All You new Subaru guys with the FB engine - you have a dry, empty filter EVERTIME you start the car after a 1/2 hour sit

How does THAT make you feel? ~C.R.I.N.G.E~


As long as the head gasket(s) doesn't fail on me...

However, I love the filter placement. No more fighting with a stubborn filter only to bang contorted body parts against various exhaust/suspension components. Plus, oil flows uphill in a boxer and the pistons are always 1/2 submerged in oil.
If they're "half submerged" they'll cause an amazing foaming problem. A cross section of every VW boxer I've owned, and my BMW bike, show the oil level below the cylinder barrels.

 

[Yah-Tah-Hey]

There does seem to be something anal about BITOGs and oil filters that borders on paranoia. Also lots of good information from knowledgeable members. Hope I don't get myself banned for stating the obvious.

 

[burchster13]

Glad I'm not the only one that sniffs my new oil filter before it goes on!

 

[Stelth]

Well, if you don't trust Fran, Puro, or Wix, then I guess you're "stuck" with filters like Mahle, Baldwin, Hastings, and Denso!

 

[Wheel]

I like some oil in the filter, at least to wet the media. I have absolutely no science to back this, just a gut feeling.

I wasn't pleased with the last Purolator I ran, when I opened it up after, the media was strangely brittle (5000 miles on it) I don't notice this on the Wix or Subaru filters in that distance. It may mean nothing, but I don't like the brittleness.

Next I'll have to go to meetings about this...

 

[Benzadmiral]

I like the color combination and texture of some filters! When I had the big Buick, more than once I bought a filter (a Wix, I think) that was black with yellow lettering, and had a non-glossy surface so you could grip it more easily when installing or removing. How's that for fun and goofy?

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: s1mp13m4n
Now lets move on to Puralator. People have been using this brand for years. Now all of a sudden with a few recent bad filters people want to dismiss them because of a tear in the filtering media. A handful of filters out of many millions are found to be bad and now people are afriad of the Tearolator.

There are millions Purolator used in various vehicles a year, but only a handful filters had been cut the last year or so by members and more than 10-15% of all Purolator filters cut shown problem with tearing media.

Now, if you cut all used Purolator filters(millions of them) you will find a lot more than a handful have problem with tear media.

 

[BobsArmory]

We have become a world full of lowest price wins at the cash register and the best profit margins wins the prize. Are you surprised at the outcome?

 

[KGMtech]

When I oil the gasket, I use my index finger and do one circle clockwise and one circle CCW. This cancels negative energy forces.

This is acceptable....right ??

 

[SJohnson]

Originally Posted By: KGMtech
When I oil the gasket, I use my index finger and do one circle clockwise and one circle CCW. This cancels negative energy forces.

This is acceptable....right ??

If your gonna get lube on your finger, might as well be the middle one.

 

[JimPghPA]

Originally Posted By: Stelth
Well, if you don't trust Fran, Puro, or Wix, then I guess you're "stuck" with filters like Mahle, Baldwin, Hastings, and Denso!


And K&N.