No need to apologize
FWIW . . . I know you weren’t trying to put words in my mouth
“What tequila?” “Any tequila!” “What haircut?” “Any haircut!” What oil filter?..
Fram oil filters are filters for the masses. They allow owners of Junkers a certain amount of affrdability to allow them to change their oil every 2500 miles so they can be included in the conversation of excessive oil changes with Yuppie SAAB owners using Wix. They are orange so junker owners are not misstakenly shot during hunting season while changing oil outside instead of in a garage. Junker owners can’t afford garages, but can still afford Fram oil filters and VIP brand motor oil. Don’t dump on Fram. They fill an economic need.
I guess oil filter choice fits right in with the preference of choice of oil, politics, and religion. I personally avoid FRAM and usually change my oil every 3-4k miles. This is probably overkill but my engines stay in good running order. I know many Ford people swear by the use of Motorcraft oil filters because of the anti-drainback valve. I know some who have used others and experienced clatter on startup. One guy even took it in to the dealer and all they did was give it an oil change with the Motorcraft filter. Any OE filter like AC Delco, Motorcraft, etc. should be fine. I do sometimes spring for the Wix or M1 filters when they are on sale, often with an oil change special. Also, I know some who swear by the Purolator Pure One filters and state that these are simply the best filters hands down. These seem to be more of a NAPA item and we don’t have one close to me so I haven’t sprung for one yet.
As some here say, look how many cars are driving around with Fram but don’t fail catastrophically. We all have a personal preference and yes, some filters are better, but does it matter, especially if you change your oil often? I know that most microscopic dirt doesn’t even contribute to engine wear, especially if it is smaller than the thickness of the oil film between vital engine parts. Yes, some filters may filter out smaller particles but the smaller size may become irrelevant after a certain size.
That being said, I don’t believe in buying the cheapest oil or filters because peace of mind is worth something to me.
I buy my Sienna filters from Toyota. Since the oil test from Blackstone showed me I could run 8,000 miles on Mobil-1 EP, cost of filters is insignificant.
after 18 years working in dealer service departments, I saw plenty of locked up engines due to Fram filters. How did we knew the filter was the cause? The orange silicone material clogging up oil passages. Only one place that can come from. Most of those engines would have been covered under warranty if the had a Motorcraft filter. Walmart sells them too. Why take the chance?
2 ways to sell a product. Make it so good you don’t need to advertise. Advertise the crap out of it until people believe it must be good. True for Fram and Obamacare.
If you’re going to bring politics into this board, you might as well leave now.
We come here to get away from that B.S.
Tester
“The orange silicone material clogging up oil passages”
Huh? Where on the inside of a Fram filter is there orange silicone? Did you open up the filter? It would require a massive obvious failure for “The orange silicone material clogging up oil passages” to get through a filter.
And yours is the first report of anything like this I’ve ever heard…
Tester, not trying to bring politics here, just a little humor. Don’t get all butthurt over it. Texases, you don’t have to believe me if you don’t want to. I know what I saw and I chose not to use Fram products. You use what you want. Just posting my opinion here. That’s what we are supposed to do, right? Like I said, 18 years in a dealer service dept. I’ve seen things the general public would never see.
You’re posting claims that could easily be proven just by opening up one of those claimed failed oil filters. Did they? Where would the orange silicone come from?
well Ford had never used orange silicone in the engine building and Frams have been orange forever. So if every locked up engine that had a Fram oil filter on it at the time also has orange crap clogging oil passages, odds are, its the filter each and every time.
But there is NOTHING ORANGE INSIDE A FRAM. Here’s a picture, posted previously:
guess I just made it all up then to see if anyone would argue with me. Lots of others have posted their distrust in Fram products also.
I am the person that asked the original question about oil filters! I never thought I would receive the amount of responses that I did. I have decided to go to my local parts store and buy a WIX brand filter. I will leave fram filters alone.
2014rubyred3500, if you saw orange silicone in a Fram filter you should have reported it to the manufacturer. Especially since you claim to have witnessed plenty of locked up engines due to Fram filters.
I have a difficult time believing that the Fram filters cause locked engines though, because if you saw it many times, someone else would have seen it also. There are a lot of years of experience here at Cartalk and I would have expected to hear/read that from at least one other person in the 16 years or more that I’ve been posting here.
Also, there are many videos online showing Fram oil filters disassembled and no trace of orange or any other silicone has shown up.
The only thing I can think of is poorly made counterfeit Fram filters being used but that’s highly unlikely and you wouldn’t have seen plenty of them.
by plenty I’m not saying thousands, more like several. But that’s enough to stop me from buying them. Fram was always a topic at any engine school I went too and it was never good on Frams part.
dodge330. Great choice. WIX is one of the best ones out there.
Quote from rubyred: “guess I just made it all up then to see if anyone would argue with me. Lots of others have posted their distrust in Fram products also.” Unquote
With your credibility, if you will buy Wix, then I will continue to buy Fram; have no complaint with them. Wix is likely good too. Are you a lubrication or oil filter engineer?
I stated twice what my experience was, which is 2 more times than anyone else who posted their dislike of Fram. Make sure to question their opinions also