JoesC5

You are thinking about the PowerCore line of Air breathers, not oil filters. I believe that Donaldson is selling then to Fram, NAPA and WIX for resell through the parts houses.

Donaldson's line of Endurance filters is for liquid filtration, not air filtration.

jft69z

Yeah, Air filters as the photo from the NAPA link showed. Do you think it's a Donaldson?

JoesC5

I believe it is.

need-for-speed

I know this is a very subjective, but:

Do you think the PF48 is better than the Wix 57060? I've used both and have no problem using the PF48. I just thought that the Wix is better. Admitteldy, that is based on nothing more than posts like this on the internet.

I've even used the UPF48R and have no problem paying the little bit extra that they cost. My concern is over any potential warranty issues since the UPF 48R is not specified for my wet sump LS3. If it were out of warranty, I would be using the UPF 48R.

jft69z

Tough call that would be hard for me to answer with any kind of authority for lack of a better term... Without any real world or lab testing, flow tests, pressure relief valve testing, filtering efficiency, microscope viewing of filter media, etc., it's just seat of the pants here. Yeah, I've been doing this stuff for close to 40 years now & have a pretty diverse background, but like you said, it's very subjective. I do have my opinions about these things, but so does everyone else. I just cut them open .

For me, I generally use the OEM filters in my vehicles (cars, trucks & motorcycles) and have never had a problem. I used the Ford filters when I owned a couple of those trucks in the past. I've used a lot of the NAPA/WIX Gold filters and have never had a problem. Some people here have mentioned problems they had with OEM, WIX or FRAM filters in past experiences, and that has guided their decisions.

As far as the UPF48R is concerned, it is a direct replacement for the PF48, just not the other way around because of the pressure rating (don't put a PF48 in a ZR1). I have a case of them but don't see the need to put them in my CTS-V or GMC truck because they don't need the extra pressure rating and would probably be overkill-cost is not a factor here. Filtering difference? That's still up in the air, some sources say it's the same as the PF48, others say it's better filter media. I'll still keep doing the above even after cutting them all apart. If I ran out of PF48's, I'd grab a UPF48R out of the box.

If you're worried about the warranty then the PF48 vs. the WIX is the way to go. UPF48R wouldn't/shouldn't be a problem at all either.....in my opinion (have I danced around the original question long enough, lol?)

need-for-speed

Thanks jft - that's some of the most artful dancing I've ever seen

(it must be the drugs )

Hey, I do appreciate the response and agree it is so subjective. LOL !!

In the end, I suspect as long as I use a PF48, WIX 57060, or UPF48R, I'll be just fine - as long as I don't use a Fram LOL.

Do you have a 69 Z28 ? Would love to see pics.....

jft69z

Happy Pills!!!!

Yeah, I still have the Z. It's got a LS6 454 cu. in. in it now that's far from stock & a Doug Nash 5-speed because I broke too many 4-speeds at the time. I built it in the late 80's and haven't done much else to it. I stripped & painted it myself in '90 and it's held up great (DuPont base/clear). Here's an older picture & there's a couple more in the 'my garage' section of the forum.

need-for-speed

very nice !!

I like your drive train too !!

GOLD72

I use the WIX drop-in element in my 2010 CTS Wagon 3.6L rather than Delco as I can pick it up at almost any local auto parts store. Use the UPF48R in the 3 vettes I take care of (LS9, LS3, & LS2) as I buy them a half dozen at a time from Fichtner.

jft69z

So the Amsoil EA15K50 filter came in today from "5Dream2004" (thank you Adam!!).

It appears to be made at Champion Labs like the UPF48/Mobil 1/K&N/ filters. All of the hard parts (case, baseplate, spring plate, relief valve) are exactly the same. The baseplate looks to be plated, but is it for corrosion protection? It's going to be submerged in oil. They have used a wire reinforced synthetic media that somewhat resembles the white filter media used in the NAPA Platinum 47060 (WIX) filter.

Some observations:

The Amsoil filter has its pleats spaced pretty close together, almost to the point that they're sandwiched in there pretty good. It has 36 pleats total. The NAPA has 32 pleats with wider spacing & the UPF48R/Mobil 1/K&N filters all have 54 pleats each. What does this mean in terms of total filtering surface area? Hard to tell since there are 3 seemingly different types of filtering media going on here. The white filter media is much thicker than the yellow paper type of filter so that must be taken into account when considering total surface area.

The Amsoil media is quite a bit softer, stringy, more cotton like than the NAPA which is considerably more stiff. Amsoil glues both ends of the filter media together where the NAPA used a metal crimp to secure the two ends to each other. This can barely be seen on the close-ups of the NAPA filter on the right. The Amsoil filter glues the wire screen to the white filter media where the NAPA just lays it in there.

There you have it. In all it looks like a quality piece just like all the others (except Fram). They say on the box that it's good for 15,000 miles. It also says Made in USA on the filter just like the rest.

