Purolator oil filter

[Aldofashow]

I always ran a k&n oil filter but after watching the YouTube videos of guys cutting up oil filters I was impressed with the purolater filter s model but I wouldn't chase it down if they didn't have it I would just get another k&n

[madza teck]

Oh the oil filter debate. If I'm not going to use a factory O.E filter, I like Wix filters ( NAPA silver line filters are made by Wix ). That being said purolater was the first oil filter made thay are the OG filter company. They have stopped using saw dust and actually make a fairly good product.

[misterp]

Well now I'm curious. Is the k&N that I've been using not the best option? I run mobil 1 synthetic should I run a different filter? And what is the advantage of a larger filter. Longer life out of the oil?

 

A larger filter means that the "filtration area" is much larger - in other words, you can run a finer, denser filtration media (takes more contaminants out of the oil) without registering a drop in pressure. If you can get a filter that "scrubs" well enough, then yes the oil stays cleaner longer.

 

Filtration is CRITICAL on LS-engines, because of the oil pump bypass valve and secondarily the lifters; if there is any microscopic piece of lint in the oil at all that bypass will hang open, necessitating replacement of the pump because you will have 0-5 psi on the oil pressure gauge. (Been there, done that with 8 UR HMI's truck). This is also why you SHOULD NOT run an oil with a lot of wax in it (Penzoil) in an LS-motor, more chance of gunk getting into that bypass valve years later. And if you take off the valve cover and it's got a waxy buildup I would not run engine cleaner/detergent through it, or else you risk fouling that bypass valve as the detergent washes all the dirty wax into the oil pan. My two-cents.

 

Your question about longer life - to do this you want the most oil in the crankcase possible. In stock form, the pump will move all 6-quarts through the engine in about 30-seconds; if you increase the oil system to run 8-quarts, that increases that time to about 38-seconds... which might not seem like much, but doing so decreases the "working interval" of the oil by 25% (38 is 25% more than 30!). Meaning that it will last 25% longer, plus it gets an extra 8-seconds to "rest" in the pan and shed heat before it is cycled again... "Working interval" is also why if one lets the oil level get 1/2-quart low it will KILL the oil in the motor in less than a couple thousand miles, as the oil in the crankcase will be circulated through the engine more cycles per hour. Keeping the motor's oil level FULL is critical (I run my own engine 1/2-quart over-full).

 

The two most important features for a filter are (1) dense filtration, (2) anti-drainback valve. The only filters I would run on an LS-motor are Mobil-1, K&N, AMSOil, Purolator Pure One. Size matters, get the tallest one you can fit on the engine! And the anti-drainback valve is critical to eliminating wear at startup and keeping the lifters from making noise later in life.

 

Picking the right oil gets a bit tougher, because of engine power level (stock, or do you have a power adder?) and climate. Stock I ran Mobil-1 0W30 in the truck and I think I remember getting 4000-4500 miles from a single change, but in the Texas summertime I had to go to 5W40 and it cost a little MPG but it was needed given the heat load. With the blower installed the oil life was easily cut by 1/3rd (!) so I switched to Rotella T6 5W40 and I get 4000 miles before needing a change; if you are forced induction I *highly* recommend Rotella T6 5W40. The thought I've used since I bought the truck new is to use the thinnest possible oil that still maintains good pressure and eliminating noise, and with super-thin oil you can run a very dense filter without affecting volume or pressure. The truck has 120K-miles on it now, still hits 80-psi at 4500+ RPM, and sounds brand new at startup.

 

Mr. P.

[Blown 346]

I only use Delco filters. After seeing other brand filters inside and how they filter, Ill stick to what the manufacturer says to go with.