FRAM Oil Filters

roti102 · Postby **roti102** » March 3rd, 2012, 12:59 am

Ive researched a lot of oil filters and seen that Fram is just about the worst one in quality out there. Also seems that Fram is widely sold here, but I can not get over how they are made with flimsy cardboard end caps on the filters and can leak dirty oil into the clean oil area of the filter. It is the cheapest made and highly marketed filter. I went and changed my Fram to a Puralator one time as I also say that the Purolator is much better made. Fram does not make their own filters any more and is contracted out.

lighthammer · Postby **lighthammer** » March 3rd, 2012, 2:27 am

Bosch.
Nuff said.

Big Z · Postby **Big Z** » March 3rd, 2012, 7:34 am

Royal Purple is the best of the premium filters.
In the budget department, I would use Purolator or Luberfiner. Wix is way over priced locally.
I am also quite suspect about Sakura filters.. have seen accounts where their fuel filters do not match or even come close to the lifetime of the OEM parts... also heard of issues with leaking anit-drainback valves, similar to the Fram.

In the independent user test below, note the low ISO particle count on the Royal Purple filter, and compare it to the Purolator Pure One, Mobil 1 and Amsoil EaO. Smaller numbers indicate better filtration. Also, the filter was used for 10k miles (16k km). The filter is clearly not overloaded as the particle counts would have increased. Excellent results!

Taken from this thread from the forum on Bob Is The Oil Guy

The Royal Purple filter is literally in another league when it come to particle removal and lifetime.

lighthammer · Postby **lighthammer** » March 3rd, 2012, 11:03 am

Amsoil makes a great oil filter, its much fatter than the OEM filter and lasts longer too, has a lot more filter element jammed into it. They claim its rated to last up to 20,000km just like their oils, but with our climate i wouldnt run it so far.

Big Z · Postby **Big Z** » March 3rd, 2012, 11:54 am

The Amsoil filter is a premium filter like the Royal Purple.
Locally its alot more expensive and still not as good as the Royal Purple, as you can see from the image above.
Amsoil has two lines in the oil filters, so take note of the different change intervals:

• Ea Filters designated with product code Ea15K are recommended for 15,000 miles/one year, whichever comes first, in normal or severe service.

• Ea Filters designated with product code EaO are recommended for 25,000 miles/one year, whichever comes first, in normal service or 15,000 miles/one year, whichever comes first, in severe service.

Granted, both are longer than anything I would do on any of my vehicles. The most I have gone is about 15k km.
Oversize the filter, and its even better. Im using a filter that about twice as big as the OEM filter on the Corolla.
If oversizing, you need to take note of the filter orientation. Anti-drainback valves tend to leak, resulting in dry starts.. very bad for engine.
Surprisingly, the new Hilux works well with an oversize, despite its non-optimum filter orientation. Used the Purolator L30001 and the Royal Purple and Quaker state equivalents. No dry starts at all.

roti102 · Postby **roti102** » March 3rd, 2012, 11:56 am

Where do you get the good filters? Most places only carry Fram or Purolator.

CD4Accord · Postby **CD4Accord** » March 5th, 2012, 1:49 am

Purolator is a good filter... Probably the best value in filters across the board (air/fuel/oil)...

It probably isn't as absolutely good as as the RP or Mobil1 etc.. But for the price it cannot be beaten....

sweeks · Postby **sweeks** » March 6th, 2012, 3:44 am

roti102 wrote:Where do you get the good filters? Most places only carry Fram or Purolator.

What vehicle?

What scares me about fram is that on the box is written not for use in the USA. Why would the manufacturer write that?

OEM all the way here .... esp if you looking at 10 000km service intervals. I tend to run oem filters up to 15 000km +.

cqk4 · Postby **cqk4** » March 7th, 2012, 11:22 pm

There is a FRAM extended life filter (10k filter) that costs around $90. I saw a review on youtube that said its wayy better than the cheaper orange ones which I think are the killer ones.

I could not find that specific video however this one shows the inside of the "extended guard" one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vV2VlQY6T6E

V2NR 3.0 · Postby **V2NR 3.0** » March 11th, 2012, 8:47 pm

I have always used Fram and never had a problem with it. This has been used in all my vehicles and will continue to use

bt50 · Postby **bt50** » March 14th, 2012, 8:59 am

same here- using Fram both diesel and gas....no problems and will continue to use.

lighthammer · Postby **lighthammer** » March 14th, 2012, 11:50 am

Been using fram a couple times with my dad's L200 as well as Purolator... no problems.
Also used Fram a couple times with their ZD30T frontier - again no problems.

As long as you change your oil on time, and change filter too, shouldn't matter which filter you use, unless you really drive the truck hard or it's a hard-working workhorse.

web_phantom · Postby **web_phantom** » March 17th, 2012, 11:34 am

Big Z do you sell Royal Purple Filters, sales pitch eh....The fact is that a number of filter producers subcontract there manufacturing and a huge number of them purchase the filter media from outside sources.

That shouldn't matter to you, if your are run of the mill user on older cars and trucks. However with the higher filtration requirements of newer vehicles, micron rating, burst rating and type of filtration media come into play as fuel systems need cleaner fuel to keep to optimum working conditions.

However, with proper filter changes and oil specifications to meet with your manu. recommendation your shouldn't have a problem