WIX 51516XP Cut Open

[HX520W]

Originally Posted By: JohnnyJohnson
Just kind of curious I didn't see what kind of oil you're using in that Saturn?
I've been changing this car's oil for the last 23,000 miles and have used the following oils in the order that they're written.

Pennzoil High Mileage (Two oil changes)
Shell Rotella T5 (One oil change)
Chevron Delo XLE (Two oil changes)
Valvoline MaxLife Full Syn (Two oil changes)

The car currently has Havoline High Mileage Syn Blend in it. I've never used Havoline before (it used to be almost impossible to find around here), but I tend to hear good things about it.

 

[JohnnyJohnson]

Well it would be interesting to see that next filter cut open and see if that Havoline Deposit Shield Technology really works.

What weight is the Havoline you are putting in it now?

 

[HX520W]

I use 5W-30 if I'm using PCMO and 10W-30 if it's HDEO.

 

[BlueOvalFitter]

Thanks for the C&P.
Have you ever thought about doing a piston soak?
I have the same filter on my engine currently. It's good to see how well built it is.

 

[53' Stude]

Thank You for C&P. Filter did its job and nice work on cleaning engine slowly

 

[dlundblad]

Great pictures, but the filter was underused IMO. I certainly hope the filter looks this good after such a little run and high price point.

At 1 quart every 1000 miles, you are easily in 7.5-10k OCI territory.

 

[HX520W]

Originally Posted By: BlueOvalFitter
Have you ever thought about doing a piston soak?
I've considered it, but I haven't decided if it's worth the cost/risk yet. I've heard everything from piston soaks making a huge improvement to oil consumption getting worse with these engines. I'm also a bit concerned about starting the engine after removing all the oil from the cylinder walls with a solvent (not sure if pouring oil in the combustion chamber would provide adequate coverage).

Again, I haven't ruled out a piston soak, I just haven't decided yet. Seeing all the deposits under the valve cover does make me want to try to reduce blow-by...

 

[BlueOvalFitter]

Originally Posted By: HX520W
Originally Posted By: BlueOvalFitter
Have you ever thought about doing a piston soak?
I've considered it, but I haven't decided if it's worth the cost/risk yet. I've heard everything from piston soaks making a huge improvement to oil consumption getting worse with these engines. I'm also a bit concerned about starting the engine after removing all the oil from the cylinder walls with a solvent (not sure if pouring oil in the combustion chamber would provide adequate coverage).

Again, I haven't ruled out a piston soak, I just haven't decided yet. Seeing all the deposits under the valve cover does make me want to try to reduce blow-by...

BITOG members that use a catch can, do you think his engine would benefit any at all from a catch can install?

 

[littleant]

Thanks for the C&P. Filter looks good.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Originally Posted By: BlueOvalFitter
BITOG members that use a catch can, do you think his engine would benefit any at all from a catch can install?

Doubt it at this point. If the rings are stuck then it's blowing tons of crud into the crankcase. I mean a catch-can might help keep the intake valves a little cleaner, but I suspect they are pretty thrashed as it is if this engine has a closed PCV system.

 

[BlueOvalFitter]

Originally Posted By: ZeeOSix
Originally Posted By: BlueOvalFitter
BITOG members that use a catch can, do you think his engine would benefit any at all from a catch can install?

Doubt it at this point. If the rings are stuck then it's blowing tons of crud into the crankcase. I mean a catch-can might help keep the intake valves a little cleaner, but I suspect they are pretty thrashed as it is if this engine has a closed PCV system.

Z06, that was my next Q?, about the PCV system, but you answered it for me.
What do you think about a piston soak, and if yes, what would YOU use? Me, I would use a 50/50 mixture of any of these;
BG44K/KREEN - DEEP CREEP/KROIL - TECHRON/MMO

 

[MrQuackers]

LC20 or Rislone Engine Treatment

 

[MetalSlug]

Fantastic oil filter .

 

[SnowmanCO]

Thanks for the C&P. Another nice looking Wix XP. On the picture that shows the debris on the metal end of the filter, was that the bypass end or the filter mounting end? In looking online, I can see that filter is mounted horizontally on the SL1. I'm just curious how much debris would be around if the filter did go into bypass for whatever reason.

 

[HX520W]

That was on the bypass end of the filter. A large portion of the debris that the filter caught had collected between the pleats that encompassed about 1/4 of the filter's circumference on the bypass side of the filter. My best guess as to why that happened is that the pleats on that side of the filter were facing up when the filter was installed, and when the bypass valve would open, oil would carry debris over to that side of the filter where some of it would settle between the pleats on the top side of the filter and fall out from between the pleats on the other side.

I'm starting to think that having a filter with a baseplate end bypass valve is a good idea for engines that aren't very clean. I used to think that the debris on the filter media would largely be held in place by the force of the oil that was flowing through the media during a bypass event, but this filter is showing me otherwise.

 

[SnowmanCO]

Originally Posted By: HX520W
My best guess as to why that happened is that the pleats on that side of the filter were facing up when the filter was installed, and when the bypass valve would open, oil would carry debris over to that side of the filter where some of it would settle between the pleats on the top side of the filter and fall out from between the pleats on the other side.


I wouldn't doubt it if that were the case. I was also wondering if the g-forces were forcing any of the debris toward that end of the filter. I guess that could also be another factor. I was also wondering if debris is settling at the bottom of the can by gravity. The combination of that, the g-forces of the car accelerating, and the bypass valve may force the debris to collect on the bottom edge of the filter (versus the top like you believe). Regardless, this is a really interesting to look at an extreme case like this to see how the debris is getting distributed. It would be interesting if you could put a mark on the bottom of the filter on your next change to confirm which side the debris is accumulating (maybe it's the left side, and we will all be stumped

). I agree that a base end bypass would be better in this situation.

 

[HX520W]

That's a good idea. I'll start marking the orientation of the filters before I remove them. Maybe there will be some sort of a pattern. It will be interesting to see where the majority of the debris collects in the FL400S that I just installed.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Originally Posted By: HX520W
That's a good idea. I'll start marking the orientation of the filters before I remove them. Maybe there will be some sort of a pattern. It will be interesting to see where the majority of the debris collects in the FL400S that I just installed.


My bet is the debris falls out and settles from gravity when the engine is off. Spinning the filter off may make it hard to determine exactly what's going on if the debris shifts while the filter spins off.

Ford has used the base end bypass valve for many moons for reasons shown here. Notice the location of the 'sludge build up' as they call it.

 

[HX520W]

Originally Posted By: ZeeOSix
My bet is the debris falls out and settles from gravity when the engine is off. Spinning the filter off may make it hard to determine exactly what's going on if the debris shifts while the filter spins off.
I suppose that's a possibility. However, the filter is mounted horizontally on this engine, and a large portion of the deposits stayed on the bypass end of the filter despite all the handling it took to cut the filter open, dry the media, and position it for pictures.