How full of stuff is oil filter when oil changed

[AnarchyX]

Ok so I'm looking at brand "X Y and Z" telling me they hold 99% of particles and 2 times more dirt than the other guy. the other guy says they hold 95% of dirt and 3 times more dirt than the other guy.

So that being said, does anyone know if in the really real world, a filter that has been driven the way most people drive, and changed at a typical 3-5k interval, is completely clogged but still operational? Or is the filter find of like my air filter at the recommended change interval, coated with dirt and dust but would still be good to go past the recommended change interval.

Just wondering if the hype, and extra cost, is worth it on a daily driver that rarely leaves the city, much less sees actual dirt. If not, then I'll stick with the A/C Delco that the vehicle came with and carry on.

 

[Garak]

Of course, as you already alluded to, there are differences in driving styles, vehicles, and OCIs. Look at the pictures of used oil filters posted here routinely. For those used under the average conditions you describe, or even extended OCIs, they tend to look pretty good, without being clogged, and are quite serviceable.

Over the years, plenty of manufacturers had recommended changing the oil filter only every second oil change. That occurred back when fuel dilution was greater than it is now (with certain modern exceptions, of course) and oil filters weren't advertising massive dirt-holding capabilities.

I think you'd be fine with the AC filter that came with the vehicle. I wish our Walmarts still carried them. I'd still be using them, even on non-GM cars, for the price they used to sell them for!

 

[gfh77665]

I routinely go 10k OCI intervals on each filter, which is the equivalent of 2X what many others do, and I have never had a filter (or oil) issue. My rides last until I get rid of them at 300K due to body, electrical, or other things. The power trains are still fine!

 

[tig1]

I do 10K OCIs and my filters have never had deposites in them, but again my engines stay very clean. I have even checked my friends after 15K OCI(5-30EP) and his filter had no deposites either. Just depends how gunked up the engine is.

 

[bepperb]

I'm always disappointed in how little of anything is in the filter. I can see how Honda specs every other oil change (probably up to 11,000 miles times 2).

Maybe in TX you'd have more silicon in your oil. Not much dust in the air during the winter here.

 

[440Magnum]

See pictures in this thread for a Jeep 4.0 filter at the end of a 6k OCI. Not anywhere near being clogged, I would say:

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2112992&Board=6

 

[river_rat]

Originally Posted By: gfh77665
I routinely go 10k OCI intervals on each filter, which is the equivalent of 2X what many others do, and I have never had a filter (or oil) issue. My rides last until I get rid of them at 300K due to body, electrical, or other things. The power trains are still fine!

Are you partial to one kind of filter over another or just use what's on sale?

 

[Chris142]

There should not be much if anything in the filter. Unless the Guys at Iffy lube used a dirty funnel or forgot to put the oil cap back on and you drove through a sand storm. Thats the main reason for having an oil filter.

 

[TC]

There's certainly safety margins built into filter change out schedules. If an air filter change-out is called for at 50K miles, there's enough calculated margin there so the vehicle will run smoothly, breath well, and pass smog at 50K and even somewhat beyond. If that wasn't the case, it would essentially be what I'll call a "maintenance defect" (as opposed to a design defect), one that would literally interfere with the proper operation of an engine while both the pollution device and general warranties are in effect. And that’d be problematic for a car maker. If a driver sees a lot of dirt roads, dust storms, whatever, that's a different story, of course, and accounted for under the "Severe Service" category. So there should be plenty of cushion at the called-for filter service schedules. That said, I always get a warm-n-fuzzy changing filters out a bit earlier than normal, and regardless of the actual benefit from doing so, it's not expensive to do that, so what the heck. FYI, the “A/C Delco that the vehicle came with” is MORE than capable of handling whatever you throw at it during normal filter lifespans, assuming no Severe Service.