Napa oil filter choices

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Hi all! I am trying to figure out the quality/differences between the various Napa oil filters. I see they have the following types for my car in signature:

Napa Proselect
Napa Silver
Napa Gold
Napa Platinum

Per the Napa canada site, they all seem to have same specs and say cellulose filter media.. is this accurate?

I am currently running a proselect that cost me 3.59$ (super cheap and I plan to cut it open to see build) but I was wondering about how the other types compare in build, media material, and efficiency, and type of drainback valve or any other differences between the types. I know I am likely splitting hairs and for sure the Proselect is good enough, but am curious as to what would make the others a better choice for say my winter oil interval (will change oil in Oct or Nov) and run it until Spring. I dont drive much since I work from home, but I would guess I would maybe get only about 6k kms on the oil run (maybe up to 10k kms MAX but this not being likely).

Appreciate any input you have on how they compare
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The Proselect and Silver are almost identical, and very good economy-tier filters. They have a regular rubber ADBV, and in some cases even have a combo valve (ADBV and bypass in one)

Napa Gold is the same as Wix, and a very good filter. Most of them are silicone ADBV.

Napa Platinum is the same as Wix XP, a wire-backed synthetic filter like Fram Ultra. The primary benefit is extended drains (like over 10k miles/15k km)

For your intended usage, the cheap Proselect is the way to go
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I use Napa gold, because when I ask the guy at Napa for a filter, it's what he hands me. Didn't even know there were other options
 
NAPA Gold has blended media, so it's not all cellulose. NAPA Silver has more media than the ProSelect.

My local independent NAPA just recently had a Gold oil filter sale, and I bought them for $3.60 each, so watch for the sales, and buy when they are cheap.
 
FWIW, I bought some WIX/NAPA Gold oil filters for my Forester and the first one I used seeped oil...I think I was roughly 3000 miles into my OCI and noticed that there was a small amount of oil in the metal cup around my top-mounted filter. I took the filter off, cleaned up the cup, inspected the seal (looked OK), and reinstalled the filter with a new dab of fresh oil wiped on the seal along with slightly more gorilla action on the final twist than I normally use...had more oil in the cup after about 20 miles. I punted and installed a Subaru-branded blue can, which did not leak...neither did the Tokyo Rokis I have been using since then.
Have also used a K&N filter along with a number of other blue cans without any issues. A poster on here warned me about these filters leaking on his Subaru and I wish I had listened to him. Can't remember if the one I had trouble with was branded WIX or NAPA Gold, but I had examples of both and they appeared to be identical other than the markings.
YMMV, of course.
 
Maybe it was me who warned with the Subaru app and Wix/NAPA filters. I had a leak at the filter gasket, but Subaru uses a 'P' type on the OEM filter vs. a 'U' type gasket on the Wix/NAPA.

The Subaru is the only app I've had issue with with a Wix/NAPA filter, and then only with my newer (09) Subaru. I still use them on other apps. They seem well made for the money.
 
Originally Posted By: Wheel
Maybe it was me who warned with the Subaru app and Wix/NAPA filters. I had a leak at the filter gasket, but Subaru uses a 'P' type on the OEM filter vs. a 'U' type gasket on the Wix/NAPA.

The Subaru is the only app I've had issue with with a Wix/NAPA filter, and then only with my newer (09) Subaru. I still use them on other apps. They seem well made for the money.


Yeah sometimes you get the rare filter that a car just doesn't like. I had that problem once with a Duratec 3.0 Ford Escape. Driveworks filters use more of a big o-ring for the seal and it would drip slowly. Using a filter with the standard flat cut gasket fixed it.
 
Originally Posted By: Wheel
Maybe it was me who warned with the Subaru app and Wix/NAPA filters. I had a leak at the filter gasket, but Subaru uses a 'P' type on the OEM filter vs. a 'U' type gasket on the Wix/NAPA.

The Subaru is the only app I've had issue with with a Wix/NAPA filter, and then only with my newer (09) Subaru. I still use them on other apps. They seem well made for the money.


Quite possible...I did like the solid construction of the Wix/NAPA Gold 5/7055s, but I ended up sending the two I still had in boxes to a guy on a Forester driver's site to be cut open and analyzed. Bought a bunch of the Tokyo Roki filters specified for the new WRX (basically the same engine as my FXT) from a seller on Amazon and have been really happy with them, also very solid and no seeping.
 
NAPA GOLD Air Filter, then a NAPA GOLD oil filter.


The most important thing about a oil filter is that it stays together. NAPA Gold filters are constructed very good. Most engine wear occurs with particals less than 20 microns.

Your air filter is very important in keeping the oil clean.
 
My Napa here is doing away with Silver.I dont know if its nationwide but the clerk said they will have ProSelect or Gold. I asked about silver and was told it has the shell of the gold,filtering same as proselect. After that and then me getting criticism for buying Pennzoil Ultra 0w20(from them at 6.00qt) and using a fram ultra xg oil filter I am about done with them. Was told the Pennzoil and Fram were junk and gonna sludge my motor stories.
 
Originally Posted By: Marco620
My Napa here is doing away with Silver.I dont know if its nationwide but the clerk said they will have ProSelect or Gold. I asked about silver and was told it has the shell of the gold,filtering same as proselect. After that and then me getting criticism for buying Pennzoil Ultra 0w20(from them at 6.00qt) and using a fram ultra xg oil filter I am about done with them. Was told the Pennzoil and Fram were junk and gonna sludge my motor stories.


Wow thats sad..
 
Originally Posted By: Marco620
My Napa here is doing away with Silver.I dont know if its nationwide but the clerk said they will have ProSelect or Gold. I asked about silver and was told it has the shell of the gold,filtering same as proselect. After that and then me getting criticism for buying Pennzoil Ultra 0w20(from them at 6.00qt) and using a fram ultra xg oil filter I am about done with them. Was told the Pennzoil and Fram were junk and gonna sludge my motor stories.


Many stores will still carry the silver.It's not a national thing.They are plentiful at my store. I had cut open a pro select and a silver and the silver has seven more pleats. The gold had even more.
 
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OP, some Napa ProSelect filters use a combo valve which IME is less than desirable (for me).

The one on my truck lost ADBV function and the one on my wife's Mustang both lost ADBV function and was cockeyed on removal, indicating it had been in bypass at some point in the FCI until removal.

I personally avoid oil filters with combo valves.

http://www.napafilters.com/wp-content/uploads/NAPA_ProSelect_Filters_Combo_Valve.pdf
 
That seems low since Supertech filters are rated 95% @20 microns and I thought those were equiv. to Pro selects.
 
The info on the side of the box on Supertech oil filters I've examined and posted by others here as well is 95% efficiency at 29 microns, not 20. That's one of the two data points used to calculate efficiency of 68% at 20 microns via straight line extrapolation in the thread link posted above.

Click the link & see.
 
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