deadRX7Conv

Two bypass kits that I will recommend are the Frantz and Motor-guard. They use the very commonly available rolls of toilet paper, which is the super filter that can be purchased for $1 or less. Yep, one of the best filters available is in your bathroom wiping your brain smudge. It can also filter fuel, coolant, ATF, PSF.........
http://www.wefilterit.com/products.htm
http://www.bypassfilter.com/MotorGuardFilters.htm
The other bypass kits tend to be expensive, have expensive elements, can be too big, and use extend oil change intervals to offset the cost. Amsoil, Harvard, Triple-R, Oilguard, EnviroKleen, NTZ, Wix, Oilguard, Filtrationsolutions, Luber-finer, Parker, Pall, Filtakleen, Kleenoil, Envirofiltration, Baldwin, Stilko, Trabold. Hastings, Fram, Vortex......have kits, or filters/mounts that you can piece together. Their websites are also full of info. You can find used housings on ebay, yard sales, flea markets, salvage yards, and swap meets......

The problem with the bypass filter kit, just like synthetic oils, is cost. Some will extend the oil change interval to save on the cost. I don't recommend longer OCIs on this engine type at all. It will help those that are negligent or mildly lazy. Not everyone has a garage full of tools, or want to waste their free time changing their fluids religiously. Concerning maintenance, what you SHOULD do doesn't always happen in the real world. For the rotary application, I see it as a safety margin filter, allowingly you to drive a little further on the oil because the situation occured or wasn't planned. If you are one of those that just can't ever make that ~3k/3mo OCI interval, you should definitely consider better filtration, whether bypass or not.

I actually don't care for whether race engines have magnets or not. They usually don't live long enough to worry about maintenance. ****, if you have a race engine, why even bother changing the oil. You'll blow it up regularly anyway, with not enough cooling, too much boost, not enough fuel, or other pathetic tuning budget or build related issues. I've seen race vehicles without oil filters, without mufflers, without A/C, without power windows or locks, without power steering, without spare tires or stereos...........but I choose to have those parts my my non-race daily driver fun vehicle. I really don't care about every new track mod or fad that don't add reliability.

forced inducted fd dude

so im about to get a K&n oil filter and royal purple 20w50 for an 87 n/a. would the car run really good with that? sorry if i missed anything any has posted.

--MAstermind--

u wouldnt notice a difference just run GTX 20/50 honest

ericgrau

iTrader: (1)

10w30 is recommended for N/A (lower friction, better performance), 20w50 for turbo (holds up better against turbo). But 20w50 has its advantages in an N/A, especially in old engines that tend to leak oil. 10w30 is thinner, flows better. 20w50 is thicker, sticks better. Yes, Castrol GTX is excellent stuff, but RP is a little better. It's up to you and your wallet. I don't know anything about k&n, but most any oil filter except Fram/Penzoil/Quakerstate should work great. AMSoil, Mobil 1 and PureOne have the best filters, though PureOne is a bit restrictive.

As for the bypass filter, I mentioned AMSoil before as a source. I mentioned theirs because it's completely "bolt on" (actually screw-in). No cutting, piping, etc. No worries. And AMS is the big name when it comes to clean oil. But the toilet paper roll guys and others are cheaper and as far as I know it still works. Again, this is up to you and your wallet. With rigorous maintenance - not just oil - I've heard of an N/A going 350k miles on brand X API certified oil & oil filter. I'd say it depends on how long you plan on keeping your '7.

Oil gets too much attention.

deadRX7Conv

And its too bad that the dipstick and drainplug usually don't!

mikaz

True on this forum to an extent, but overall I disagree. I know too many people who seem to be completely unaware that their engine even has oil in it, not to mention it might need changine every once in a while!! grr.

Ice_Wolf

I'll look into that bypass filter thing then. I put my Mobil 1 Extended Performance 15W50 into the car and is runs very smoothly and has excellent oil pressure. Right now I just have Super Tech pre-mix in the tank because I couldn't find anything else at the local stores, but will be ordering some Mobil 1 Racing 2T tonight. As for the magnet deal, I figure if I'm going to spend 40 bucks on a FilterMAG, I might as well spend the 200 and actually get the bypass filter system for the car. And you said it just screws in? So that means I can re-use it on my turbo engine?

camman

Checker, Shucks, and Kragen have the mobile racing 2t oil.

ericgrau

iTrader: (1)

Yes. AMSoil's bypass filter system screws in to where your oil filter normally goes. Think of it as like plugging in a double electrical outlet into a single one so you can use 2 "electrical appliances" (i.e., filters). Other brands involve custom plumbing work (possibly cutting and welding?), but otherwise they're cheaper. So yeah, you can re-use it on a turbo. But on a turbo it won't let you extend your oil drain intervals much (at all?), so it might not be worth the cost. See tiny writing below for why.

