I've been keeping track of media area measurements from oil filter C&Ps for filters with M20x1.5 threads. Most are from the Whip City Wrencher Youtube channel, and a few are from other sources. I've grouped them by FRAM equivalent filter sizes (7317, 3593A, 9688, and 6607), which mostly works well, but filter cross referencing isn't an exact science. I've also included one filter with a different thread size (3614) so that some different OEM filters could be represented.
For a given type of filter media, more media should result in less restriction and a higher holding capacity, reducing the chance of bypassing or clogging. In theory, more media also means that the filter's efficiency shouldn't drop as much over a given service interval, since the media will remain cleaner.
Keep in mind that different types of media can require differing amounts of media to achieve the same performance. Filters with synthetic media can usually use less media to achieve a given restriction and holding capacity. Filters with less efficient media can also get away with using less of it. Though perhaps a more common reason why a filter might use less media is to keep production costs lower.
7317:
The Pentius XL takes the top spot in this category, with the the Mobil 1, Honda, Denso, and Subaru filters also doing well. The WIX, WIX XP, and NAPA Proselect do very poorly compared to other filters that have similar types of media. Of the filters with full synthetic media, the new Carquest EP takes top spot.
3593A:
The Pentius XL and Asian OEM filters again do well here. The WIX XP again does poorly relative to the Purolator BOSS, which uses the same media, but for some reason WIX decided to use a huge amount of media for the non-XP filter in this size. The FRAM Ultra uses less media in this large canister size than it does in the smaller 9688 and 6607 sizes. This filter has been discontinued by FRAM (consolodated to the 9688), probably because its existence served no real purpose.
9688:
There are some oddball canister sizes in this category, but they seem to fit best here. There aren't any major outliers in this category.
6607:
Some filter manufacturers do a good job at fitting a lot of media into these small canisters. The Mazda OEM filters have as much media as the average 7317-sized filter. Others, like Baldwin and WIX, aren't even trying. Interestingly enough, the Baldwin B1400 is what Baldwin recommends for my turbo Subaru that has a very oil high flow requirement. I'm guessing this is because it's no taller than the OEM filter, and so guaranteed not to have fitment issues. I've decided that it might be best not to trust a filter company that specializes in tractors to provide a good filter recomendation for an automotive application.
3614:
This filter size was included to get some Toyota and American OEM filters into the mix. I also have some manufacturer data for dirt holding capacity for some of these filters, as well as some test results from the Brand Ranks testing for both restriction and holding capacity, and I thought this might help shed some light on the effect of media area and the type of media on the performance of the filter.
There's not too much variance within in this category, aside from the Toyota filter with its massive amount of media. The American OEM filters seem to use less media than Japanese and Korean OEMs.
In terms of dirt holding capacity per unit area of filter media, the Purolator BOSS/Wix XP/NAPA Platinum seem to perform the best. These filters seem to all use the same media, which is full synthetic and has low efficiency, so this result isn't surprising. The synthetic blend filters perform more or less similarly. The worst performer is the Purolator L10241, with its thin, high efficiency cellulose media.
In terms of dP (restriction) per unit area of filter media, the BOSS/XP/NAPA synthetic media again performs well. Among the filters with synthetic blend media, the FRAM Ultra with its dual layer blend media seems to be an outlier. It performs the worst in terms of dP, despite the fact that it seems to perform very well in terms of dirt holding capacity per unit of media area.
If you're going to be doing filter C&Ps, especially of filters in these categories, feel free to measure the media area and include it in your post, then post a link to the C&P in this thread. I might provide some updates to these tables at some point.
For a given type of filter media, more media should result in less restriction and a higher holding capacity, reducing the chance of bypassing or clogging. In theory, more media also means that the filter's efficiency shouldn't drop as much over a given service interval, since the media will remain cleaner.
Keep in mind that different types of media can require differing amounts of media to achieve the same performance. Filters with synthetic media can usually use less media to achieve a given restriction and holding capacity. Filters with less efficient media can also get away with using less of it. Though perhaps a more common reason why a filter might use less media is to keep production costs lower.
7317:
The Pentius XL takes the top spot in this category, with the the Mobil 1, Honda, Denso, and Subaru filters also doing well. The WIX, WIX XP, and NAPA Proselect do very poorly compared to other filters that have similar types of media. Of the filters with full synthetic media, the new Carquest EP takes top spot.
3593A:
The Pentius XL and Asian OEM filters again do well here. The WIX XP again does poorly relative to the Purolator BOSS, which uses the same media, but for some reason WIX decided to use a huge amount of media for the non-XP filter in this size. The FRAM Ultra uses less media in this large canister size than it does in the smaller 9688 and 6607 sizes. This filter has been discontinued by FRAM (consolodated to the 9688), probably because its existence served no real purpose.
9688:
There are some oddball canister sizes in this category, but they seem to fit best here. There aren't any major outliers in this category.
6607:
Some filter manufacturers do a good job at fitting a lot of media into these small canisters. The Mazda OEM filters have as much media as the average 7317-sized filter. Others, like Baldwin and WIX, aren't even trying. Interestingly enough, the Baldwin B1400 is what Baldwin recommends for my turbo Subaru that has a very oil high flow requirement. I'm guessing this is because it's no taller than the OEM filter, and so guaranteed not to have fitment issues. I've decided that it might be best not to trust a filter company that specializes in tractors to provide a good filter recomendation for an automotive application.
3614:
This filter size was included to get some Toyota and American OEM filters into the mix. I also have some manufacturer data for dirt holding capacity for some of these filters, as well as some test results from the Brand Ranks testing for both restriction and holding capacity, and I thought this might help shed some light on the effect of media area and the type of media on the performance of the filter.
There's not too much variance within in this category, aside from the Toyota filter with its massive amount of media. The American OEM filters seem to use less media than Japanese and Korean OEMs.
In terms of dirt holding capacity per unit area of filter media, the Purolator BOSS/Wix XP/NAPA Platinum seem to perform the best. These filters seem to all use the same media, which is full synthetic and has low efficiency, so this result isn't surprising. The synthetic blend filters perform more or less similarly. The worst performer is the Purolator L10241, with its thin, high efficiency cellulose media.
In terms of dP (restriction) per unit area of filter media, the BOSS/XP/NAPA synthetic media again performs well. Among the filters with synthetic blend media, the FRAM Ultra with its dual layer blend media seems to be an outlier. It performs the worst in terms of dP, despite the fact that it seems to perform very well in terms of dirt holding capacity per unit of media area.
If you're going to be doing filter C&Ps, especially of filters in these categories, feel free to measure the media area and include it in your post, then post a link to the C&P in this thread. I might provide some updates to these tables at some point.
