Do You "Prime" Your Oil Filters Before Installing Them ?

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By "prime" them, I mean do you add oil to the filter before you screw it in place? I know a horizontal mount won't allow for this, and obviously any type of cartridge filter.

But I always do on all 3 of my cars, and notice the oil pressure comes up much faster, by not waiting for the oil pump to fill the filter, before it pressurizes the system. This is especially true on my older F-150, 5.0 V-8, and my 5.7 HEMI. They both take the larger, full sized spin on filters, that hold quite a bit of oil.

The filter on my F-150 is on an angle, but I can still get a lot of oil in it, and not have anything leak during installation.

The filter on my 2.5 Toyota Camry is microscopic, (my coffee cup holds twice as much). But I still prime it with as much as I can get in the thing. It mounts fully vertical.
 
Yes I am a primer. All of the GM trucks I have owned have had filters mounted vertically where you could completely fill with oil. I have always answered the priming question with 'why not.?' On the other hand current Subie products that I own have vertical filters that mount threads down....so well you know. In short, if you can, why not?
 
Yes, been doing it for 40 years. I add to horizontals to fully soak the filter and Toyota Rav4 I add to the lower metal threaded cup to soak the cartridge filter. All Fram Ultras.
 
While adding oil you can see the filter soak it up, so after it drinks down the last time …
likely fill them 80% so I don't spill any and keep the grip surface dry …
 
My FU Prime Day is the night before the OC. On the morning of the OC, I usually flip oil filter cartridge over to ensure the top half receives the full immersion treatment. It is definitely OCD.
 
I do prime them. I've only been doing this the last few years, based on being a member here. For the Caravan I just add some oil to the filter pleats to get it wet.
 
I do most of the time, even on horizontal filters, just add less and rotate the filter so everything is wet

Not sure if it does anything though
 
The filter in my FXT mounts base down at the top of the engine, but I have still poured a modest amount of oil into the filter and then spun it on quickly without making a mess.
Probably doesn't do anything at all, but it makes me feel like I'm doing something special for my car... ;^)
Heck, I even clean and prime the gasket on the fill cap during every change...never really thought about until I noticed how filthy it was a few years ago. Do other BITOGers do that?
 
I try to. On my cherokee (horizontal) or Subaru (upside down), the oil seems to want to run out of the filter as I'm putting it on. With my truck I can prefill it.

I've never noticed a difference either way.
 
I used to on filters that would allow it until Jim Allen and I collaborated on some particle testing some years ago and discovered that virgin oil is not as clean as one might think.

In essence, by filling the filter, one is potentially allowing oil into the engine that may have contaminates which could be large enough to cause a wear streak in a bearing or the like.
 
Originally Posted by 2015_PSD
I used to on filters that would allow it until Jim Allen and I collaborated on some particle testing some years ago and discovered that virgin oil is not as clean as one might think.

In essence, by filling the filter, one is potentially allowing oil into the engine that may have contaminates which could be large enough to cause a wear streak in a bearing or the like.


Who is Jim Allen and what is "virgin oil"? And how do you introduce contaminants when you fill the filter with new oil any more than when you add the oil through the fill opening?
 
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