HarleyRob

Saw in an old thread where someone says fram oil filters are terrible for jeeps. True? Gosh, I've been using fram filters for years. (now that I think about it, I think he was referring to the oil filter) Or was it the air filter?

4Birdman

Fram filters are terrible, and not just for Jeeps. I used to work in a test lab and when we were slow I brought in a bunch from the auto parts store and tested them. Fram filters were terrible. Purolator filters were the best.

Full disclosure, I am a former Purolator employee, although I hate them as a company I still use their filters because they are so good.

Rogue4x4

Wait for it....wait for it...


Let the trolling begin!



In all seriousness though. Yeah. Their oil filters are bad...not just for jeeps. For everything. Get a WIX. Or Napa gold. Same filter.

DieselDaze

HarleyRob

Well, crap!! Hate I've been such a loyal customer! Not any more though!!

2000chersport

Wix, Napa gold, or mopar filters are the good ones

CCKen

Motorcraft FL-1A.

Well...why not.

BTW: I Use WIX 51515 filters.

CCKen

Ye Ol' Cherokee

The ONLY Fram filter i would use, in an EMERGENCY, is a Fram extra guard. But even they are ****ty, but better than most other Frams.

The thing is though, the price that you would pay for the extra guard one, you could get just about any other decent filter that you can trust, so what would be the point?

I like Purolator (Especially Pure One)
Mopar
Wix
Napa Gold (Best results with these, in my opinion, even though they are basically wix anyway)

Stabsthedrama

Can we please just sticky Merc/dex/atf and anti-Fram information and ban the threads already?

Gettin pretty old...

dmill89

Extra Guard is what they call the extra ****ty basic orange-can ones. The one you're talking about is probably the Ultra-Synthetic (formally Extended Guard). It is the only "decent" Fram but at about $10 it should be and there are plenty of other good/better filters out there for that price.

Rogue4x4

Nobody forced you to click on it and read it. Just sayin'...LMFAO

salad

Short version:

FRAM ExtraGuard, colloquially known as the Orange Can Of Death (not just on CherokeeForum), is a bottom-dollar unit made to the lowest acceptable quality average. (Just because they have QA doesn't give any indication of the quality level - just that it reaches a certain standard.) What does that mean? Basically the same as a lifetime warranty on cheap tools - it's cheap enough that they can afford to deal with failed units, and still make a buck. If you've ever broken tools from Harbor Freight you'd have experienced this.

Do they cause outright failed engines as soon as you spin one on? Not at all. They couldn't sell them! Do they gradually shorten an engine's life? Most likely.

There are a few massive reasons for this:
- The media sucks. While published filtration efficiency appears to maybe on par with WIX's cellulose media like used in the 51515 (95% @ 20 microns for FRAM, 95% at 20 microns for WIX, nominal unknown on either unit) they are very restrictive. High filter restriction causes greater back-pressure on the oil pump (wear) and more frequent operation of the bypass valve (oil unfiltered when cold).
- Construction quality is sketchy. The filters are basically cardboard that's been hot-glued together. Loose particles tend to show up in units and they're relatively easy to blow apart.
- The anti-drain-back valve is unreliable. This is the number one issue with these filters on most engines. The ABDV is reponsible for maintaining oil in the engine's galleries when the pump is not in operation. When the ABDV fails and sticks open, oil from the engine drains back into the sump. The most common problem reported with FRAM OCOD on Jeep engines is "it sounds like a diesel for a few seconds/minutes when I turn it on". That sound is an unlubricated engine running on whatever film was left on parts when the oil drained away. Obviously this is incredibly bad for moving parts. I've seen this myself and there are tons of cases of this happening documented on CherokeeForum.

If you want more info check these:

https://parts.olathetoyota.com/tundr...omparison.html

http://www.minimopar.net/oilfilters/index.html

http://www.ihpartsamerica.com/forums...filters-2.html

^^ I run a WIX 51459 and have a B2-HPG waiting to go on.

Fun videos that show the insides

tjwalker

I agree that the Fram Extra Guard is a filter to be avoided.

That being said, Fram's high end filters are much better and don't deserve the disdain that their low end filter does.

salad

That's true. But for the price of their premium units you can get away with a reasonable filter from almost any other manufacturer.