PL10111 cut open

[AuthorEditor]

Here's another PureOne cut open. From a 2003 Chevy Impala, 3.4, 66,893 miles, exactly 6 months over the winter, lots of short trips and only 1958 on oil. It was the first run of PP 5W-30 and the OLM just started going off, so I guess it was measuring the severe service well. At least I would call it severe. Over the winter in upstate NY, with mostly short runs of under 5 miles, sometimes 5 or 6 times a day or more.

Some will note the wavy media. I could detect no tears or gaps, and the media appeared to still be very strong. The ADBV was in good shape. There is one shot of some sort of crud that was trapped in the media. There were several pieces of this stuff, which looked almost like thin plastic, like tinsel. Not sure what it is from.

 

[ZZman]

Nice

 

[willix]

oh no, not the NY times. I'm curious about that foreign material.

 

[AuthorEditor]

Yeah, I was curious about that material too. It had no strength to speak of--very easily pulled apart. A little bit wider than plastic tinsel. It appeared to be almost see through when I wiped the oil off. I wonder if it could be some sort of organic matter? I suppose I should be happy that the Pennzoil Platinum is cleaning so well. But, what is it cleaning?

 

[QuOk]

What cutting tool is that on the left?

 

[daman]

Any coolant issues,thats allot of wavy pleats.

 

[AuthorEditor]

That's a KRC Racing oil filter cutter. Works really slick on most sizes of filter. Take a look here and scroll down the page a bit: KRC Racing
No known coolant issues. The oil looked and smelled good, and no grey goop on the dipstick or on the oil filler cap. No loss of coolant detected from the coolant system either. I wouldn't be surprised if I did get some moisture issues during those cold winter starts and short runs, but it is not detectable on a visual inspection of the oil.

 

[daman]

Could have been from the winter months,at one time there was moisture.

 

[labman]

Moisture, either from condensation or coolant leaks causes both wavy pleats and sludge. Could be some built up somewhere and pealed loose or the PP loosened it.

I hate to suggest unneeded driving, but you might find excuses to make a longer drive every week or 2 to boil off the moisture.

 

[AuthorEditor]

It's my wife's daily driver, but she works close to home, does errands, goes to the supermarket, etc. I commute 30 miles each way in another car. Once in awhile she takes it on a run of 30 minutes or so. I've thought of swapping cars with her every other week or so in the winter just to make sure it gets some long runs, but she likes her car and I like mine, and we both need to carry a lot of stuff that would have to be swapped, so we don't do it. Probably should though.

 

[757guy]

You know you shouldn't really "have" to take it on extended drives to accomodate your wifes driving style just to prevent waves in the filter media.

I recommend you purchase a Fram Extended Guard oil filter because of the a stainless steel screen backing. You will never have a problem with waves in the filter media again. You'll also get very good filtering 98% at 20 microns, excellent contaminate holding capability, and a dual synthetic media.

Why worry about those wavy pleats?

 

[labman]

Swapping one day a week could make a big difference. My truck gets a lot of short trip use and even sets some days. I do often make one trip a week of about 30 miles each way. Often it starts with some short trips stuff so the engine gets nice and warm.

You really need to get the water out somehow.

 

[steve20]

that is the best use of the NY Times I've seen in years


Steve

 

[labman]

Many people report it is very good for wrapping garbage.

 

[brsmith]

Those filters listed at Purolator's website suggest they have no bypass.

http://www.purolatorautofilters.net/resources/Popup/Pages/PartDetailPopup.aspx?partnum=PL10111

 

[brsmith]

Fram cross reference for the Extended guard filter is XG3387A

Fram guide shows no bypass on their filter either, this filter is full flow or bust.

 

[dishdude]

GM often puts the bypass in the block.

 

[ThirdeYe]

Originally Posted By: brsmith
Fram cross reference for the Extended guard filter is XG3387A

Fram guide shows no bypass on their filter either, this filter is full flow or bust.


Or if you have room you could upgrade to an XG3980 that I'm using on the 3.1 I maintain.

 

[brsmith]

Nice call, that is what I was going to suggest next: going to a larger filter if clearance is there. Since the bypass is in the engine, a larger volume filter would be beneficial. It would hold more dirt and allow more oil in the system. I doubt there would be any noticeable pressure drop.

The XG3980 is 1.62" longer than the XG3387A or the PL10111. Which 1.62" oddly enough is the exact size of a golf ball. If one can stick a golf ball on the ned of the filter and not hit anything, they would be good.

 

[AuthorEditor]

Yeah, no bypass because Chevys have one built in. Are wavy pleats all that bad if the media doesn't break? The filter looked totally intact and functional, and the media still seemed to be very strong. The oil didn't really look all that dirty, though I know you can't judge an oil by its color. There might be a bit of room for a longer filter, but I can't imagine it would add more than a few ounces of oil.