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What Oil Filter Do You Use?

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robertjanlynn

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Discussion starter · #1 · (Edited)
Which oil filter do you use?

Being in the automotive field all my life, I have never seen an engine destroyed by an oil filter. I’ve heard many people claim they have a buddy who ruined their engine by using a Fram, Castrol, Pennzoil or add your least favorite filter brand here.

Before Covid I always enjoyed going to garage sales. Often I would find some new oil filter the person was basically giving away for like $0.25 just to get rid of them with no knowledge of what they fit. I would carry in my glove box the part numbers of the oil filters that fit my Rav4 so I could do a quick reference. This is what I carried

Toyota - 04152-YZZA1 (CBO-TOY-028-X3)
Fram – 9972
Castrol = CAS9972 SFX or CAS10075
AC Delco Gold = PF2259F
Purolator L25609 or L25608
Beck Arnley = 041-8190
Bosch = 72236WS or 3972
Royal Purple = 20-967
WIX = 57047XP
Mobil 1 = M1C-251A
Valvoline = VO-84
Pennzoil = PZ-161

Since Covid, there are fewer garage sales and to be honest, I don’t go out like I use to.

What filter do I use?
I like the Fram Ultra Synthetic XG9972 which advertises it is good for 20,000 miles, not that I would ever leave my oil and filter in the engine for 20,000 mile. Personally, I change my oil between 6 and 7 thousand miles depending on the type of driving I do. This filter can be had at Walmart (as of today’s pricing) for $9.29. Compare this to a K&N filter for around $17.50 (almost twice the price).

What filter do you use? Does it matter to you which one?
 
#5 · (Edited)
robertjanlynn said:
I have never seen an engine destroyed by an oil filter.
Click to expand...
Mann and Mahle are my 2 favourites.

A "poor" filter medium may be similar to extending the oil change interval a few thousand miles.

For spin-on filters the opening point of the by-pass would be more critical, spring rate or opening set point may vary a bit from one filter to another however this is rarely ever shown or tested in the various "test" videos on youtube.

Personally I buy all my filters together about once a year from an online store that has most brands, any top notch brand will do, the prices vary from week to week so I may choose articles that are discounted, I avoid the cheaper or unknown brands for no particular reason other than superstition. Sometimes the dimensions vary, mostly just the height so I'll choose one that is a similar height to the original.
 
#6 ·
I generally use FRAM. But not married to the brand. For our RAV I use Toyota filters as they are about the same cost if you buy in bulk (3 or more) on-line. THe last oil change on my truck I used microguard, as it was what the part store had and I did not have any on my shelf.

The only thing I have heard about factory filters that might make a difference is that some have a anti back flow valve that will keep the oil from emptying out of the filter and cause a short period of oil pressure lose, or delayed supply of oil on start up. I have concluded that this is pretty much false. Oil filter seems always full of oil when I remove it, and there are a couple of videos of cut filters which confirm this as well (no extra valve found in OE filters).
 
#7 ·
Yeah, all the major brand spin on type filters have anti-drain back valves. I usually use either the Toyota OEMs (Wally world has them for about $5) or the Fram ultra guard synthetic ones, also from Wally World.


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#9 ·
WJBertrand said:
Yeah, all the major brand spin on type filters have anti-drain back valves. I usually use either the Toyota OEMs (Wally world has them for about $5) or the Fram ultra guard synthetic ones, also from Wally World.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
Click to expand...
Guess my point is moot with the cartridge filters. Never seen a OE Toyota filter at Wally World.

When I was a kid I ask my dad while changing the oil/spin on filter. Couldn't they make a canister and then just replace the filter element. Wouldn't it cost less than making a steel case that needs to be thrown away after each change. To my delight they started doing that exact thing. To my disappointment the paper element typically cost more than a steel cased spin on.
 
#11 ·
MrPulldown said:
Guess my point is moot with the cartridge filters. Never seen a OE Toyota filter at Wally World.

When I was a kid I ask my dad while changing the oil/spin on filter. Couldn't they make a canister and then just replace the filter element. Wouldn't it cost less than making a steel case that needs to be thrown away after each change. To my delight they started doing that exact thing. To my disappointment the paper element typically cost more than a steel cased spin on.
Click to expand...
Back in the day, 60s, GM cars all had canister filters with a replaceable element, so this is not a new idea, it’s just come around again.


