MGB & GT Forum

Coming up October 6,is the huge sale of NAPA filters.
Stock up,& save.

- Doug

I will never buy another Napa filter for my B. Went through 2 filters after the engine rebuild neither one would screw all the way down, found out about it the hard way on the first one, oil everywhere. Got a Purolator and have not regretted using them since.

If you are going to go Napa (or Wix) filters, be sure to first get a bolt with the same thread size
and check filter's threads.

Do a search of this site to find reported problems with those filters.

Have been using napa gold filters number 1065 I believe for 11 years and never had a single problem.. Just saying...

My thoughts/experience on that. As usual, a core dump.

Purolators are about $3 at WalMart. All the time. Not the premium version, but the white ones (last few numbers are 195 I believe, but check!) which are certainly suited to a 3000 mile/once a year replacement schedule.

Bosch & Delco (PF13 and PF60) are also at WalMart, but they only stock the high end Bosch. I'm using some Delco PF60 filters bought from Rock Auto a long time ago for a BMW (or was it a SAAB?) that used the upside down filters. Checked thread and clearance, good to go. Almost tossed them out. Not sure about the PF13, which is used on the 318 Mopar V8, it might not clear the stand pipe bit if it does it;s a commonly found option.

The thread check is a good idea. I have a bolt, 3/4-fine, I think it's 3/4-16; Yup, just checked (thread gauges are so damn handy!). This is correct for the upside down spin-on filter, the one that removed upward and will make a mess. How much of a mess depends on how careful and quick you are when removing it. Dunno about the down-ward removed spin on. I think thread is different.

One factor that differentiates a crappy filter from a good one is how the filter stands up to abuse...i.e. not changing it for far too long. Most new cars call for 7500 mile intervals. Many people ignore that and go 10-12,000. Most of the cheap filters oil change places use (8 yrs ago they were as cheap as 75¢ each!) literally fall apart at those intervals (I saw this often enough when I tried to manage an oil change place and saw the results of poor filters many times (you remove sludge, not an intact filter...especially in canister filters like the BMW with 40K on it that had NEVER had an oil/filter change before!).

I reckon OEM-branded filters are generally best because they are designed for the recommended change intervals plus some safety factor, Like Delco or Motorcraft (or whatever Ford calls it's OEM line these days) or MoPar (from Rock Auto's site, the 318 V8 takes a filter that also fits an MGB, but check the stand pipe clearance, Delco PF13 dunno Mopar #). Aftermarket brands like Purolator, Bosch, and Wix are great as well. It is smart to check threads on any and all.

Of course if you do subscribe to a 3-5K filter and oil change schedule over 3-24 months you're not dissolving your filter.

One can maybe save bucks buying from Rock Auto or even Amazon (seldom e-bay) by getting a half dozen of the wanted size at one time. And, of course, Ernie's supermarket in France carries the cheap stuff that works great for a long time (maybe mail order?<G>.

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1973 Pale Primrose Roadster. A nice 10-footer!
SUs, Datsun 5-speed



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2014-10-02 07:37 PM by mac townsend.

I use the white "classic" 14670 Purolators from Walmart, and they work on my Vanagon also. I think they are currently about $3.39 or so.

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Friends talking around a fire is the history of mankind.

I've always found that the NAPA sales are a joke. For example, the last big sale was 30 % off everything ( they don't tell you that it's off LIST price). I bought a gallon of lacquer thinner that was regularly priced 21.95. List price was 34.95 so with their big sale and 30% off, the price was $24.46. When I questioned them on it, they just laughed,told me nobody ever notices that and sold it to me for the regular price.

Glad to hear that, unfortuantly that was not my experience. When i got the car it had a napa filter on it, replaced it with the same filter and had issues. As with anything there is always the possiblilty in product variance i just got the crappy filters. Since i have yet to have a problem with purolator im going to stick with them. I do not have any personal issues against the brand other then the poor quality experience i have had, hopefully no one else will have to go through what i did wasting oil du to poor fitting filters.

I hope NAPA solved the thread problem. I haven't felt confident in them since November 2010 when I changed my oil (Valvoline VR-1) and the filter didn't seat fully. It felt wrong, so I didn't "reef" on it like some did, and strip the threads on the filter post. But I did dump 4 quarts of expensive oil.

I get WIX at O'Reilly's, or the Baldwins I got from Gerry. (Thanks, Gerry!)

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Jim K is a grease-stained wretch

As Mike seemed to hint--Napa filters are made by WIX. Anything lower than the Napa Gold seems to be junk though!

Thanks for the info Mac!

The NAPA Gold is NOT on sale - the silver is if you buy oil or if you fill up a bucket.

Do not waste your time

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Oil leak?? What oil leak? That puddle under the car is just sweat from all that horsepower!!

Law of Mechanical Repair - After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will itch and you'll have to pee.