I looked at some Royal Purple filters online & it appears they are also manufactured by Champion Labs (direct from Champ Labs website), probably with a certain type of filter media spec'd out by RP. No real need to cut one open unless somebody here uses them or has a few laying around.

Also, here's wishing a happy & safe Thanksgiving & holiday season to all!

Joe T.



Amsoil in the center, spaced pretty close together.



Close-up of Amsoil (left) and NAPA Platinum synthetic filter media

C5Dream2004

I think this should be a sticky for anyone talking filters

AORoads

I agree! and Joe T., Happy Thanksgiving and thanks for doing what you did, and to Gearhead Jim for this thread.

jft69z

It's been fun & something I have been meaning to do for a long time. It was a good Thanksgiving, almost 60 degrees & sunny in western NY. Finally got to drive the ZR1 & CTS-V too! The Dr. says if it doesn't hurt too much with the manual shift, go for it. I just consider it part of the "physical therapy" exercises.

QCVette

Thanks for the great work. Very informative.

The Fram looked bad and it got me wondering about the low line ones. All of your teardowns have been on the "premium" versions. Just how bad are the base level Purolator and Fram filters. I have heard the Fram is terrible and the Purolator might not be too bad, but would love to see just how bad the low line ones are.

Thanks

jft69z

When I was at walmart I looked inside all of the Fram filters to decide which one to buy. The one I picked was near the top of their line and appeared to be about the same quality as the best one they offered but a few bucks less. If this is near their best (and appears to be a POS), the cheapest base filter they offer is even worse (if that's possible). Yes, they sell a gazillion of them and probably meet the minimum specs required by the OEMs, but for the money it's a no-brainer to get at least the AC or WIX/NAPA filters.

When I go to Wallyworld next time I'll look at the cheap fram & purolator filters again & see if they're worth taking home with me. I do get a bunch of cars in the shop where people get a lot of quick lube filters & no-name filters and have been tempted to cut them open, but by then they're just an oily mess. Worse than the cheap filter is that they're usually on there less than hand tight. When they leave here it's with an OEM or NAPA Gold filter.

mracer14

In the end,you can never go wrong using a OEM Filter. I always do.

96GS#007

Beautiful car, one of my all time favorites

Regarding the filter, and I know this is opinion, but I find it hard to believe that virtually any of the dealers out there would void a warranty based on an oil filter. If that were the case, then the aftermarket companies may as well lag behind by 3 years before announcing that filter "p/n xyz" fits a given car/engine. Even with the Fram filters...if they were so horrible, it would seem that either they would be out of business and/or we would hear/read about many, many failures. Frankly, the filter is the last line of defense. If you have metal chunks going through the oil system, the engine is on its way out anyway. A better filter just buys you time.

As far and the UPF vs the PF48...if the filter burst, then I could see there being a warranty issue. If it was something else that went wrong such as a lifter or bearing going south, no way (again my opinion) a dealer or GM would void a warranty.

Great thread

jft69z

Thanks, Same here, I always loved that body style. I've been tempted to sell the car since I barely drive it anymore, but as soon as I did I would miss it.

I agree on all of your points about the filters too. A lot of it maybe comes down to advertising in regards to filter popularity and sales? The shelves at Walmart are 3/4 stocked with Fram and the rest divided between AC, Purolator, and a few from Bosch, Mopar and maybe Motorcraft. Air filters, forget it, all Fram.

Engine failure & warranty claims? I imagine some of it would depend on the dealer you went to? We hear horror stories from people here that get denied warranty service on the simplist of things all the time & the flip side where other dealers are awesome. So far I've been lucky with warranty issues. That may change real soon as I was informed last week that my service advisor is going to a different dealer in January...not good.

For me it's just piece of mind probably. I get the OEM filters & change the oil way sooner than the Oil Life Monitor says.

jbomx363

Even though the Fram is considerably cheaply built. As they say... it's all in the performance.

I'm wondering, if the cheap materials used are in areas that really don't mean much.

Just spitballing though..

Wonder how the big boys test all the filtering properties for different oil weights and what those would look like with the cheapily built Fram and the better built Champion made filters.

jft69z

I have a few complaints about the Fram materials & construction.

1) The endcaps are made of a fiberous, cardboard like material.
2) They used a minimal amount of glue to seal the ends to the filter paper. Some pleats were almost barely attached to the end piece.
3)The bypass valve assembly is a cheap plastic button and looks to have poor sealing ability. The others have a soft seat and provide a more positive seal.
4) All of the other filters use metal filter end caps that provide a solid foundation for the filter, bypass valve & pressure relief valve. Look at the Fram. The red anti-drainback valve & the crappy bypass valve/spring plate simply slip into the open holes at the fiber ends. There is no real positive seal there between the inlet and outlet side for the filtered oil. That fit is also pretty sloppy and could allow unfiltered oil to simply flow around those parts.
5)The case material was one of the thinnest of the bunch.

To me at least, the cheap materials and questionable sealing abilities are in critical areas. Especially when compared to all the other available filters at the same price points.