Multiple oil filters cut open

[Mewbs]

Gonna tear off the endcaps later after a few days of drying. The media seems fine, just that the pleating around the glue potted area appeared to be squeezed in. Its hard to tell from the photos so I'll try to get some clearer pics later on.

Full synthetic with wire backing like this will typically have less pleats. Measure out the total media area ... what's the depth of the pleats?

I have few FE9688s cut opened before and they usually have around 32-35 pleats. This struck to me as odd because of how ugly it came out of the can with such wide spacing between some of the pleats. The other FE9688 that came off the friend's KIA looked more clean and visually sound compared to this one.

 

[ZeeOSix]

I have few FE9688s cut opened before and they usually have around 32-35 pleats. This struck to me as odd because of how ugly it came out of the can with such wide spacing between some of the pleats. The other FE9688 that came off the friend's KIA looked more clean and visually sound compared to this one.

Is the date code on this one later than the other FE9688s? If so, maybe FB is cutting down on the amount of media area. Filters seem to be in some kind of change flux all the time.

 

[Mewbs]

Is the date code on this one later than the other FE9688s? If so, maybe FB is cutting down on the amount of media area. Filters seem to be in some kind of change flux all the time.

This one has a 2024 date code. The other ones I've cut opened in the past were all 2023. Kinda bummer, penny pinching BOM cost on a premium product makes it not so premium lol.

 

[Mewbs]

Here are some more photos after 3 days of drying with absorbent towels... I'll let you guys be the judge if this filter was in the process of failing or not...

 

[ZeeOSix]

^^^ Hard to tell what's going on there.

 

[RooflessVW]

You know you can hold the can gasket up and spin the filter cutter?

Makes less mess....

 

[4WD]

You know you can hold the can gasket up and spin the filter cutter?

Makes less mess....

And pluck the gasket first - spins much easier …

 

[Mewbs]

^^^ Hard to tell what's going on there.

Media on one side of the pleats is shedded and dislodged from the potting. I did pull the pleats with my finger and some of them wiggle freely at the root as you'd experienced from a torn filter. Usually with wire backed filters they're always strongly fixed to the potting from many samples I've cut opened in the past. This one came to a surprise let alone the abnormally low pleat count might have contributed to this.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Media on one side of the pleats is shedded and dislodged from the potting. I did pull the pleats with my finger and some of them wiggle freely at the root as you'd experienced from a torn filter. Usually with wire backed filters they're always strongly fixed to the potting from many samples I've cut opened in the past. This one came to a surprise let alone the abnormally low pleat count might have contributed to this.

Sounds more like a bad potting glue job - maybe not a good complete bond across the whole ends of the pleats. The low pleat count shouldn't matter with the wire backed media - the pleats aren't going to move around much with the wire backing.

 

[Mewbs]

The low pleat count shouldn't matter with the wire backed media

Lower number of pleats means less media area would also mean higher fluid face velocity and pressure delta acting on the media compared to the same filter with more pleats. I don't understand First Brands manufacturing inconsistency, I do think it does play a factor, even if its very minor.

Wire backing pretty much saved this filter from completely collapsing, which I do agree. I see this as a partial fail as the media looks pretty stressed at the potting areas, you'd have to have the specimen it on hand to get a feel for it in which to me it looks pretty bad. Have only one FE9688 left on hand, not inspiring much confidence to install it. I'm gonna pull the other one on my WRX when the vehicle hits around 3000 miles. This sample is just around 6000 miles of service, totally not convinced of it being rated as a 25,000 mile product. Thanks First Brands for zombifying everything you touch.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Lower number of pleats means less media area would also mean higher fluid face velocity and pressure delta acting on the media compared to the same filter with more pleats. I don't understand First Brands manufacturing inconsistency, I do think it does play a factor, even if its very minor.

Wire backing pretty much saved this filter from completely collapsing, which I do agree. I see this as a partial fail as the media looks pretty stressed at the potting areas, you'd have to have the specimen it on hand to get a feel for it in which to me it looks pretty bad. Have only one FE9688 left on hand, not inspiring much confidence to install it. I'm gonna pull the other one on my WRX when the vehicle hits around 3000 miles. This sample is just around 6000 miles of service, totally not convinced of it being rated as a 25,000 mile product. Thanks First Brands for zombifying everything you touch.

Since the media only shows that "stress" indication at the root of the pleats, then perhaps that area wasn't sealed very well with the potting glue job. So probably was some bare unsealed pleat ends getting flow over them. None of the media shows the same stressed look like at the end of some pleats. So it's not caused by low pleat count and flow stress through the media. If that was the case, you would see some of the same visual stressed indications on other areas in the media, not just at the ends of some pleats. If there was a bad potting job there, some pleat ends would have media fibers just hangin' in the wind so they could become ragged from oil flow stress over time.

In any case of what the exact cause was, this is the first one like this posted from what I recall.

 

[Mewbs]

In any case of what the exact cause was, this is the first one like this posted from what I recall.

I don't exactly post every filter I cut open on the internet. I'm not so active on the internet for the past few months to be fair.

I'll give some short details when this filter was in service. The WRX was run on a Dyno at a Subaru Tuning shop around late January. The vehicle has been tuned since and driven spiritedly and have seen plenty of redlines pulls on take-off. Car is fun to drive and expected a filter like this to hold up to such use cases.

In the end, I'm not exactly angry or upset about this. Maybe it is just one sample that was bad so hoping the next FE9688 that comes out doesn't look as bad as this one. Keeping finger crossed.

 

[ZeeOSix]

I don't exactly post every filter I cut open on the internet. I'm not so active on the internet for the past few months to be fair.

I'm talking about all posted C&Ps here. Never before seen what's going on with the one you posted.

I'll give some short details when this filter was in service. The WRX was run on a Dyno at a Subaru Tuning shop around late January. The vehicle has been tuned since and driven spiritedly and have seen plenty of redlines pulls on take-off. Car is fun to drive and expected a filter like this to hold up to such use cases.

In the end, I'm not exactly angry or upset about this. Maybe it is just one sample that was bad so hoping the next FE9688 that comes out doesn't look as bad as this one. Keeping finger crossed.

Time will tell if others showing similar visuals show up on this board.

 

[Mewbs]

I'm talking about all posted C&Ps here. Never before seen what's going on with the one you posted.


Time will tell if others showing similar visuals show up on this board.

I did a quick search here and skimmed though the photos from others that C&P the same filter. Yeah they all look fine and normal compared to this.

See you in 3000 miles I'll post another FE9688 by then.

 

[Mewbs]

Finally had some free time to pull the end caps off. Surprisingly this one didn't give much of a fight. One side endcap which had pleating potting stress pulled out with little effort where as the other endcap gave me a good fight to pull off with pliers.

Media has been wicked dry for several weeks since my last post, the media here looks very clean for 6000 miles of service on a Subaru FA-24 Direct Injected Turbo... I measured the media height and length with a tape measure.

 

[Mewbs]

Extra photos of me pulling off the end caps.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Finally had some free time to pull the end caps off. Surprisingly this one didn't give much of a fight. One side endcap which had pleating potting stress pulled out with little effort where as the other endcap gave me a good fight to pull off with pliers.

Sounds like the potting job wasn't ideal on the side that was easy to remove.

 

[EvoMan]

Louvers look good.