Quality bypass filter? - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

rwthomas1 · #1 10-01-2004, 01:04 AM

Okay, heres a new thread for this www.oilguard.com Some of the comments regarding "toilet paper" bypass filters are that the paper will channel oil and not filter correctly. The paper is contaminated with lint. The quality of the paper is variable. etc, etc. The Oilguard product is fairly reasonably priced, the replacement filters aren't the cheapest but they would appear to be at least of uniform quality. Any thoughts on these being better than the "TP" filters? If the MB filters have in fact become junk, filled with rocks and twigs, maybe it makes sense to install one of these, and do the extended drain thing after all? Thoughts? RT

Brian Carlton · #2 10-01-2004, 01:23 AM

Clearly this is a better product than the standard toilet paper filter. However, the real question is how much better. If the toilet paper filter does 75% of what this filter does, do you really need the benefit of this filter?

Is this filter worth the additional $11.00 per element change? If you could go 10,000 miles between element changes, I would suggest that the $11.00 is insignificant in the whole scheme of things (you spent $800.00 in fuel to go the same distance).

I additionally notice that this filter has what appears to be a "drain plug return". I take this to mean that this filter uses the original drain plug to run the return line to the pan and does NOT require you to drill and tap the pan.
This would be a distinct benefit, IMHO. I do not want to drill and tap the oil pan, and I do not want to run the drain line uphill to the valve cover.

rwthomas1 · #3 10-01-2004, 06:40 PM

Hmmm, I was hoping more people had seen these units. I have seen the Gulf Coast "TP" units as well as Amsoil's product which uses stacked discs of filter media. The wound depth filter from Oilguard seems like it would offer the most consistent filtering media of the three designs. Yes, Oilguard has setups that can drain back through the oil pan drain plug but there are other options too. I don't really see a problem with the "drain" line running uphill. Its a pressurized system, just a small inline restrictor to limit oil flow to the filter, not pressure so running the "drain" or return line uphill should be no problem at all. It would be a very simple job to drill and tap the valve cover when it is removed for the return line. Even if you decided not to run the bypass filter in the future a simple pipe plug would seal the valve cover back up nicely. RT

Brian Carlton · #4 10-01-2004, 07:43 PM

I'm concerned with oil backing up inside the filter if the drain is higher than the bottom of the filter. It's a pressurized system, but the pressure on the downstream end of the filter is just about zero. At that point, you need gravity assist, IMHO.

MTUpower · #5 10-01-2004, 08:57 PM

My Gulf Coast Filters bypass filter seems to be working fine, with no leaks and no drilled hole in the oil pan. do a search and you'll find the previous posts Brian and I had about it. Fits right next to the WW fliud and looks almost stock. The people there are concerned about service and I like the attitude they have....

Wasuchi · #6 10-01-2004, 10:30 PM

Brian,

The pressure is still the same at the downstream side of the filter as it is anywhere else (assuming something blocks it up to create the pressure) it just has a very low flow rate. Kind of hard to explain but if you took the hose on the downstream side and plugged it up with a pressure guage you would have the same pressure as you do on the upstream side. Anyway, the Oilguard is a very high quality filter, I have one on my F350 and it works great. Oil analysis has always showed low levels of insoluables (soot), less than 0.3% at 10,000 miles. I was using Amsoil HDD 15W-40 at the time because I was driving over 5k a month and didn't want to be changing it all the time. Now I'm using Delo and changing every 5k so I haven't been testing the oil lately.