New Fram Ultra : Same Filtration & Flow Rate as Prior Ultra ?

It is possible that the change in media was not driven (or at least not wholey driven) by cost considreations. Given the issues in material availability and supply chain issues, at least some of the change may have been driven by what's available in the volumes Fram needs to meet production demands.

I do accept that the XG has changed, but I still believe them to be a very good filter. They may not be what they once were, but they're still a very viable choice.

I never bought the XGs as the TGs were darn near as efficient, and would easily meet my OCI needs, for less cost. But, the TG (in some configurations) is creeping close to the XG cost, at least in my local WM. But, with the addition of the silicone ADBV and uprate to 10k miles to the EG, I've actually starting using them now instead.
 
The EaO should, but it's insanely expensive. The Stratapore offerings SHOULD be too, but the passenger car applications are so limited it's probably not worth mentioning.
@OVERKILL so what exactly are you recommending over the Ultra at a similar price point?

Amsoil filters are not at the same price point, nor is it readily available. Nor do we really have definitive information that it is better.
As a matter of fact, while the claim is 99% at 20micron, the box used to say 98.6%at 20micron (as of 2019). So not sure if they are rounding or have made a change.

The tough guard is $2 cheaper. Not interesting to me.

So, if you've personally determined that you must have wire backing, sure go with something else.
You're options there are what...Royal Purple or Amsoil? And that's it?
 
@OVERKILL so what exactly are you recommending over the Ultra at a similar price point?

Amsoil filters are not at the same price point, nor is it readily available. Nor do we really have definitive information that it is better.
As a matter of fact, while the claim is 99% at 20micron, the box used to say 98.6%at 20micron (as of 2019). So not sure if they are rounding or have made a change.

The tough guard is $2 cheaper. Not interesting to me.

So, if you've personally determined that you must have wire backing, sure go with something else.
You're options there are what...Royal Purple or Amsoil? And that's it?
I'm not recommending anything over the Ultra, again, this is just a technical analysis of the change, not a condemnation of the product.

The EaO is probably the only one comparable and its price is considerably higher, so with the OG Ultra no longer available, there really isn't anything to replace it at all. Also, I suspect most people who were buying the Ultra will continue to do so, regardless of the change, as @ZeeOSix noted.

The Royal Purple was shown to be a touch less efficient than the Ultra, but it's also expensive, like the EaO, that's what made the Ultra such an incredible deal.

For me, personally, since both my vehicles take the XG2, my options are basically the EaO or the Fleetguard Stratapore, since they make one for my application. Efficiency appears to be excellent, price is also comparable to OG Ultra, but it has a nitrile ADBV, which sucks. I'll probably just buy EaO's.
 
Synthetic blend can be two ways, a blend of all synthetic fibers, or a blend of synthetic and other fibers. A synthetic blend could be a fine synthetic layer and a coarser synthetic layer. Or cellulose layer and synthetic layer.
 
Synthetic blend can be two ways, a blend of all synthetic fibers, or a blend of synthetic and other fibers. A synthetic blend could be a fine synthetic layer and a coarser synthetic layer. Or cellulose layer and synthetic layer.
Synthetic blend in terms of oil filters is a blend of cellulose and synthetic fibres. They've then chosen to top it with a fully synthetic layer to improve holding capacity.

This picture is from the thread I linked earlier, which shows the change, you can see the cellulose blend back layer and synthetic topper layer and the lack of a screen:
1641578968465.png


This is why they were able to do away with the screen backing, as a blend media is rigid like straight cellulose, so it doesn't require it.

FRAM also updated the language on the website to reflect that change:

Old Ultra:
1641579130429.png


New Ultra:
1641579152494.png
 
That's incorrect. The mesh was removed because the back layer of media is now a cellulose blend (traditional filter media, like the PureONE or Mobil 1 filter) not a synthetic product. The mesh is only required to provide support for synthetic (microglass, nanofibre...etc) media because it is not rigid.
It also allows for more filter media doesn't it :D
 
It also allows for more filter media doesn't it :D
Not sure if it allows for it, but they've added more pleats with the switch, which makes sense when you consider that a blend media doesn't flow as well at the same efficiency as synthetic, so you need to add more surface area to compensate; to get back within the intended performance envelope.
 
Synthetic blend in terms of oil filters is a blend of cellulose and synthetic fibres. They've then chosen to top it with a fully synthetic layer to improve holding capacity.

This picture is from the thread I linked earlier, which shows the change, you can see the cellulose blend back layer and synthetic topper layer and the lack of a screen:
View attachment 83560

This is why they were able to do away with the screen backing, as a blend media is rigid like straight cellulose, so it doesn't require it.

FRAM also updated the language on the website to reflect that change:

Old Ultra:
View attachment 83561

New Ultra:
View attachment 83562
All discussed before. Still, unless there is more wording with synthetic blend it can be one of two meanings. Being the norm of oil filter speech doesn’t mean the writer of synthetic blend was thinking of it that way at that moment. I understand all the reasoning, but it still stands it can be two ways unless there are more words or an analysis of the media. Not they used to to require a screen so now it must be a layer is cellulose because no screen. No must be or this is why. Thats what you think. I probably think the same thing. It is still maybe, maybe not. If it is proven one layer is cellulose, it still stands the words can mean two things as written. This is not wrong.
 
