The definitive oil filter study

[k8ny]

Been using Frams and Castrol GTX oil exclusively for the last 22 years. The results speak for themselves:

1981 Subaru Wagon - 193,000 miles (gave away)
1984 Chevrolet Eurosport - 155,000 miles (sold)
1986 Audi 5000 - 122,000 miles (junked - other problems)
1986 Mazda RX-7 - 183,000 miles (gave away)
1990 Ford Taurus Wagon (3.0) 228,000 miles (currently own)
1993 Mazda 626 - 167,000 miles (currently own)
2000 Nissan Maxima - 60,000 miles (currently own)

I think this guy has a vendetta against Fram.

 

[MikePA]

<font color=blue>I think this guy has a vendetta against Fram. </font color=blue>
Yours, or anyone elses, good experience with a particular filter, does not invalidate this guys study. Plus he admits he had an engine failure as a result of using a Fram filter. All he did was buy the filters, cut them open, evaluate how they were manufactured and compare them. He doesn't state whether or not the differences he observed would make a material difference in engine life. If he had a vendetta against Fram, he sure went to a lot of trouble to reveal it.

 

[BillyP]

I don't have a vendetta against Fram but I do know two people that had to have major repairs due the Fram oil filters.

One is a good friend I used to work with. The filter collapsed, he had to replace the cam and cam bearings.

The other is my brother. He wasn't so lucky. The filter collapsed resulting in a total rebuild.

I reckon this could happen to any brand of filter. It's just happens to be the only two I know of personally.

Billy

 

[Larry_T]

Thanks I will not buy fram any more.Used them 30 years.

 

[barrell]

Please comment on an oil study done by consumer reports about 10 years ago. I remeber it because its conclusions were the oposite of everything I thought I knew about oil and oil changes.
CR installed 200 new engines in NY city cabs. They then changed various oils at various intervals. After two years they completely tore down the engines and put a micrometer to all critcal parts.
The conclusion - There is no measurable difference in changing oil every 3000 miles verses waitng to 6000 miles. Even waiting to 10,000 miles they said only showed slightly more wear which they said would not affect most car owners who replace their vehicles every 4 or 5 years.
They said that the cheapest economy oils protected the engine as well as the most expensive including synthetics. They said this was not true 25 years ago but now all cheap oils are actualy made by big name oil companies only under a bargain brand name.
This was a 10 year old study and maybe, but I doubt it ,things have changed. I change my oil at 5,000 miles now after the taxi cab study. I have had zero engine problems with my ford f250's since.
Barrell

 

[KubotaBling]

/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif i'm glad someone else reads articles.. oil anaylsis group and cummins etc.. all say the same.. cheap oil isn't as cheap as some of the wild fetched claims out there on super oils.
Thanks for ur post!!

 

[Junkman]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Thanks I will not buy fram any more.Used them 30 years. )</font>

I believe that you are being too easily swayed by the "research" that has been done. I don't believe that you can judge the quality of the entire line based on the dissection of one filter for one model car. That would be like comparing the quality of the entire line of cars by looking at only on vehicle. Say someone were to judge the quality of a Ford branded product by looking at the quality of a Ford Windstar and apply that information to a Lincoln Navigator. The study is flawed in the fact that non scientific determinations are based on visual observations of one filter. I, like you, have used Fram filters for years and have had no detrimental events as a result...

 

[JDgreen227]

The CR study was published in the July '96 issue. You are correct that it stated not even the premium synthetic oils proved more effective at preventing engine wear than conventional oils. Too bad they didn't analyze filters at the same time. In my situation, I am an unusual driver, 3000 miles per year on my Yukon XL with 6.0 engine is the norm.

I change oil and filter twice a year, once in spring and then again in the fall. The mileage between spring and fall is usually 2/3rds of the yearly total. When I drain the oil (Mobil 5-30W) it still looks good, so I strain it through fine mesh and reuse it in my power mowers, etc. The winter 1000-mile oil appears much worse when it's drained, so I don't reuse it.

Some people would say I am throwing money away changing oil so frequently, but the cost is $10 a change doing it myself.
I used nothing but Fram until about 1996, then switched to AC Delco for all our vehicles. The only good thing I will say about Fram is, they HAD a great slogan: "You can pay a little more now, or a lot more later". In my case, I am going to pay a little more now for a quality filter instead of a Fram.

 

[cp1969]

Oil filters are a luxury--any oil filter is better than none at all, which is what a lot of engines used to come with--none. IIRC, the six cylinder (230 c.i.?) Chevy of 1961 vintage had an optional oil filter. That being said, there is no point in installing a sub-standard filter when a better one can be had for roughly the same money. IMHO, the Fram falls into the category of the standard equipment 1961 Chevy 6 filter, or worse--it might come apart and clog your oil galleries with cardboard.

In looking for a non-Kubota oil filter for by L3000, I came across an interesting fact: Not all bypass pressures are equal on filters which say they are the equivalent of each other. I found filters with bypass pressures of as low as 8 psi and as high as 20 psi, all of which claimed to be a direct replacement for the Kubota. I believe this was Wix vs. Baldwin; I can't remember, as it's been more than a day ago. At any rate, since I don't know the Kubota filter bypass pressure, it is probably prudent for me to ante up the couple of extra dollars and buy the Kubota filter. At least the supplier will (or should) have been given this spec to build to.

This got me to thinking about the "full-flow" oil filter with bypass valve. My impression of these filters was that ALL of the engine oil went through the filter prior to reaching the engine. Is it not really functioning as a bypass filter at any pressure above the bypass pressure? Sure looks to me like it is.

 

[Junkman]

If you have to worry about the filter becoming clogged and the bypass valve opening, you have bigger problems to worry about!!! Just my opinion....