scarry oil filter price :)

[pacerron]

I understand your concerns for quality. I feel the same way. You can obviously tell the cheap junk from the better stuff.
That said, there are only a handfull of filter manufacturers. All of the "brand name" filters are made in just a few factories. .

We all are concerned for quality, but the price doesn't always indicate the quality nor does the manufacturer. In the old days about all that was different about a filter manufactured by a big boy for different brand names was the color of the paint and the label. With today's technology they can manufacture batches of filters to different specs and quality for different brand name customers. Determining the quality of the filter is also difficult.
Sawing them in half might reveal different pleating but the fabric spec also has an effect on the pleating design.
A lot of what is considered quality, these days, is advertising hype, and who can get the most prominent racing team to endorse the product, for money.
I do advocate timely oil and filter changes but it would be very difficult to prove that one filter brand or oil brand over another, within specs particularly for diesels, has much effect on engine life.
You can ask 10 different users and get 10 different opinions.