indeed a great thread, but after reading tons of info on the internet about the available oil filters, its not so clear to me what's best. i guess any of the top contenders is a reasonable choice.

 

i settled on the Fram Ultra (NOT any of their other filters, though). i used to use WIX. they still seem okay as a backup. it seems Royal Purple is pretty good and Amsoil is always a safe bet if cost isn't an issue.

 

i'm gonna test fram ultra with about 50 autox runs, compare it to amsoil's ea15k20 with similar runs

 

I have always been a OEM filter user but that has just changed after reading this. I have easy access to Amsoil and will be using them from now on.

Thank you for doing this research

 

here's my last UOA with 50 autox and ~1,500 mi on the oil with amsoi's filter. will have a similar run on the fram ultra around the end of the year

 

So I cut up one of the fully synthetic Purolator filters (PSL14459) I picked up before my last track day on a whim.

I'm going to cut up the media after it has had a few days to drain, but here is what one filter looks like after ~500 miles and two track days...

 

Looks like a nice quality element.

 

Yeah, it's not bad. It looks wire backed (like all the other fully synthetic media filters I have seen) and of fairly sturdy construction. I'm going to cut out some of the media after it's been allowed to drain for a while.

Mostly out of curiosity, there really isn't much to gain by staring at a dirty filter.

 

Do you think the full synthetic PSL14459 is the one to get over the PL14469? I've been using the latter for a couple years now since your test and my engine hasn't blown up yet so I think its doing its job, very scientific I know

 

Without testing it, I cannot say. I think it would be a great test to do a comparison of just synthetic filters, though. I would love to see how that synth Purolator stacks up to the other synth filters and their blended media filter that performed very well.

I don't have the time these days to do it, but maybe in the future, who knows?

 

True true. So filtering capabilities aside, from a construction perspective would you say they are very comparable? I wonder what the price difference is...IIRC the PL14459 cost ~7.99 each.

Given that the synthetic is the "premium" filter I'd imagine its better but who knows how much is marketing fluff vs. actual real world benefits?

No worries on the testing piece bud, I can totally understand lack of bandwidth. But thanks again for this test and the continued info

 

Construction on them appear to be the same if it helps.

The synthetic media should catch smaller particulates, but as you've seen with my testing it is not always the case. So, "more expensive" is not necessarily better in this instance.

 

so, not exactly about oil FILTERs BUT

have you guys done any reading on molybdenum? thoughts?

just something I was looking into.. amsoil zrod 10w30 is what I primarily use in the Evo - based on my limited understanding, seemed perfect - a thicker 10w30 for racing plus lots of zddp.

but I started reading recently on molybdenum, an additive zrod doesn't have a ton of. I didn't test in the evo yet, but testing in the mini with autox runs, the oil that did best was it's oem oil with high molybdenum content. obviously that's an extremely poor way to judge anything, based completely on one sample, but makes me wonder.

I tested the amsoil oil filter on the evo, and in the process of getting enough runs in to test the fram ultra filter. early next year, will get a uoa out for Purolator pureone. one that is done, I'll stick with one filter and test between amsoil zrod, maybe the 5w30 sso oil (which seems to have higher moly), and maybe a couple more oils known to have high moly content - i.e., liquimoly or redline.

any thoughts/things you guys are aware of regarding this additive? makes me wonder if zrod is really the best choice for me (and other evo guys)

 

That question is too technical for my limited knowledge. That sounds like something I would search on BITOG for.

 

IMO (please see my sig LOL), Amsoil is good. that being said, there are other, cheaper alternatives that are just as good, maybe better (?). if one doesn't want to research oil content and results, going Amsoil is a safe bet.

personally, i don't use it because i am happy with other brands. i run an OEM shortblock and ball bearing turbo, so my needs may not be as high others. i do run Time Attack, HPDE, and autox, so i'm not necessarily easy on my stuff.