Re.: Jaguar Oil Filters

yeahh but if anyone noticed, they didn't open a Jaguar filter, or a Bosch filter, or a Fram filter.

Ah, but when cost enters into the equation.....
At 3,000 mile oil changes, and 500,000 on the clock, guess how much SAE 30HD has gone through my flathead?

Somewhere around here I think I have Frantz unit I yanked off something we scrapped.
I never got excited about toilet paper for oil filtration, even though some folks loved it.

To me, having witnessed the graphic examples of new, cut open filters and what was in them, unless individual part numbers are proven to me to be more than adequate, I won't buy FRAMs.

I mean, General Misunderstanding might have figured out the fix on the Vega by now, but ain't buying one of those, either.

But it isn't really about money, it's about what does the best job for the conditions of use. Density of filter medium is only one factor, the type of medium has to be considered as has the type of oil recommended, the life expectancy and the work environment. For instance, too dense a medium with a heavy oil could be an impediment to oil circulation, particularly in cold climates. Filters, just like oils, are constructed to be within a given specification so they are all similiar. The biggest difference is packaging! Any name brand filter or oil will comply with the engine designers needs. Of more importance to me is regular changes, I would suggest that a Pep Boys filter and oil, changed every 3K miles would be better than the best KD filter and ultra synthetic oil left in for 15K or more, in fact on carburretor cars synthetic is a waste, the constant fuel contamination will destroy it just the same as it will regular oil. Fuel injection cars, for the most part, have a much lower contamination rate and as a consequence can last longer, regardless of the type of oil used. But I still recommend 6000 mile max between changes. Using my wifes 92 Mazda Protege as an example using regular oil and proline (pepBoys) filters I have changed the oil SEVENTY times. Any guesses at how many miles has she driven it ? Bottom line, use any major name brand oil or filter and change the oil regularly, even on cars that are rarely driven and kept in cold climates.

"Anyhow, and oil filter is a silly thing to pinch pennies on."
That is precisely what I was referring to.
By the time you find out you have a problem, it's just a bit too late.

Would I use a cut-rate oil filter?
No.
Would I use re-refined oil?
No.
Would I use straight tap water in my cooling system?
No.

Not that any of the esteemed folks on this forum would do such a thing.......I do wonder, once you start cutting corners...........

For all we know, FRAM has their act together and Wix, and Hastings have gone to poo.

I may do some investigation.

Good info, Dave.

Your question "How much to rebuild a Jag engine?" is a little alarmist, though.

Its not like someone will install a Fram filter and then be faced with an engine overhaul the next week because of 50% less filtration. You'd probably have to run two engines identically for tens of thousands of miles to tell which one had been using Fram and which hadn't.

Anyhow, and oil filter is a silly thing to pinch pennies on.

Cheers
DD

Almost 40 years in the biz.......I still recall the displays of oil filters with the cans removed.
And, the FRAM had about half the filtration of others.
Either shorter, less circumfrence, or less folds to catch the stuff.

Total swept area of filtration is important to me (at least on expensive engines, right?).

Been a while since I have seen those cut-open displays, and maybe FRAM got their act together.
Might be interesting to cut a new one open and see.

How much to rebuild a Jag engine?

I don't even use the low-line if supply houses have two lines.

I can supply information on one car brand of OEM filters: Volvo. I've attended a seminar on Volvo branded products, such as their oil filter. After seeing Volvo's presentation you come away absolutely convinced of its superiority!. Have also seen their cutaway comparison, and again their is no doubt Volvo filters are the best. Now as to whether this applies to Jaguar OEM filters....

I have used FRAM filters in my Ford minivans since 1987, and never had a collapsing filter.

I make spin on kits for all E-Types. If that carries any weight, my opinion is that filters is filters.One vendor supplies Fram, another Bosch, another Wix, but there's nothing to the choice: oil filters are all about the same. Given the sourcing methods used by major brands, it's unrealistic to expect the filter you buy today to even be made in the same factory as the one you bought yesterday, much less for the construction to be the same from box to box. Fortunately, all filters must meet the same government specs.

I've read with some interest a number of "studies" on the web which purport to ferret out the good filters from the bad...and all I have to say is that people really need to get lives. The selection process usually boils down to someone's aesthetic taste, not engineering fact.

I've seen reports where Fram gets a bad rap, because they sometimes use cardboard caps and glue to hold the filter element together, or because the valves are plastic. How do you know that this imatters? Cardboard isn't oil soluble, and presumably the glue isn't either. Even if the end caps were steel, the paper filter is paper, glued to the cap (in my experience, it's easier to glue paper to cardboard than to steel). If the filter element can be paper, why can't the caps be cardboard? The surface area of the filter is important, but how much is enough? I don't know, you don't know, and the people who write these articles don't seem to know. More may or may not be better. Only a complicated and expensive filter efficiency test could answer these questions. FWIW, I have a Fram on my personal car at the moment.

There are all sorts of supporting stories regarding collapsing filters. These are also of no consequence: a single example, or even a bunch of examples, means little unless you know the size of the universe: if a given filter has a dozen failures out of a million examples, how bad is that? But it's the dozen failures that draw attention. Why do filters collapse? Not because they have cardboard caps. They collapse because the filter is plugged, which creates a pressure differential. A plugged filter is usually plugged with...dirt! Isn't that a good thing? Change your filter on a reasonable schedule, and you won't have a collapsing element.

My suggestion is just to buy a name brand, don't stretch your filter changes, and be happy. If you really want to "feel good", buy your filter from a car dealer.

Classic Jaguar, the firm that sells Spin-on Oil filter Adaptors for older Jaguar engines with the Canister type of filter, includes a free oil filter with every adaptor sold.

Guess what brand they send? FRAM.

I also use Jaguar-branded oil filters in my 1984 XJ-6. In fact I just used the last one out of a case of 12 that I had purchased. Because of the convenience of just going out and getting an oil filter from AutoZone or other auto parts stores at the same time I get the oil, (Castrol 20W50), my next filter will be a PUROLATOR or some other reputable brand.

Don't sweat it, just get a quality oil filter. I understand that K & N (the company that makes those great Air filters), now offers Oil filters too. If they do, you can get a K & N Oil filter with
confidence.

I haven't seen, personally, any review of Jag OEM filters specifically. I'm sure they're "good enough"....but then so are most aftermarkets. Often, it seems, filters are simply re-labeled with one brand name or the other, which complicates the urban lagends.

The only truly bad oil filter I've seen was on a Subaru that had been at some sort of quick lube place. The filtering media looked exactly like jute felt carpet padding. Made a mess of the engine.

Fram filters have gotten a lot of bad press. I've used dozens of 'em over the years and never had a problem . I'll confess, though, that I've been cowardly and avoided using them on my Jags. I use OEM Jaguar-labeled filters or, if I run out, AC Delco . Just a "feel good" thing, I reckon.

I've seen (and owned) so many cars , including Jags, that were running like at watch at 150k - 200k miles with no regard whatsoever to the type of oil filter being used that I'm a little pressed to put too much concern into it.

But I've rambled on beyond the scope of your question.....

Cheers
DD