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So i've been trying to figure out which oil filter would be the best for my car. I have a 2002 honda civic ex v-tech. I was reading about the HAMP filter which is supposed to be made to work well with the v-techs it says but others say its just a cheap one like a fram? And than people say use the OEM filters which i don't really understand which filters are the OEM's i kind of thought the HAMP ones were to be honest. So could someone please help me and tell me which filter would be the best? And what ones are OEM or do i need to just google search oem and they're actually manufactured by Honda? Thanks

 
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Here's the OEM filter: http://www.handa-accessories.com/civmaint01.html

 
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just grab a mobile 1 or Amsoil filter.

 
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you want best? meaning something that filters well and lasts a year? amsoil is pretty much the only option. if you want something cheaper that will filter well enough and prolly last a year (but not guaranteed) try wix/napa gold, mobil, K&N, or pureone. oem honda filters are fram and not great compared to those listed above. that being said, oil filters dont really do a whole lot if your engine is in good shape and you change oil regularly (every 5000 miles for regular or 10000 for synthetic).

 
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Just pick any filter that gearbox named. All are good. You will hit other car failures before you hit one from an oil filter.

 
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OEM stands for "original equipment manufacter". It's a Honda civic so you can buy a Honda filter. I like fram tough guard/high mileage, the OEM filter, k&n I hear are good oil filters, and amsoil I hear are great! Take your pick.

2001 Honda Civic Coupe EX

 
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also purolator has a new 10k mile oil filter but only if you use synthetic oil.

 
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after your oil's additives break down the oil starts to decompose and burn if organic, which leads to sludge build up. the filter grabs these clumps and lets the oil through. but when the filter is full the sludge builds up.

so just change it when your oil is do to be changes.

if you're scared about old sludge build up you can run a full system flush before adding the new oil. basically you drain the old oil as normal, add the flush oil that has some harsh cleaning detergents and let the car sit at idle for 10 minutes. then drain that and add the new oil.

for those of you who think it's a waist of money, well for us who keep on top of changes it is but i kid you not i've seen some cars come in at 15k on organic oil and after the flush which goes in clear it comes out solid black.

note: if your car is really old the sludge in some cases holds the oil in the car and after a flush synthetic oil can leek through old gaskets. if this happens run a high mileage oil, they have additives that swell old gaskets. if bad enough drain the car, drop the pan and replace the gasket.

 
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true mac25. although i've never done one of those "flushes" to a car in my life. always buying cars with high mileage, i never wanted to take that chance. also if you make sure your car is good and heated up before you drain your oil (do oil change), it helps to make sure you get most of it and the sludge out.

i am using a amsoil filter right now. supposedly they last a lot longer than any others. but, the next one i am going to buy is a wix. i plan to change my oil and filter every 5k with the wix. even though the manufacturer reccomendation for the amsoil filter is 15-25k or one year, i still feel like i'd rather just use valvoline synpower and a wix and change more frequent.

note: wix filters are good, they even sell them on amsoil.com

here's the page for my ej1 http://www.amsoil.com/mygarage/Produ...+HONDA+CIVIC+D

 
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Almost any filter will be better than no filter.
EDIT: Honda does not manufacture oil filters. I don't think any car manufacturer makes their own oil filters.
(Regarding the most common filters I see, not the filters for the S2000.)
There are 2 different names on the filters supplied to us by Honda: FILTECH and HONEYWELL...2 different companies making filters to Hondas specs. You can check into the Honeywell and Fram names and see where who owns whom comes into play,

And for the haters, there isn't anything wrong with Fram. (JMHO, YMMV)

There is a Fram employee on a professional forum I am a member of, and he presents credible arguments and evidence. They are quite dedicated to keeping their products in good standing.


AH! Someone with some reason. If there are solids circulating with your oil that are big enough to FILL a filter, you got other problems that need addressed.

I'm pretty certain that car manufacturers do not approve of any engine flushing.
(Google: Wallet flush.)


An engine that is well cared for will never need a flush.

If an engine is visibly sludged enough to warrant a flush, I am of the opinion that you had better not do it. The LAST thing I want is for that sludge to get moving into the oil pan and blocking the oil sump pickup screen. You are usually safer to "let the sleeping dog lie". Or prepare for a full teardown.

