Quiz: Pick out the Fram

[paulo57509]

I thought it might be fun to post a little quiz.

These three filters are for the same application. They're all cartridge type filters. Visually, can you pick out the Fram filter? The other two filters are other well known brands. The filters are made in South Korea and Mexico (the blue painter's tape is covering part numbers/manufacturers names).

Photo 1

Photo 2

 

[carrera79]

The one in the middle.

 

[T-Keith]

Hard to tell since they are probably all outsourced. At one point GM's filters were made by the same people as frams for the new ecotec applications.

I would guess the middle one.

-T

 

[labman]

In both photos the one on the right looks more uniformly built and contains more pleats. I vote for the middle too thinking the reddish color of the media is characteristic of Fram.

Note, these are not the cartridge for the Ecotec, AC 2244G. I have seen 5 different brands, and they all have plastic end caps with an O-ring on a yoke that is part of the ADBV defeat to make tidier filter changes. 3 of the brands originally were actually labeled Purflux.

Please let us know what the best looking filter was.

 

[gerhardb]

Even though many folks have the dislike of Fram, I'd be suprised if it was the one on the far left...

I'm thinking middle as the far right looks more like the filter media from a FilTech or Champion Labs filter.

 

[jthorner]

I'm quite sure Fram didn't manufacture any of them, so all bets are off.

I will say that the filter on the far left appears to be the least carefully made while the one of the far right looks to be the most carefully made.

The middle and right filter look like they came from the same factory while the one on the left looks entirely different.

I will guess that center and right are the Korean filters while the left one is the Mexican product.

Any lablel could unfortunately be on any of these filters!

John

 

[motorguy222]

Middle-Fram
Right-Mexico
Left-Korea

And the winner is....

[ June 23, 2004, 11:59 AM: Message edited by: motorguy222 ]

 

[paulo57509]

All three filters fit '86-'87 Acura Legends with either 2.5L or 2.7L engines.

Here's a run down. From left to right:

STP, made in Mexico, distributed by Champion Labs
NAPA Gold, made in S. Korea
Fram, made in S. Korea

The STP filter media appears to be similar to folded typing paper...literally. I had to laugh when I opened the box in the store. The pleats are few and far between and not very deep and very uneven. I purchased it just to post a photo of it, and decided it might be kind of fun to do a side-by-side visual comparison.

The NAPA Gold filter is of much better constuction; the pleats aren't very uniform when compared to the Fram. The rubber seal differs from the Fram and STP in that there's a kind of "double o-ring" molded into the ID if the seal; perhaps to improve sealing to the nipple inside of the filter housing, or to enhance rigidity of the seal's ID (the STP seal was pretty thin and "wavy").

The Fram was noticably the best visually. Evenly folded media pleats, no excessive adhesive between the media and end plates.

All fiters had coil spring pressure relief valves. The finger tip test revealed that the STP had the weakest spring; the STP and Fram were similar.

Concusions? Looks alone don't tell the whole story, but for now, I'll stick with a S. Korean manufactured filter or Honda OEM.

 

[labman]

This adds to my fear that you have to rat out the data for each application separately. Looks like in this application, the highly thought of, expensive WIX is inferior to the despised Fram. Maybe they do better when they can't hide their crap in an orange can. I have noticed their PH 9018 looks as good anything else. I still am not going to pay Wally's $8 for one when I can find a Purolator for $4.

 

[RavenTai]

quote:

---

Originally posted by labman:
Maybe they do better when they can't hide their crap in an orange can.

---

Agreed,

any one else notive there are not many holes in the STP center support? I only see one fairly large one in the second picture wile the other two hame many visible smaller holes

 

[T-Keith]

I think it has more to do with outsourcing filters then the cartridge style filter. My car uses a cartridge filter, but the Fram PH-3970 still uses cardboard endcaps and poorly spaced pleats. I even found one missing a o-ring.

This is maybe one exeption in hundreds of filter applications.

-T

 

[goofy8]

My vote is

Left Mexico

Middle Fram

Right Korea

 

[jthorner]

So much for the worship of Champion Labs products. This isn't the first marginal looking Champion-Mexico product we have seen.

John

 

[RedWolf4000]

My car also uses a catridge filter, and the FRAM brand is pretty much identical to all the others. Because of the low demand, i doubt they are made by Fram, and even if they were, its totally different from a cheap can filter FRAM, because they have to follow the materials perfectly with my kind of drop in. No cardboard. My filters are media with plastic ends, a nipple on top, and a spiral of plastic down the middle. all of the brands are the same.