oil filters

[geraldchainsaw]

after all the diff cars i've had,  i was looking at the old filters, the o ring and the thread size,    and i notice that the only diff was the lenght,   so  my 2009 ranger,  69 mustang, and 57 ford could use the same fiflter,  instead of always looking for the one that goes with the car,  if i find a good deal on filters for the 57 to just go ahead and buy a case or so,  and opinions? jerry

[Frankenstein57]

I would agree Gerry, On my simplicity lawn tractor I refused to buy an 8.50$ oil filter at the home center, so I took my old filter, my Chinese dial indicator, and went to the auto parts filter isle, then presto! I found a 3.50$ fram filter that works just fine. If anyone needs the filter#, let me know and I'll get it. I think its the Briggs & stratton 16 hp vangaurd motor.   Mark

[Zapato]

Oh so true, used to have a Volvo 240 series, filter was a shortie at most 2 inches switched it to a Ford filter and instantly twice the filter capacity at a much more affordable price. I do tend to buy filters from NAPA, with Fram being a second choice they're IMHO not the filter they used to be. Be sure though if your vehicle filter requires a pressure relief/bypass valve in it that you buy a filter that meets that requirement.

[shopratwoody]

I agree on the fram not being what it once was. Wix or napa and
several others are a lot better IMO
Ron

[geraldchainsaw]

1 last remark,  i didn't know oil filters had a relief valve in them,  i thought a filter was just a filter???

[Zapato]

Yup! And if you replace it with the wrong one it can cause some problems. You can usually tell if a filter has one by shaking it will rattle. First cars I remember having them were toyotas and have seen them on Chryslers also, am sure many more are the same way.

Zap-

[Bubba]

My Bud Jeff does a lot of racing and has a case full of trophies to prove it.
He swears by Wix filters, so I started using them.
So far so good, I agree that FRAM filters don't seem to be as good as they used to be.
I wonder if those reusable, washable filters are worth the investment, i guess it's all dependent upon the amount of miles you rack up per year  
BuBBa

[Ford Blue blood]

One of the guys on the Ford site BlueOvalNews.com did a study of flow, filtering and durability with respect to filters for the 99 Cobra.  He proclaimed to be an engineer, provided pics of his test restuls and particle capture of each of the filters.  Very believable in his meathods.  He found the NAPA Gold and one other (old timers, the brand escapes me) to be the best.  The Wix came in third followed by the Mobile One filter.  Interestingly the old standard Fram came in on the bottom of his pile.

I ran Mobile One and NAPA Gold in my 90 Super Coupe, 135K on it when it was sold and never used a drop of oil.  I ran that car hard so I guess the stuff works well.  Not to say others wouldn't work as well, just what I have experienced.  I do use Mobil One and NAPA Gold in all my stuff...except the Shelby GT500, can't get the Mobil One here so it is Castrol Syntec in it.

[geraldchainsaw]

to Zapato,   i've only had fords all my life,   but went out in the garage to check for a rattle in the filters,   the mustang, 57 and the ranger,   no rattle,   looked inside each and they had what i don't know at the bottom,   but this summer when i change all filters i'm going to cut one in half to get a better look,  i still don't understand valves shutopffs or whatever,  a filter is just a filter,   maybe fords only use a straight filter,  i'm going to check it out with some of my buddies over in engineering,   jerry

[Zapato]

Gerald, my understanding is that some car manufacturers put the valve in the filters to keep a bit of oil pressure available for start-up. Been told a few other things. Some manufacturers (Ford might be among them) have that bypass permanently in the block. Its that ball bearing that is visible on some cars in the filter mount.

Cutting a filter up was something I used to do when we were road racing to check for metal etc.... in the oil, gave us an early heads up of bearing failure. Luckily for me never found any on our cars but did in others at times. So if you cut them up take time to strain them.

Zap-

[CDN.SD]

I've been told (and it seems logical to me) that almost all oil filters have at least one valve in them, to allow the oil to bypass the filter element if it becomes clogged. After all, even dirty oil is better than NO oil, not to mention the damage it would do to oil pump drives etc. The only exception I know of is the Fram HP1 that is for racing use only, where the oil/filter is usually changed long before clogging would be a problem.

The other valve, doesn't actually maintain oil pressure, (if you turn the key to Acc. with th engine off, you don't see the oil pressure gauge go up any) but it keeps the oil from draining out of the filter, so there isn't the loss of oil flow on startup while the pump refills the filter. Some motors, where the filter mounts straight up, don't really need it, but any where the filter mounts on an angle (302 Ford for example) do. I could be wrong, but just from observation, I think that the valve is the rubber flap that you can see just inside the outer holes on some filters.

IIRC, using Fram numbers again, PH8A filters have an anti-drain back valve, while the PH8 didn't.

[geraldchainsaw]

ok,   enough for my dumb questions,  i'll stick to the charts

[shopratwoody]

My Bud Jeff does a lot of racing and has a case full of trophies to prove it.
He swears by Wix filters, so I started using them.
So far so good, I agree that FRAM filters don't seem to be as good as they used to be.
I wonder if those reusable, washable filters are worth the investment, i guess it's all dependent upon the amount of miles you rack up per year  
BuBBa

I used an oberg washable  for years when I raced my Ranchero.
It did a good job. If it get crap in it your oil pressure will drop. My Dad
used the Frantz years ago (toilet paper) with good results.
I just use a good spin on now, not a Fram.