Re-Usable Oil Filter for Delica/Pajero/Strada and HDJ81

[Mavro]

I recently attended http://www.semashow.com with my Electric 240SX, and one of the other exhibitors in the show was promoting re-usable oil filters.

I was instantly hooked, there are so many good reasons for this kind of product.


TIME - Never need to find a rare oil filter again.

MONEY- It saves money in the long run. It's cost is covered after about half a dozen oil changes. Average cost is $150USD depending on size.

ECO-FRIENDLY - It replaces a dirty consumable product with one that can be cleaned and serviced for the life of the vehicle, keeping used oil filters out of landfills.

FUNCTION - It filters better. It has a super strong magnet, so you can see what's in your oil and act accordingly. It uses a metal screen borrowed from surgery equipment that filters down to 30 microns. I was surprised to find out your average paper oil filter bypasses oil most of the time as oil can't flow through the paper quick enough to meet the engine's demand. So most of your engine oil goes through unfiltered most of the time, and it catches what it can, when it gets the chance. The more it gets clogged up, the more oil gets bypassed until it's not filtering at all.



It was a hard sell to someone paying $5-10 for a filter, but when spending $30 or more and/or having a hard time just finding them, this really makes a lot of sense, especially if you plan to keep and maintain your vehicle for decades, like we do.

I'm having them prototype a filter for my Landcruiser and I believe the Delica/Pajero/Strada is another good option. Cost will be high at first, probably close to $200CAD with taxes and shipping.

They look to be extremely well made ("in the US of A") using high quality materials and parts, and the design works very well. Lots of show cars had them already, but mainly for the looks, and the "Greener" aspects of it is what I found most appealing. I'll be very happy to never buy and throw out another oil filter for my truck.


If anyone is interested, PM me or email: gerry.martselos@gmail.com

[DelicaFreaka]

Great idea and saves in the long run (not very long with $30 filters).
Let's get a group buy going here and bring down the cost a bit.
I'm in.......................Kirk out.

[bikepoor]

Um, yeah, stop think, do the math.
Just a bike guy input, but, same thing for my bikes, and Brit cars in the past, didn't work out so well. Not saying this new stuff is a bad thing, and the rep won't come through as promised. But find out history, production, and availabitiy in Canada. I have installed similiar systems and removed them when supply problems happened later on. (filters, o'rings, canisters) on bikes and cars.
Great idea, I hope it flies, and saves money, and landfill space in the end, but has anyone ever tried to claim the lifetime warranty on their
Ginsu knife???

Bikepoor

[jessef]

I think stainless/cleanable filters are the way to go for diesels.

You just need to do that extra step to clean then when doing an oil/fuel filter change.

Will you sell replaceable filters in case one breaks or I'm looking at below 30 microns ?

Are they similar to the Redline stainless filters ?

[BCDelica]

There are reusable oil filters available on this side of the pond; is there a easy method for cleaning them?

[Meanman]

I will side with Bikepoor on this one. I run into guys who have installed reuseable/washable oil filters on their bikes all the time at work and we run into issues with o rings and also proper cleaning can be an issue. We find lots of particulate remains in the filter media after multiple uses and cleanings. Using compressed air to try and blow out the particulate after cleaning and drying generally degrades the filter media itself. That doesn't mean all reuseable/washable filters are like this, that's just my experience so far.

[Mavro]

I wish I could speak from experience, but I can't. This is new to me as well.

I'm interested to hear more about the bike guys experiences. Do you know more about the products and what they were made from? Is it all the same stuff?

I'm not the manufacturer, but the guys I met seemed pretty competent. They said they have about 5,000 units on the road, all kinds of different applications, and no complaints. They did address some of the issues mentioned before I even brought them up.

The O-ring was my first question, it's square for one, to increase contact area of the seal. So one would think it would be difficult to replace, but they said every dealer can get an extra box of them on hand just in case, and if you really want one they'll throw in a few extra for you, the cost is measured in cents. The guy I spoke with had one on his wife's car for the past 3 years and it's still fine every time they clean it.

As for the filters, they said you can use any number of methods to clean it, some are more questionable than others. How do you properly clean any nasty oily part?

