Oil Filter Comparison

   / Oil Filter Comparison #1  

94BULLITT

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Feel free to add your favorite brand of automotive oil filter to the thread.

Here are some pictures of a Fram PH8A and a Napa Gold (made by Wix) 1515 oil filter, this is a popular filter for Ford. In the pictures the Fram is on the left and the Napa Gold is on the right.

Here is a picture of the base of the oil filters, anti-drainback valve, and the bypass valve(listed in order from bottom to top). The Fram anitdrainback valve that is attached to the by-pass valve and is very thin. The Napa Gold has a very thick silicone anti-drainback valve. The Fram has a nitrile rubber anti-drainback valve.

20130108_210718.jpg


The next picture shows the filter media. The Napa Gold has way more filter media than the Fram. The Fram media feels cheap.

20130108_210750.jpg


The Fram relies on the spring to seal the top of the filter. The end cap are made of a fiber board. The Napa Gold is sealed off and has a steel end cap.

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Last the springs in the end of the filter. The fram uses a clip spring that can bend under pressure. The Napa gold uses a steel coiled spring. It seals the filter element to the base plate and prevents dirty oil from not getting filtered. The spring also holds everything in place inside the filter.

20130108_210759.jpg
 
   / Oil Filter Comparison #2  
In fairness, you are using I believe the cheapest fram filter they make. For comparison's sake, I will cut apart the xg filter on my impala and gets pics up- I believe it is xg3387, but that's off the top of my head. It may be a couple weeks as I am not quite due for a change yet. I am curious how it compares- could be very similar. Actually I am going to go look in a few minutes if I still have the last one I took out. I have never cut open a filter, I would plan to use a cut off wheel but not sure if the sparks and shavings are going to be good. What do you guys usually use?
 
   / Oil Filter Comparison #3  
Does anyone know who makes the Napa Gold filters? I was under the impression it was wix.
 
   / Oil Filter Comparison #4  
In fairness, you are using I believe the cheapest fram filter they make. For comparison's sake, I will cut apart the xg filter on my impala and gets pics up- I believe it is xg3387, but that's off the top of my head. It may be a couple weeks as I am not quite due for a change yet. I am curious how it compares- could be very similar. Actually I am going to go look in a few minutes if I still have the last one I took out. I have never cut open a filter, I would plan to use a cut off wheel but not sure if the sparks and shavings are going to be good. What do you guys usually use?

Use a big pipe cutter or a cold chisel.

Chris
 
   / Oil Filter Comparison
  • Thread Starter
#5  
The Napa gold is a wix. At the time that was the only filter fram made.
 
   / Oil Filter Comparison #6  
Fram has made more than the PH series of filter for years. You say that at the time that was the only filter Fram made, how old is your comaprison?

Back to the subject of least favorite filters, I never would use Hastings filters because of the wadded cotten filter media they were using 30 years ago. Don't know if they still do or not. Also. I was always skepticle of the filter housing you would put a roll of toilet paper in. Seemed to me the TP would come apart and comtaminate the oil in short order. Never knew anyone who used one so I don't knwo if there were problems or not.

Ken
 
   / Oil Filter Comparison #7  
I worked on class eight engines till I retired for 35 years, the filter photos are great not really relevant, the flat spring is still a spring the coil spring is not any better as long as it does the job. Weather it has metal or paper end plates is irrelevant as long as they do the JOB.
I aways tried to use AC Delco filters, I cut apart one used on a 2.7 liter Dodge and it had paper end plates.
The paper in the filter is important quality can not be measured by it feels wrong.
I try real hard to buy the best filters I can and Wix, Bosch, Fleetguard are my favorites but I will use others, even Fram if needed.
What is a good idea is to cut one of your own apart, I use a high speed cutting wheel.
In all the years I have only seen one filter that was plugged to the point it did not flow enough oil that was a Fo-Mo-Co on an M11. It had 1/2 the paper of a normal filter, and set off the low oil alarm, changing the filter fixed the problem.
I have seen Cat fuel filters fail, the secondary, it twisted internally blocking the flow. That was hard to figure out.
 
   / Oil Filter Comparison #8  
All of the components shown are normal varients of most filters made depending on the quality of the filter and what type of use and life span it was designed for both for mileage as well as time.

Two of the most important parts of the filter median are, size of the particle filtering ability, and pressure with volume.

The size of the filter will also assist with volume. All filters only filter a certain percentage of oil at higher RPM's. Some higher quality filters will have anti drain-back valves on them so they don't empty when the engine isn't running.
 
   / Oil Filter Comparison #9  
Unless you scanned this pic i think you may be wrong about it being the" only filter Fram made at the time"? Fram had made more than one filter longer than digital pics have been around for home use!
 
   / Oil Filter Comparison
  • Thread Starter
#10  
Unless you scanned this pic i think you may be wrong about it being the" only filter Fram made at the time"? Fram had made more than one filter longer than digital pics have been around for home use!

I just took the pictures. The cut away was done 15+ years ago. I found some pictures of their other filters. It looks like they upgrade the media and everything else is the same.
 
 
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