So, as I read this, one question constantly crosses my mind. I have been using full synthetic in every vehicle I own. Neon gets valvoline 5-30, Ram and Caravan get 5-40 rotella T 6. My 83 ramcharger 318 2wd used whatever was cheapest, fram filters, 4,000 mile oil changes, has 306,000 and original trans. My father used whatever was cheapest, fram filters, and went 5-6,000 miles between oil changes in his 94 318 2wd. That truck went 351,000 miles on original engine and 2nd trans, one set of ball joints, and was sold running for $1,400 None of them have had any engine problems whatsoever. What gives? Does it REALLY matter? Or is it that both of the old trucks had indestructible 318's in them?

 

I'd argue that this is a prime example of what we in the fitness industry come across every now and then. Most of the time, the fit individual that watches what he/she eats and exercises lives a longer healthier life, but sometimes there's that individual that smokes, drinks, and eats fried foods everyday and still lives to be a hundred years old.

 

If you Google it you'll find hundreds of cutaways of various filters and I'm sorry but the Frams are just cheaply made. But I know where you are coming from, my grandfather & uncle were both lifetime mechanics and the only filters they ever used be it oil, air or whatever were Frams. But I'm going back to the days when sh*t was made here and not outsourced to Asia...

 

i think the major thing to keep a engine running good pretty much basic maintenance. keep the fluids up to where they need to be and it should last a fairly long time. my dads last dodge had over 500,000km on it and it ran good and he never changed the filter or oil on it for the entire time he had it. he just kept it topped up because it had a leak. if some idiot didn't run it out of oil my dad would probably still be driving it to this day instead of a ford that he that he was given.

 

The problems with Fram is the fact they have come a part and caused engine damage and why Dodge put out a TSB about not using Fram oil filters on the Cummins. If you want a good filter use the Fleetguard Stratapore, if you want the best oil filter that will keep the most and smallest junk, dirt out of your engine then use the Donaldson ELF oil filters.

 

What you have to watch with Synthetics is what base class it is made from. The Government allows the hydrocracking of dino oils(API base III)to be considered a synthetic product. This is what most big oil companies do. Royal Purple,Red line,and Amsoil are made with fully synthetic man made base stocks,(API base IV and V)

The XG line of filters from Fram are nothing like the older problematic ones. Just pick one up and feel the weight of it.

 

Don't know what it's worth, but my '03 QC Hemi 4x4 has over 180k on it. Only used Mobil 1 since I bought it a while back.

Might switch to RP though if it could possibly quiet the little tick it has.