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#12 · (Edited)
The Car Care Nut does a good video on oil filters.
My first car was a '61 Pontiac Strato Chief with a 261 inline 6. Big car with the dangerous X frame. It used a cartridge/canister style oil filter and the air filter was filled with motor oil, it was the filter media so you had to change the oil in the air filter once and a while.
 
#13 ·
Always used Mobil 1 M1-103A but I've been looking into the WIX 51394 XP. For some reason the WIX website doesn't list it as being compatible with the Gen 5 RAV4, but lists it as compatible with the 2.5L Camry which has the exact same powertrain.


Probably just an oversight so I'll likely switch to the 51394 XP on my next change. The Mobil 1 filters are still better than most other filters IMO since it's a synthetic blend vs. pure cellulose like most others. I also noticed they're cleaner inside with less glue spilled onto the filter media even compared to some premium filters.
 
#14 ·
robertjanlynn said:
Which oil filter do you use?
Click to expand...
The OEM Toyota filters. If you buy them in 10-packs, they only cost about $5.50 each, pretty much the same price as the cheapest Fram filters at WalMart. Most professional auto mechanics, including Ahmed The Car Care Nut, are of the opinion that almost ANY other oil filter is better quality than the orange-box Fram ones. And I figure, if I stick with the official Toyota filters, if anything goes wrong with the engine while it's still under warranty, the dealership can't BS me by saying that an aftermarket oil filter was the cause of the problem. You can buy a case of 10 on Amazon for about $55, so they really are no more expensive than Fram, Motorcraft, AC Delco, or Mobil filters.
 
#15 ·
MrPulldown said:
When I was a kid I ask my dad while changing the oil/spin on filter. Couldn't they make a canister and then just replace the filter element. Wouldn't it cost less than making a steel case that needs to be thrown away after each change. To my delight they started doing that exact thing. To my disappointment the paper element typically cost more than a steel cased spin on.
Click to expand...
Some Toyota Priuses used a cartridge-style oil filter, and I hated them. They were 10 times as messy to change out as a 1-piece spin-on filter, and there were multiple o-rings that were all possible points of leakage.
 
#16 ·
lmcharlot said:
Some Toyota Priuses used a cartridge-style oil filter, and I hated them. They were 10 times as messy to change out as a 1-piece spin-on filter, and there were multiple o-rings that were all possible points of leakage.
Click to expand...
There is a bit of a learning curve, but if done right it is less messy. IF drained prior to removal oil barely dribbles out when the can is removed. I don't mind a little more effort and less wasted material. I hate sending stuff to the landfill.
 
#17 ·
MrPulldown said:
There is a bit of a learning curve, but if done right it is less messy. IF drained prior to removal oil barely dribbles out when the can is removed. I don't mind a little more effort and less wasted material. I hate sending stuff to the landfill.
Click to expand...
I agree they are not that messy. However, that plastic push-in drain valve can be a PITA. Some you have to hold in place or they pop out. Others require great effort to snap into place. There is a screw-in version. I think Purolator and Mobile1 are two that use that style.
 
#18 ·
Chuy! said:
I agree they are not that messy. However, that plastic push-in drain valve can be a PITA. Some you have to hold in place or they pop out. Others require great effort to snap into place. There is a screw-in version. I think Purolator and Mobile1 are two that use that style.
Click to expand...
That drain system could be better. First the cap sucks. Often it will spin off the whole housing and never come lose. This negates the whole plastic drain spout. And yeh it is super hard to snap in place. I often do my oil changes on the ground with out lifting the RAV. You have to stick your arm back under the car to access the stuff and at that angle I can not exert enough force.

I have been meaning to get a metal (aluminum) filter housing. On other cars I have had the plastic ones break. Forget if it was a camry or corrola that had the right metal one. Anyone know off hand. Part number.
 
#20 ·
All good aftermarket and OEM filters seem to have a decent filtering capacity, but not all have the same flow characteristics. In informal tests in Youtube Toyota filter seem to not have the best filtering capacity, but looks to have good flow chracteristics (oli goes easy on it). Modern M25A/M20A engine has an electric variable oil pressure pump, and in some operating regimens the pressure of the oil is very low compared to older engines, so I supose good flow filter with frecuent change intervals is more important than extreme filtering capacity. I stick to OEM.
 
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