They said the filter material was the best possible that they could find, and it adds to the cost considerably. It comes from surgical equipment, something that has to be easily cleaned, yet filter consistently time and again. I'd say medical industry has tight enough tolerances for my diesel truck engine:) How did the bike filters "degrade"?

The super strong magnet was a really good idea too. I've found these on some drain plugs as well and wondered why it isn't a standard thing. Cleaning it allows you to see what's happening inside your motor. Maybe I'm the only one on here who's cut open their oil filter to see what's inside? I doubt that:)

The bypassing thing really bugs me. What good is a "filter" that's sized too small or flow limited to filter oil when the engine demand is highest? Not much of a filter...more like a filter-sometimes.

If there's sufficient interest for a group buy, it would help considerably. They said they prefer their production runs to be in the dozens to hundreds for the most cost efficiency, though that's a bit lofty in my opinion. I think a dozen would be a good goal to shoot for, but it has to be for each type.

So far the top picks are the 4D56, 1HD-T and 4M40

Keep the comments coming!

[robinimpey]

These do look like well made units and I too hate that normal filters can bypass much of your oil without filtering it. My brother and I used to have a similar idea on two 7.3 liter international diesels. The fitlers were mounted remotely but used the same principle for filtering. We found they were a pain to clean and keep sealed so they eventually came off. Maybe right idea but wrong product.

What I have done is found what I consider to be the best of both worlds. I installed a Franz bypass oil filter kit for about $200.00 a year ago and at the same time put in synthetic oil. Now in just a few minutes I can change my filter which costs me hardly anything so I can do it every couple of thousand kms. I'm going to change oil once a year. (I put on about 15,000-20,000 kms a year.)

Here's the post with my bypass filter installation. http://www.delica.ca/forum/bypass-oil-filters-4499.html

[Drumster]

I'll be using CM filters. I'm just in the process of ordering right now through a distibutor in Alberta. They've got to make up a 26 mm housing. The housing is a one time purchase. The filtering elements are replaceable by themselves, (although not re-usable). Good for 10,000 miles. Cleans to 8 microns. Later when I have them, I'll post the part numbers etc. for anyone who's interested.

http://www.cmfilters.com/oil_filters.html

[jessef]

I use the Redline 10 micron stainless filters. $235 + shipping and good history/support in the veggie community.



Although I'm going to go back to Amsoil bypass setup as it's what I was running in the past and it makes a considerable difference in oil quality.

http://www.amsoil.com/Storefront/bf.aspx

[delicat]

I have Redline stainless filter on my initial filtration system for my wvo processing (in garage, not van) and one was 30u and the other 10u. They filter very nicely, only problem was that they plugged pretty quickly and were a bitch to clean.

But that was with wvo. I have no idea how they would do with engine oil. I suspect they would do a poor job in the first few minutes as the oil would still be cold so the engine might suffer from oil starvation? Once warmed up they'd perform much better but still unsure of the whole thing. On my system the filters weren't very big, maybe 4" tall by 2" diameter. Is it the same for Jesse's system?

[madmazda]

I'd be very interested if you can get one for my l400 motor 2.8l 4m40 pm me the details

[tonydca]

Environmental impact notwithstanding, this is part of the reason that they have recommended oil change intervals on vehicles. The idea is to change out the oil before it gets too skanky and dirty for the filter to reasonably handle. I've been religious about my old Toyota (every 5Kkms), and never a problem.

I understand the idea of a magnet in the filter, (I've heard some guys put neodymium ones in their oil pans for this reason), can't say if this is practical or if it just gives you that little warning that something's about to go - time to sell it quick maybe

Also, my understanding that the 4M40 filter was a relatively off-the-shelf component if you went to Napa/Lordco/??? with old filter in hand. Not a $30 item, certainly. But I guess I'll find out soon enough...

[almac]

i would be interested in a reuseable filter system.
i just hate the prices retailers are selling L300 filters for. to me, its' just a waste of money.

to spend a few hundred on a reuseable filter would be great long term savings.
however, i'd really like to know how difficult it is to clean the filter element. what do you use to clean the element? kerosene or something?

my other thought was to get a relocation kit that uses a more common element.

[delicabits]

Would one change the oil sooner with a long life filter or the same intervals? Has anyone thought of putting an adapter to change the filter to a more common cheaper type? Might be the same situation as air filters that you clean instead of throwing out.