FRAM's site now states that the media is a blend, and you can't remove the mesh without changing the media, as the synthetic media lacks sufficient rigidity to stay put without it.
I am kind of more interested in HOW ARE YOU doing now Overkill? Hope you feeling well or better. I can not imagine going thru what you had done to you. I know it was all for the good and in the long run I hope you are facing a better quality of life going forward. Take care. Thoughts and prayers for you to improve and feel as back to normal as you may.
 
I am kind of more interested in HOW ARE YOU doing now Overkill? Hope you feeling well or better. I can not imagine going thru what you had done to you. I know it was all for the good and in the long run I hope you are facing a better quality of life going forward. Take care. Thoughts and prayers for you to improve and feel as back to normal as you may.
Feeling pretty good, my blood pressure is mostly under control (was 112/68 this AM) which is why I've participated a bit more lately.

Will take about a year (when I'm off all these meds) before I can go 100% again, have to wait until that graft heals and adapts.
 
Feeling pretty good, my blood pressure is mostly under control (was 112/68 this AM) which is why I've participated a bit more lately.

Will take about a year (when I'm off all these meds) before I can go 100% again, have to wait until that graft heals and adapts.
For some odd reason I am unable to PM you, get well soon!!!!!!!!!
 
Feeling pretty good, my blood pressure is mostly under control (was 112/68 this AM) which is why I've participated a bit more lately.

Will take about a year (when I'm off all these meds) before I can go 100% again, have to wait until that graft heals and adapts.
Of course please keep sending all those intersting articles and reports that you do. I read them all. :)
 
I mean we haven't seen any data or claims from FRAM that indicate that it flows even as well as its predecessor, let alone better. Simply that it flows better than OEM requirements (their statement). Cellulose blend media is inherently inferior in both of those metrics (holding capacity and flow) over a full synthetic media, particularly if we are talking about medias of the same efficiency. As you are aware, I've posted supported data from both Donaldson and Cummins Filtration on this subject multiple times in the past, it isn't up for debate. So, as I said, they've attempted to overcome these shortcomings of the blend media by adding more of it, to increase flow, and by putting a synthetic "topper" on it to improve holding capacity. I'm quite sure both of those measures are sufficient to get the product to where they wanted it to be performance-wise, but that doesn't mean it still isn't a compromise over the old design.

The new design is a cheapening of the product, that's why the made the change. FRAM has always been able to produce a blend media and we've had blend media "premium" filters on the market forever, like the PureONE and Mobil 1 filter. The microglass, nanofibre...etc filters were introduced as yet another tier, a step up from these filters, given the superior characteristics of that type of media. We have seen that not only with passenger car filters, but with heavy duty ones, which is where this technology really first appeared in volume. Companies that were already producing blend media, combo filters and the like spent considerable sums on developing and evolving synthetic medias that were better, in every metric. That's how we ended up with the Stratapore, ELF...etc. FRAM went that route with the Ultra, but has now taken a step back.

As I said in the previous thread, that in no way makes it a bad filter and it still offers the same impressive efficiency. But the filter has been cheapened and is no longer a "top tier" offering like it once was. In terms of construction, it's now far more similar to the PureONE and Mobil 1 offerings, but with slightly better efficiency. It's not the bargain alternative to the EaO and other synthetic media filters that it was originally, and in many cases, offered the same suite of benefits but was even more efficient (it was more efficient than the Royal Purple filter for example, both being synthetic media filters).
I think it is more than slightly better than the Mobil 1's efficiency. 99% at 30 microns isn't that great. Cheap Supertechs achieve that. Slightly or not, it beat it. And the Purolators are significantly more expensive around my AO, last I checked.

For the money, there is still no filter I see that challenges it. Cheaper or not, if filters slightly better than before. That's an improvement, no matter how one spins it. As for flow, we're just guessing. But I'd be very confident that the flow exceeds the needs and specs of any application in which I'll use it, by a wide margin. And they very well may have achieved equal flow with the added filter media area.

Again, the argument that it is somehow inferior is not based on any fact, but rather a guess, even if an educated guess, still a guess, that the flow might not be as good. Based on the data we do have, which is filtration, it is a better filter.

So I'm waiting on someone to show me actual data that says the filter is not as good. And if that data does appear, if the performance in some area, such as flow, of the new version is, for argument's sake, 140% of the engine's requirements vs the old filter's 160%, then yeah, it could be accurately stated that it isn't as good, but that would functionally be meaningless.

At the end of the day, I'm looking for the best filtration for the money. And I'm very confident the flow rate far exceeds what my engines require, even at max rpm/load, even if less than before (even though we haven't determined that, at all). So I view it as an upgrade until someone shows me some way it will have less performance in my engines.
 
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FILTERs N OILs. My son does in no way take after his old man and my neurotic OilChangeDelusions. When it comes time for his oil changes. He will not budge. He does between 4000 - 5000 mile oci and he buys what ever walmart filters + oil brands happen to be on sale. He got a good laugh and called BS on my theory of changing from one oil to another not good cause most use different add packs. He says if they were so badly incompatible there would be warnings on bottles.

Your son is 100% correct. Look at the add packs in the uoa or voa postings they are the same ingredients and there are probably 5 companies on Earth that make the additive packages and probably the same amount that produce the base oils regardless of type.
 
Indyfan, Can you please post the data that it's better than previous iteration? Thank you! I'm a proof and truth person...lol!
 
Indyfan, Can you please post the data that it's better than previous iteration? Thank you! I'm a proof and truth person...lol!
There have been a few threads about the new vs old Ultra. Here's one with the info from Fram.

 
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