I should elaborate on why I plan on running Royal Purple, a bypass filter and a nice main filter, when I know it doesn't matter very much. First of all, Castrol GTX 10w30 or 20w50 with any non-FRAM oil filter will work spectacularily. If all you want is a quick answer then there it is. Stop here.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

EXHAUSTIVE OIL SUMMARY BELOW. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED.

Second, I see the fancy stuff as low priority, low gain, low cost (believe it or not). You get back some money from extended oil drain intervals and a slight mpg increase. Plus you gain a couple HP or so (more with Royal Purple). As for the bypass system, it allows an even greater ODI. Still, it takes a long time to get $200 back. I hope to keep my engine in top shape a very long time using bypass, Evan's coolant, and general maintenance. In short, I'm getting 2+HP for a small amount of cash; I might even save a little money. And I can drive my '7 til 2017 instead of 2015 (or something like that). See? Tiny effect, low priority.

And if you haven't stopped reading yet, here's your second chance. You've been warned. Next I'll justify extended oil drain intervals.

Four things affect oil drain intervals: grime, acid, fuel dilution and wear particles. Oil detergents clean up grime (like dish detergent). Synthetics break down less and form less grime. Acid neutralizing additives (TBN) stops corrossion from water build up when cold oil sits in your engine too long or if you don't drive long enough to evaporate all the water. Fuel dilution happens when gasoline gets forced into your oil, especially if your engine floods or if you have a turbo. Wear particles are a minor factor, which is why trannies and differentials go 30,000+ miles between oil changes even without an oil filter. Synthetics have more detergents, more TBN. They last longer in an N/A, period.

I plan on using Royal Purple with 8,000 mile / 9 month oil changes to be conservative. You can go 5,000 / 6 month with Castrol GTX no prob. The N/A RX-7 I mentioned w/ 350k miles on it did 5,000 / 3+ month on "whatever API oil was on sale". Again, he was rigorous about all maintenance, not just oil. He changed his coolant annually. I say 9 months since Royal Purple's TBN is 50% higher than most mineral oils. Most synthetics also have 50% more TBN. AMSoil is on top with 200% more TBN, not to mention extra detergents, etc. I chose RP for performance. For extended oil changes AMS would win.

I think AMS claims 50k miles / 12 months for the bypass system, though I doubt it would last anywhere near 50k miles on an RX-7. 12 months is TBN related, so it should be the same for an RX-7. Often you can go 24+ months, but you should get your leftover TBN tested first. I wouldn't know which oil analysis service to use, but you can google it yourself and try one.

Glad I'm done with that. Now I can just post a link next time there's an oil thread. Next time I may not be so bored.

Aaron Cake

iTrader: (1)

You're going to spend $40 to put a magnet on your oil filter?!?

If you want to totally waste $40 on something, buy a nice set of pedals. Or replace some of the cracked trim inside the car, or buy a new shift ****...at least spend it on something useful...

deadRX7Conv

I wouldn't use the Amsoil dual filter setup. It has issues. Amsoil filter elements are very expensive($40) and won't do anything better then a roll of TP. The dual mount has a flow control valve in order to force oil into the bypass element. A parallel filter will not work without a flow control splitting the oil flow between the bypass and full flow filters. This has been know to starve engines of oil flow and pressure.

All bypass kits require a little common sense to install. A stand alone bypass filter needs an oil source and drain. A source is usually a T fitting at the oil psi sender or a sandwich adapter. The filter uses a restrictor to prevent excessive oil flow or pressure loss. You control the restrictor size(usually .040"). And, some will even have a pressure switch that requires a certain amount of PSI before allowing any oil to run through the bypass filter.
The drain return usually is a fitting fitted to the oil fill cap, the drainplug(suredrain), the oil pan(hollow bolt), or by other means.

TBN is a meaningless measurement in a vehicle that requires 3k/3mo oil changes. High TBN means high ash when burned. I would not use a high TBN oil in the rotary with working oil injection. Sorry, but there is more to oil then TBN. We don't need it! The extended oil change interval crowd needs TBN. Even with a bypass filter, I would not recommend overly extending oil changes in a rotary. Even with synthetic oil, I would not recommend extending oil changes in a rotary. Sorry, but a rotary is different then a boinger.
Think of a bypass filter as an upgrade to your oil system, since it is an upgrade to your filtering. Do not use it as an excuse not to practice common sense maintenance. But, it gives you a bigger cushion if you're running late for your oil change.

