I took these pics today after removing the Fram EG3600 filter from my Highlander. The filter had 1782 miles, as did the original oil; 326 miles into the oil change interval I decided to pour in 0.8 quarts of HPL EC, so this filter is after 1456 mi of the EC product. I was surprised at how little gunk is in the pleats. I guess no news is good news, but after seeing a small amount of oil consumption (1-1.5 quarts per 5000 miles) I was hoping to see some gunk that EC would have removed, and then with piston rings rejuvenated, my oil consumption would drop. Just to be clear, I am not doubting the efficacy of the EC product--evidently there wasn't much gunk to remove. This vehicle has had a steady diet of 5K mile OCIs, for the first 120K with the previous owner, primarily GM Dexos 5w30 & occasionally GTMO 0w20; from 120 to 160 I have used a variety of synthetic oils & also a variety of intervals, generally 4-6K, once going 8K. I replaced the PH3600 with another PH3600. This filter has a Fram date code, which means it was made on February 6, 2023 (the 37th day of 2023).
I do have a question: can I assume that with no increased amount of flecks in the pleats, that I can take my new 3600 farther than 1500-2000 miles, like I was going to do originally? I'd like to stretch the OCI to 5K if that would be safe, although because of the EC product I thought it wise to shorten it to 2500-3000 miles. But it looks like there just isn't much gunk that the EC is removing, so would it be safe to take the oil to 5K, or should I still drain this oil at 2500-3000 miles?
I do have a question: can I assume that with no increased amount of flecks in the pleats, that I can take my new 3600 farther than 1500-2000 miles, like I was going to do originally? I'd like to stretch the OCI to 5K if that would be safe, although because of the EC product I thought it wise to shorten it to 2500-3000 miles. But it looks like there just isn't much gunk that the EC is removing, so would it be safe to take the oil to 5K, or should I still drain this oil at 2500-3000 miles?
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