Oil filter 99% efficiency @20 microns guess what filter I’m running under $9

Anyone still using Hastings oil filters?? I also know that K&E (yes, the famous air filter company) makes oils filters and wonder how good they are.
some of the K & E have a hex nut solders/welded to the bottom to facilitate easier oil filter removal.
Me, I have been using Mobil 1 oil filters with Mobil 1 oil, because they could (past tense emphasized) purchased at Walmart. Before that I used Bosch oil filters bought from Walmart, but that line, too, has been discontinued. Apparently spending more than $10 for an oil filter did not "fit" the typical Walmart buyer profile or budget.

Here`s another detail I do in changing my own oil: I add oil to the new filter before installing it on the engine. It was an old racer`s trick to prevent starving the engine of oil upon start-up as the oil filter filled up. And yes, I still wipe off the oil filter machined sealing boss on the engine just to make sure it`s clean AND wipe an oil film onto the O-ring. It also makes you look at the boss to make sure the old now-removed oil filter`s O-ring has not stuck to the boss. Yes, I has happened to me once on a Ford 400 engine in a `74 wagon. What a mess when you start the engine!

This concept also used on a Ford SVO Mustang Turbo I owned with a 2.3 Liter "Pinto" engine that when the oil was changed, you were to disconnect the distributor wire from the coil to prevent the engine from firing and turn the engine over with the key starter for 10 seconds to prime the entire oil system, including the turbo oil-feed bearings, to prevent oil starvation. Made sense. Still burned two turbos out before i traded that car for a Toyota MR2. Vowed to NEVER own a Blue Oval product again. Now I own and drive a 2005 Ford AWD FreeStyle we bought from my Mom`s estate and certified pre-owned 2015 Ford AWD Taurus my wife picked out because of the price and low odometer mileage. Go figure!

Yes, OEM filters from vehicle manufacturers have gotten "better". I used to own Subarus and used the OEM filter after the service tech told me that their Subaru filter had a unique design for their by-pass filter and valve designed specifically for the H-4 (horizontally opposed 4 cylinder) engine. Never had oil related problems. Cylinder head gaskets was another issue, but that`s not the subject at hand.

Oh, yes, I used the mentioned ArcoGraphite-impregnated oil before using Mobil 1. Seemed "strange" pouring dirty-looking oil into an engine. Did not notice better engine performance as mentioned above, BUT being involved in mechanical design, I knew graphite provided better lubrication, as it was being impregnated into brass/bronze bushing and bearings at the time (late 1970`s). My brother used Kendal GT-1 oil in his `67 Mustang with a Hi-Po 289 engine because that`s what Shelby was using in his race engines. Had a weird green color and unique "fragrance". Might have been a straight-weight oil, like SAE 40. Made for hard-starting on cold late fall/early spring mornings.

I like have always liked the Ford oil filter before I put the fram on I was comparing them and the factory one was heavier by weight. I have another thread going about replacing my wheel bearings that was an adventure up front, rears weren’t bad. I also replaced cv shafts and the seals that go into the side of the transmission I was able to replace drivers side but not right side so instead I had a liquimoly oil saver additive and dipped my finger in and rubbed the exposed rubber hopefully this was not a stooge move hopefully whatever those seal are made of is compatible with what I rubbed on it I’m really looking back thinking that was a bad move.

Also picked up at auto store Zerex water pump lube that goes into coolant that I just replaced never heard of it anyone know about this product

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Originally Posted by Lonnie

Here`s another detail I do in changing my own oil: I add oil to the new filter before installing it on the engine. It was an old racer`s trick to prevent starving the engine of oil upon start-up as the oil filter filled up. And yes, I still wipe off the oil filter machined sealing boss on the engine just to make sure it`s clean AND wipe an oil film onto the O-ring. It also makes you look at the boss to make sure the old now-removed oil filter`s O-ring has not stuck to the boss. Yes, I has happened to me once on a Ford 400 engine in a `74 wagon. What a mess when you start the engine!

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Never thought about pouring oil into the filter ahead of time. That`s a great idea. Unfortunately it only works for those cars with a filter on the bottom of the engine where the filter and the housing are all one unit. My German cars have all had a filter which sits vertically on the top of the engine and you actually only replace the element, the outer housing is only a cap you take off/on when replacing the element inside it.

My dad taught me the trick about swiping the oil around the O-ring on the filter. It was one of the things he constantly harped on when we did oil changes at home. I may have forgotten a lot from those sessions in the driveway, but that wasn`t one of them.

I’m all about those Benjamins….I mean solid lubricants graphite, moly, hexagonal boron and ws2.

Here`s one more thing I would like to bring up about oil changes is the plastic washer or metal "crush" washer on the drain plug itself. On Subarus they have a metal "crush" sealing washer on the drain plug that is suppose to be changed out with every oil change. I did not do this and after about three oil changes the oil would seep out of the plug and leak onto the garage floor or driveway. You could bear down and tighten the plug, but that did not solve the problem and only made it worse for removal at the next self-done oil change. When I "complained" to dealership service tech during a service visit, he asked if I replaced the washer "crush" ring on the drain plug. "NO!! What is that???", was my astonished reply. There is nothing in the owner`s manual about that. Of course not! Service work like oil changes is SUPPOSE to be done at the dealership. Well, when I found this small, overlooked oil plug washer detail, I bought the washer "crush" ring along with the OEM Subaru filter from the dealership parts department. Cost about $2.00 and yes, it does go on a certain way, with the flat side toward the drain plug sealing surface, and the rounded side toward the oil pan sealing surface so it will "crush" and flatten out and seal better. Live and learn!

I do not know how often any of you replace your oil drain plug, but if it has a plastic/nylon washer, that washer will get brittle crack over time from the heat of the engine oil or just time itself. That and the fact that sometimes the hex head flats get rounded from some over-zealous oil change "mechanic" (AKA grease monkey) who either used the wrong wrench/socket size (mistakes using a SAE inch-size for what is really a metric size or vise-versa) or over-tightens the darn thing to get it to seal OR even worse, uses an adjustable-wrench (AKA, Crescent wrench) to tighten the plug. Know AND REMEMBER your drain plug hex size and use the correct socket to remove or tighten it!
(By now you should have figured out that the inept "grease monkey" is me, Captain Obvious. The "AND REMEMBER" part is for those of us in advancing age where your memory is sometimes "challenged". Hey, I`m the guy whose is similar to female comedian Phyllis Diller`s husband Fang when she said, "Put a hammer in his hand and you have two objects with roughly the same IQ"!) Another live and learn moment!

The crush washer is another good tip.

For Toyota`s, they typically use a crush washer made of some strange plastic-like material. When you buy a factory oil filter from the dealership parts counter, there used to be a crush washer included in the box. Always thought that was nice touch. No idea if they still do it.

For other cars I would just buy a bag of crush washers in the right size from the auto parts store for about the same price the dealership would sell you one.

Overtightening the drain pug was always a fear of mine and I was very cautious, but it seems there are plenty of mechanics who will just crank that thing down! No thanks. I don`t want to have to buy a new oil pan because I`ve cracked the area around the plug...or just as bad need to have the plug drilled out because I stripped the plug.

Good point I don’t really crank on the drain plug or oil filter either because afraid of gumming up threads. I should probably take the advice and some crush washer