Trannies rearends go 30k because they don't have to deal with combustion byproducts.

RoyalPurple's TBN retention, as seen in UOAs, is nothing to brag about and is no better then most mineral oils.

I wouldn't use ANY synthetic for more then 5k miles or 6 months without a used oil analysis to see how much wear is being created(metal PPM), how efficient the filters are(particle counts), and how well the oil is holding up(TBN, oxidation, fuel dilution, moisture).
To blindly pick an extended mileage or time based oil change interval is foolish.

Ice_Wolf

So deadRX7Conv, what would you recommend for a bypass filter kit then if not the Amsoil one?

Tyblat

I run Royal Purple 10w-30 with my stock Oil metering pump. It does its job in my car's engine damn well.

My engine never smokes, and at 139k thats pretty damn good.

ericgrau

iTrader: (1)

I think deadRX7Conv listed the other cheaper options in a previous post. But keep in mind you'll have to do some piping with those.

Bypass filters, magnets, etc., are quite a bit of money for little gain. I hope you're focusing on all your other maintenance first.

I've already addressed deadRX7Conv's lengthy concerns, and I'm not going to bother with any more B.S. 3k miles is absolutely nothing more than a 50 year old United-States-only tradition. Royal Purple recommends 9k-12k oil drain intervals specifically in rotary engines. These intervals are tried and true in rotary engines that lasted a lot longer than most, as is 5k miles with good API mineral oils. But note that many other synthetics are no better than Castrol GTX. See RP's FAQ for more info.

I did a little math and with the extra 0.5mpg and extended oil drains, RP is just as cheap as mineral oil.

deadRX7Conv

Ericgrau, open your mind and do NOT fall for RP or any other company marketing BS.
Run your oil to whenever you want. Get a UOA and be surprised on how pathetic most oils perform compared to their sales BS. I would love to see you run 9k-12k with RP and love to rip into that UOA. Even with regular topoffs complements of our oil injection, the oil will look like hell.

Ice, I posted links already on what I recommended.

ericgrau

iTrader: (1)

I didn't go to RP for justification. You made that up on the spot. I'm not a fan of speculating what would happen if someone did such and such, either. I'm more a fan of citing what did happen when someone did such and such. IMO, at this point anyone who is concerned can research for themselves.

Wait... this is an oil thread. Why is it still open? Why are we arguing about it? I bet no one's even reading this anymore. There are too many oil threads. I'd suggest closing this thread after deadRX7 gets the last word, if he wants it.

RETed

I was waiting for the thread to go into a debate on which toilet paper was best...
Charmin, Angel Soft, Costco?
Hell, I like Cottenelle myself...


-Ted

Ice_Wolf

Alright, it makes sense to me now. I guess I'll skip the bypass filter thing because spending the 40 dollars on elements doesn't sound too appealing, not to mention that the only one that's bolt on (Amsoil) has problems. The others I wouldn't be able to re-use on my TII engine anyways, and it wouldn't be worth spending 200 bucks on something that I can't re-use. I might just stick with putting a few mangets on the oil filter. Seems like it would do plenty enough of a job with my K&N filter and Mobil 1 oil to keep things clean inside the engine. Now that I think about it, nobody uses bypass filters on their cars anyways, so I guess it's something that's not really needed.

ericgrau

iTrader: (1)

Lol.

You should always use OEM toilet paper. I don't trust any of that aftermarket junk. You can get toilet paper straight from the vendor of the bypass filter. After all, they designed it and they know which TP is best to use in it! Hehe.

You can actually get toilet paper from the vendor of the TP bypass filter, no joke... I'd like to get a roll of it for my bathroom just for kicks. "This ain't no ordinary toilet paper. You can filter out fine particles with this toilet paper!"

18 wheelers use bypass oil filters b/c their engines have to last 500k miles. I'll bet bypass filters aren't the only thing they need. I don't think anybody else uses them. IMO most people don't need them.

Ice_Wolf

I'll look into using that bypass filter once I do the turbo swap and debate buying it. For now I think I'll just buy some cheap magnets to toss on the oil filter until then. I've got my Mobil 1 Racing 2T pre-mix oil and my Mobil 1 Extended Performance 15W50 and my K&N filter and am really happy with the results. The engine runs very smoothly and has about 100 pound of oil pressure most of the time when I'm driving. Looks all good to me.