Flush chemicals are quite harsh and have few lubricating properties compared to normal oil. The chemicals alone can cause damage if used in great concentration in a running engine.


Oil technology has advanced exponentially over the last 20 years.

They still make that cheap oil and market it heavily though. (If it is advertised on TV, it must be great!)?
The cheaply made oil generates the most profit. 10W30 is some of the cheapest to produce, uses the low quality base stocks, therefore it generates the most profit. The general public assumes (wrongly) all oil is the same, but it is clearly not. Even the ex-wallyworld lube rack employee in the shop next door thinks that way. SMDH. (BTW, That movie "Idiocracy" is definitely a documentary.)

I almost never see sludge anymore at work (BUT we use darn good oil for all oil changes.)
I know what used to happen if someone went 20,000 miles on an oil change 20 years ago. You could pull the drainplug and just wait, like watching peanut butter try to "GLOO00ooP" out from a 14mm hole.
We have had a couple of people that let their car go 20k like that here in the recent past, and there wasn't sludge. Just very very dark colored oil. (Again, we use some darn good oil now.)


--------------------------------------------------------------------------
A few years ago (3?) we had a Hyundai towed in for a no-start complaint with 40k on the odometer. Engine so full of sludge that the oil pressure relief valve in the oil pump was stuck. Well over 100 PSI on a cold startup (pegged my Snap-On mechanical gauge), and it would pump all the lifters up causing the valves to hang wide open. Engine dies in 2 seconds.....

Cause of no-start complaint: Oil neglect.

No idea how many miles was on that oil, but the car went to auction to become someone elses headache.... (For anyone wondering about buying auction cars, here you go. One example of why cars end up at auction.)

Wanna hear how I got it to run? LOL.
Got an oil change in the door...HOT OIL straight out of a running car. Drained it onto this (empty) Hyundai engine. Hot oil was thinned enough to not pump all the lifters wide open, this allowed the car to start.
Did another oil change to it.....filled with 0w20. Wouldn't start the next morning. LOL. Anyway, after I got it to run again, it went straight to auction without ever shutting it off.


Thee was a point to this post, but I think I forgot it. Sorry about that.

 
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^there were many points to that post lol

 
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depends what flush your using. the full system is well lubricated enough for a ten minute run, i've never heard it running ruff. if you're worried about a full system not being able to lubricate the engine you can always add a half flush which is a small bottle that runs with your old oil for 10 minutes.

besides if an engine needs a full system flush usually it's because the owner left an organic oil far past the 5k mark. in that case it's not exactly doing it's job lubricating anyway.

 
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ps: the old timers used to us atf to flush the oil system. quite a few racers have told me about using atf in their track cars before rebuilding the engine in the off season. i'm not sure which is cheaper though.

 
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Found another one:
#15400-RTA-003, Mahle-Tennex.
I don't recall seeing this part number at work though.

 
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hondapartsnow.com has it listed as being superseded by 15400-PLM-A01, that may be why. Mahle-Tennex appears to be HQ'd in Japan, maybe Honda decided early on to source their filters domestically - avoiding customs fees/taxes or something?

 
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You're right....

Dangit. I'm not a parts person.
15400-RTA-003
15400-RBA-F01
Ran these to finally find the most recent super.
15400-PLM-A01

Google Mahle, they appear to have US locations too.

 
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Ha, I happen to be a parts person but that one was just luck. Googling Mahle was actually how I figured they were HQ'd in Japan, I read they also operated in the US, UK and.... I think the Philippines or somewhere else in East Asia. Who knows where that product was actually made, you'd have to have the part in your hand to be sure and even then other units could have been made elsewhere. Just conjecture trying to rationalize why they've changed suppliers that many times when really... a little over 10 years maybe isn't too short a time to swap suppliers on a filter made to fit several models.

 
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Who do you do parts for?



I associated Mahle with Euro cars, for some reason.

