What oil filters should I get?

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dvancleve

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Howdy folks.

My oil filter stash is running a bit low, and the landscape has clearly changed in the last couple years (Fram is great, Purolator stinks). What filter(s) would you suggest for a Prius that gets ~5K OCIs running whatever 5w20 or 5w30 I happen to have (next will probably 5w30 VNG, might be Maxlife)? I generally run the taller Corolla size filters and I have a few $5 off of $10 O'Reilly coupons and a $10 gift card. It looks like the current Microguards are Wix and the price is good, should I get those or is there something better for not a lot more?

Also, my wife is driving a 2013 VW turbo with the funky filter with the plastic adaptor on top of the motor. It looks to me like all the commonly available filters might be German. The default OCI is 10K miles and the oil is stout VW 502 rated. Are any of the made in Germany filters fine, should I shop by price? I ordered a Mahle from Amazon for the first oil change, but I won't bother going out of my way for a German brand if they are all German and similar.

Thanks, Doug
 
If Microgard is made by Wix, get it. My late wife used to have a 2005 Beetle TDi that had a similar cartridge filter setup like you described. I think the OE VW ones from the dealership parts counter were either Mahle or Mann, so I'd say they're probably an okay choice.
 
Fram tough guard or Extra Guard get my vote. IMO can't beat them for the price (under $4 and $6 at Walmart) and 5k is easy. If you just want a cheap filter and don't care as much about filtration efficiency, then wix based napa select and supertech filters are great with good construction. I am not sure Fram ever stank in the past 15 years, but they have picked up their game by far. Purolator was great up until 2010 to 2012 when issues started to occur. For the VW, I would just use the Volkswagen filter or look for a Mann Hummel filter.
 
rockauto is showing some wix for $1.66. If you ship to a business address you might get a good price. (Go all the way through checkout to see the price drop.)
 
I'd go with Wix for the price mentioned above, good quality filter. I use the cartridge style Wix on my wife's Jeep.

If you go with RockAuto use the coupon code for another 5% off, little bit never hurts.

5387936748131651
 
why stock up at all? you may wreck or trade your cars unexpectedly. and be stuck with filters you cant use
 
Follow this link. If you are comfortable with stashing filters, then buy a case of 6 fram Ultra's off ebay. You could easily run them 2 OCIs. Looks like they'll cost you $4.5 per filter. They'll work better than any other filter you could reasonably buy, and they are cheaper than anything I've seen posted here (other than those Wix mentioned earlier).
 
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Here you go,,,,where many if not all oil filters come from,,not exactly made in some nostalgic factory in America by that once well known mystic man who lives in your neighborhood...
50.gif


http://www.ap-magazine.com/Catalog_208/Auto-Oil-Filter.html
 
Originally Posted By: jacky
why stock up at all? you may wreck or trade your cars unexpectedly. and be stuck with filters you cant use

I like to be able to do an oil change without running/flailing around for parts, so at least a couple filters for the various cars. If I end up stuck with a few at some point, it isn't going to break the bank
wink.gif


Thanks, Doug
 
Originally Posted By: CourierDriver
Here you go,,,,where many if not all oil filters come from,,not exactly made in some nostalgic factory in America by that once well known mystic man who lives in your neighborhood...
50.gif


http://www.ap-magazine.com/Catalog_208/Auto-Oil-Filter.html


I doubt if the fact that our oil filters were often made in 3rd world countries where near-slave labor is standard and where more industrial pollution makes the water tasty is really important to the performance of the oil filter itself.
 
i have considered ordering a pronto or pentius filter they dont sell them local.
if you have a toyota i would consider using denso
 
This is what I found on Royal purple website
Their q&a page.

What are the efficiency ratings of Royal Purple engine oil filters?
Based on ISO 4548-12 multi-pass test methods the filter efficiencies are:

99% at 25 microns and larger
98.7% at 20 microns and larger
80% at 10 microns and larger

Average beta rating based on ISO 4548-12 multi-pass test methods:

B100 = 25 (which means at 25 or greater micron; media is 99% efficient.)
B75 = 20 (which means at 20 or greater micron; media is 98.7% efficient. Also considered absolute rating.)
B5 = 10 (which means at 10 micron or greater; media is 80% efficient.)

From Royal purple website
http://www.royalpurpleconsumer.com/resources/faqs/oil-filter/
 
Originally Posted By: Iowegian
This is what I found on Royal purple website
Their q&a page.

What are the efficiency ratings of Royal Purple engine oil filters?
Based on ISO 4548-12 multi-pass test methods the filter efficiencies are:

99% at 25 microns and larger
98.7% at 20 microns and larger
80% at 10 microns and larger

Average beta rating based on ISO 4548-12 multi-pass test methods:

B100 = 25 (which means at 25 or greater micron; media is 99% efficient.)
B75 = 20 (which means at 20 or greater micron; media is 98.7% efficient. Also considered absolute rating.)
B5 = 10 (which means at 10 micron or greater; media is 80% efficient.)

From Royal purple website
http://www.royalpurpleconsumer.com/resources/faqs/oil-filter/
That's interesting-so Fram Tough Guard & Ultra filters actually BEAT RP in efficiency at 99% @ 20 microns, as compared to RP's 99% @ 25 microns! Not that it makes a huge difference to most clean engines anyway.
 
Curious about what Fram's efficiency rating is at 10 microns.

http://www.onallcylinders.com/2015/05/29...our-oil-filter/

According to Fram’s Technical Training Manager Jay Buckley, dirt and foreign material measuring smaller than 10 microns will be small enough to be carried in suspension in the oil and will pass through even tight bearing clearances. Material larger than 20 microns is generally considered too large to pass through tight bearing clearances although with performance engines with main bearing clearances of 0.0030-inch, this is certainly possible. But generally speaking, foreign material in the range between 10 and 20 microns will potentially do the most engine damage over time.
 
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Originally Posted By: jacky
i have considered ordering a pronto or pentius filter they dont sell them local.
if you have a toyota i would consider using denso


I have sought out Denso filters for my Subaru, which specs an unusually high bypass pressure. AFAIK there is nothing special about the Prius filter, so I am just looking for good and reliable. I won't be running any particularly long OCIs or fancy oil.

Doug
 
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