I didn't open the filter, what I could see of the media looked like it was a little dark but there weren't any solids coming out, I noticed in the pan that was plastic, I don't know where it came from, it was cold out and my driveway is covered over in ice, and it's asphalt and uneven and I can't really jack the car up right now, so I paid a someone I went to school with who is a mechanic a few bucks to drop the pan and put in the new pan and filter I brought him so I didn't get under the vehicle and it was cold out so it was a quick in and out job, I used a transfer pump to remove about 2.5qts out the dipstick hole so it'd make less mess dropping the pan, and then he unfastened the pan, took the old filter off, put the new filter in cleaned the magnet and put it in the new pan and put the pan up. I noticed when I was dumping the fluid out into a bottle that there was that plastic piece in the pan. he was already putting the pan up so I didn't look any further, and I've tried to not drive it much since then