WIX vs. Napa Gold vs. Carquest Premium Blue

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It is my understanding that these filters are all the same WIX filter. Same media etc. Is this correct?

I ask because I always liked the Napa Gold but didn't like the approx. $10 price per filter.

I started buying Wix filters which appear to be the same filter and they cost me anywhere from 4.05 to 5.40 each which is a bargain.

I never purchased the Carquest version. Any idea they compare on price?

The WIX 51372 (Motorcraft FL820S equivalent) appears to be very well made and it is one of the few filters that has the silicone anti-drainback valve that Ford uses on the FL820S.
 
They are all the same filter (& a very good one) so buy based on price or whichever store has the cashier with the biggest rack.
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Wow, $10 for the Napa Gold? I'm coughin' up around $5.50 for the 1515; but my next experiement in filtration (the big ol' 1773) is gonna run me $9
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Makes me wonder how much price variation there is between different Napa stores.
 
Virtuoso....Do you have any retailers closeby that sell Wix? I usually get the 1773 filter for $7 and the 1515 for $4. Napa usually charges $2 more for the same filter. I guess that pretty blue NAPA logo costs more to paint the can!
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Last weekend I looked at two different part # filters at a Napa store, and also one at CarQuest. All were old stock with the older black nitrile anti-drainback valves, and therefore the old media (mostly cellulose). None were newer stock with orange silicone valves and the "T03" fiberglass/cellulose media. So I ended up getting an oversize version of a Purolator PureOne instead. Eventually all this old stock should move off the shelves, I would hope.
 
quote:

Originally posted by GSV:
They are all the same filter (& a very good one) so buy based on price or whichever store has the cashier with the biggest rack.
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The guy at my local Napa has a "rack" but it is from drinking too much beer. If you saw this guy you wouldn't want to take the filters for free.

Not too many babes working the autoparts houses in my area (especially the "real" stores like NAPA and the good independents).

I like your thinking though.
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The mini-mopar filter study is most definitely an excellent read, but some of the info has become dated (I believe the study is several years old). The Honda study below, about 1-1/2 years old, showed the Napa Gold to be US made and well constructed, while the Napa Silver was a UK-sourced mystery filter that was poorly fabricated. I've never even seen any Napa Silvers here in So. Cal., only Napa Golds, so they're a bit of a mystery to us folks in the land of avocados and alfalfa sprouts.
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http://www.ntpog.org/reviews/filters/old_filters.shtml
 
I have a Napa, a carquest and a store that sells wix brand filters, all within a half mile from my house. Napa charges 5.99. Carquest charges 5.69, and the wix brand filters cost 4.99, but they are all old stock.
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My local Napa is pretty decent on other parts. I guess they were hosing me on the Napa Golds. I only bought them a couple of times because I hated paying $10 a pop when I knew there were other less costly quality alternatives (like the FL820S - $3 from Wallyworld).
 
The first Wix 51344 I bought had the black (nitrile) anti-drain back valve and it worked very well.

The filter mounts almost perfectly horizontal on the KA24DE motor and I expected to get leaked on as I unscrewed it. Hardly any oil poured out when I removed it.

See photo:
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I later cut the thing open with a dremel tool and there was a whole bunch of oil still trapped behind that valve. I'd rather have the silicon valve but the nitrile works very well.

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quote:

Originally posted by Virtuoso:
Wow, $10 for the Napa Gold? I'm coughin' up around $5.50 for the 1515; but my next experiement in filtration (the big ol' 1773) is gonna run me $9
frown.gif

Makes me wonder how much price variation there is between different Napa stores.


I just bought a Napa Gold 1085 and a 1394. I paid 5.69 for the 1085 and 5.99 for the 1394. Thirty cents more for a filter 1/10 the size. Maybe the auto tap setup in the prog die, stamping out the 1394, is more expensive. I have no clue.
 
I've cut open all three in the Motorcraft FL820s equivalent (hint: the number will end with 1372 in all three brands). All three were identical to the naked eye, FWIW.

Napa: 5.99
Carquest: 5.89-6.59 depending on which location
Wix: 7.19 (ripoff independant is only closeby local source)

Needless to say, I get the Napa's most often - most reliably priced and IN STOCK. Independant has been out 3 out four tries. Sad.
 
Any of you guys catch the AMsxxx comparison which appears to show the wix as the worst for area or filtration? I like to use Napa Gold also. I am just wondering what the deal is with what we see and what Amsxxx reports in their propaganda.
 
After doing a little research and determing that CarQuest filters are exactly the same as Wix's top line filters, I chose one to use at my last oil change. I'd been using SuperTech, but since I was confident the UOA on the German Castrol was going to come back good, I knew I'd be running this batch a full year or 10,000 miles and I wanted a filter with a silicone ADBV. The SuperTechs have nitrile.
 
Dickwells: I haven't seen the Amsoil marketing comparison you've mentioned, but it smells like BS. Without going into all the numbers, I glanced at the mini-mopar and NTPOG filter reviews I had printed out. The Honda enthusiasts found that the Napa Gold (Wix) had more area than the Amsoil, Frams, and the three Champions inspected (Mobil 1, Bosch, and STP). In the dated mini-mopar study, the Wix had more area than the Purolator Premium Plus, AC Delco, Fram, and about the same as Mobil 1.

As for filtration, I've accumulated these random numbers from various sources:
-Wix: 19-25 microns absolute, 13 nominal
-Bosch: 15 nonimal
-Mobil 1: 10 nominal
-AC Delco: 40 absolute, 25 nominal
-Baldwin Microlite: 23 absolute, 8 nominal

Sounds like Amsoil's tracking around some "brown stuff" on their shoes.
 
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