Fram verses Fram

[GreeCguy]

ukubingelela bonke Bitog ezweni! (Hopefully, that didn't "Shaka" anyone).

So, the epic shed cleaning is almost done. In my vast and epic journey through boxes and bags, lo and behold, what did I find but several oil filters.

One was a Fram PH3600 which I know I can use on the ever faithful "Bluesmobile," (Ford 3.0 V-6).

The other is a Fram PH 3682.

A quick internet search revealed that these filters are virtually identical with the exception of height and relief valve setting.

The PH3600 has a relief valve setting of "12," (according to the Fram website).

The PH3682 is like the 4th piggy with "none."

Questions:

What does the "Relief Valve Setting" do?

Can I use the PH3682 on the ever faithful "Bluesmobile," (Ford 3.0 V-6)?

 

[901Memphis]

No, if it doesn't have a relief valve you will collapse the media on a cold start.

 

[dnewton3]

I actually had a couple of vehicles that used those two filters.

THEY ARE NOT INTERCHANGEABLE. Or, more specifically, they are not interchangeable in one direction. You can always use a filter than has an internal bypass on a vehicle that also has a bypass in the block. But you should never go the other way around; don't use a non-bypass filter on a non-bypass engine. Media collapse is almost a certainty at some point. The bypass feature is there for two things:
1) avoid media collapse during high delta-P events like some start-up conditions
2) assure full flow of oil rather than a reduction during said events


My 1995 Villager specs the 3682; that is because the Nissan-made VG30E engine has a bypass in the block for pressure relief.
A large host of engines use the 3600; as did my 3.0L Vulcan among others. These have a bypass in the filter. There is no relief in the engine block.

The filters are very similar in size, and have the same thread pitch and gasket size, etc. But this one distinction is VERY important and they should not be confused.

I once used an FL400S (= 3600) on my Villager; by doing so I had a redundancy of bypass function (OEM in the block and aftermarket in the filter, as it were). Nothing evil happened, and I even ran it for 15k miles, trippling the "normal" OCI. There are pics posted of the autopsy here, somewhere ... My point is that having two bypass features won't really hurt anything. While the filter may or may not have a slightly different set point than the block relief, it's overall not a big deal whatsoever.



DO NOT USE THE 3682 ON YOUR BLUESMOBILE AS IT REQUIRES A BYPASS FUNCTION IN THE FILTER, WHICH THE 3682 DOES NOT HAVE.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Originally Posted By: 901Memphis
No, if it doesn't have a relief valve you will collapse the media on a cold start.


+1 ... danger.

 

[SilverC6]

I'm betting on the FRAM here....