 
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I used to sell auto parts for AutoZone. Don't ban me, not all the hard parts are junk, lol. I tried to steer people in the right direction "You'd be much better off spending $40 on these Performance Friction pads than buying these cheap $9 pads". Not a typo, people would actually come in there and buy $9 pads, not sure if AZ offers them anymore.
Now I sell industrial controls, power distribution and programable logic controls for a local business, Most Electric. Square D, Allen Bradley, etc.
I did manage to sell some AC Delco spark plugs to an oil field company in Nigeria recently though, haha.

 
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You can get some good parts there, I know.
But the typical clientele they market to aren't the ones that will pay for it.

I know the Zoo sells some Delco stuff, but I could buy the same from a local AC-Delco supplier and my prices were cheaper thru them.

My 2nd favorite story about the Zoo is: My cousin needed rear struts for a 92 Mazda 929....A low volume production car. I was working at the local Mazda dealer at the time.... He scored a pair of reboxed factory struts for a whole bunch less than I could get them thru the dealer, even with my employee discount.

But you never know when you would score genuine factory parts, and the counter help here is less than willing to help you figure this out ahead of time.


And I had a set of $13 pads on the front of the old Buick once.....Lasted about 10k.


















What's that?
My most favorite story?

Ok.....A Sunday eve many moons ago.....My washing machine craps the belt. Yes, it's a belt drive.
Schlep to the Zone.
Carrying my old belt.
Punk kid standing behind the computer, "Whatcha need?"
"I need you to match up this belt."
"Huh?"
"Match this belt..... You know that bigass slide-ruler thing on the wall with all those belts up there? Let me see that."
Still standing at the computer, fingers poised over the keyboard, "Um, what's that fit?"
Ok, I'll play your silly farking game....."1974"............"Maytag".
"Um, that didn't come up. What kinda car is it again?........"
"MAY. FARKING. TAG."
Still no dice.
"........Maybe it will cross reference. Let me see that belt."......"Nope."

"Gimme that ***** effin slide ruler up there."
Damn kids.


Needless to say, they didn't have a belt the right size. Went to a different brand discount parts store to get one the next day.

 
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exactly

That's hysterical and not all that unusual. AZ corporate in Memphis decided to worship at the alter of the shareholders and it's gone downhill from there. We used to joke that we would hire and train them and then O'Reilly and Advance would steal them... AZ was reluctant to pay very much and it showed in the talent. Then they would get to be decently experienced and AZ wouldn't want to give up a little more money and they would be offered a job elsewhere and jump ship.

I once had a man ask for "points" for his 1994 Ford Explorer. I had to explain to him that they stopped using points in the 60's or 70's. I think the vehicle in question might have even been distributorless. It was pretty obvious he hadn't popped the hood on it.

The best was when a woman called in asking for a "Cadillac convertible for my Mercury mesquite". She needed a catalytic converter for her Mercury Mystique. I couldn't stop laughing after I put her on hold, I had to get someone else to help her.

 
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Woman in the Lincoln-Mercury dealer, needs service on her new Alligator. (Navigator).



94 Exploiter 4.0L, had a coil pack.



Tons of people that can't tell the difference between Honda and a Hyundai. Even pronounce it the same.
Honda Sonata.
Sorry, its SO-NOT-A Honda.
Try the "High-you-in-die" dealer over thatta way.

Ford Fecal. (Focus)

Halibut (Malibu)

Pontiac GOOLIE (6000 L E)


That "LXI" emblem on the rear fender of so many Mopar minivans? That's the Roman numerals for how much money you need just to step in the door of a shop.

 
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damn you, I have to clean my drink off of my screen now.

My mother owned a 94 Grand Voyager, it made it was surprisingly long lived (almost 300K miles) but was quite the money pit before the end.

I haven't heard the rest of those, but I have noticed some people's inability to tell one "H" from the other. Give them about a 100K miles driving one... Hyundai is getting there though. A tire shop employee once asked me "What sort of Honda are you driving, that's a new one?". Whole new level of fail since they see cars in and out of there all day, it was my '04 Impala SS... that I bought form a Honda dealership and the dealer logo was still on the trunk deck.

 
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Hondas "H" legs stand up straight.
Acuras' "A" is an H with the legs leaned in at the top.

Hyundai has the "leaning H". It must be FAST because it leans.

 
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Always felt that Acura's logo resembled an engineering caliper, probably not a coincidence but thought it was neat.

 
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hahahaha awesome =D