Air filters.

[Mrdeli]

Hi everyone.

 

When I first got my Z, the first thing I did was a quick oil and air filter change.

 

The air filter I got was from halfords (own brand)

 

I've read up quite a lot on hear about different panel filters, none of which seem to make any real difference. I was wondering however if I should put something better in and was wondering what members thought. I guess my main worry is that the halfords own brand may be poor in comparison to even the oem filter.

 

I have read that k&n filters can cause problems with the maf due to oil deposits so was thinking the cosworth filters may be good.

 

Am I over thinking this - is the halfords filter actually likely to be just as good??

 

Thanks all. (ps I'm wanting to stay with the panel filter to avoid insurance issues)

[ZMANALEX]

HKS and Cosworth in stock and good to go same/next day:#1:

 

Check out my sub forum

 

viewforum.php?f=157

 

Alex

[rabbitstew]

Im running cosworth filters in mine, but the general consensus was that you will struggle to get anything better than the oem ones.

[cmck13]

Save up and install a FI system everything else is just tweaking.

[ZMANALEX]

Im running cosworth filters in mine, but the general consensus was that you will struggle to get anything better than the oem ones.

 

 

OEM airbox with Cosworth or HKS Performnace panel filters

 

Alex

[brillomaster]

i would think a halfords filter will have better filtration than some branded ones, which can sacrifice filtration for higher airflow. the ideal would be a filter that has high airflow AND retains decent filtration of airborne dust and other nasties.

 

only difference i see is that a halfords one will need replacing every year (as will an OEM filter) whereas branded ones can be cleaned and reused/reoiled and so suposedly save money in the long run.

 

But overall, filter makes a small difference in performance - i'd be more worried about the oil - bigger difference there between halfords own brand and branded stuff as im sure you know

[Dblock]

i would think a halfords filter will have better filtration than some branded ones, which can sacrifice filtration for higher airflow. the ideal would be a filter that has high airflow AND retains decent filtration of airborne dust and other nasties.

 

only difference i see is that a halfords one will need replacing every year (as will an OEM filter) whereas branded ones can be cleaned and reused/reoiled and so suposedly save money in the long run.

 

But overall, filter makes a small difference in performance - i'd be more worried about the oil - bigger difference there between halfords own brand and branded stuff as im sure you know

 

Halfords don't make their own oil. Comma does. I use unipart pro s. it's made by fuchs and has been compared to Silkolene.

[Mrdeli]

Yes Im using the Nissan service that I had as an oil to get the last bits of crap out of the engine - I'll run it a few months on the Nissan 10w 40 and then I intend to put mobile1 in as I've read the Z likes this.

[Dblock]

Yes Im using the Nissan service that I had as an oil to get the last bits of crap out of the engine - I'll run it a few months on the Nissan 10w 40 and then I intend to put mobile1 in as I've read the Z likes this.

 

mobil 1 isnt very good anymore.

[Ekona]

Yes it is.

[Mrdeli]

Yeah I'm pretty sure it's as good as any.

[Ekona]

It's better than most, but not as good as some.

[Dblock]

Yes it is.

 

Anything to back that up?

 

 

you as a porsche driver should know what they have done to it. Something to do with lower quality or semi synth base oils. Alot of people that used the newer one sent it away for analysis and the results was it doesn't lubricate as good and some of the detergents have been taken out.

[Dblock]

Group III base stocks is what uses and it isnt as good £ for £ as alot of other oils. You can use it will do no harm but for the price you could get something much much better.

[rtbiscuit]

last oil change i used magnatec as it was reccomend by the manufacturer for my car (not a zed) but after foing some research

 

Castrol is a relatively small company with minimal development experience compared to the majors. They've done a cracking job of marketing though over the years and in the UK have a reputation which far (FAR) exceeds their actual product quality. In other words, their oils are okay, but they've managed to get themselves over-rated.

 

They and a few other companies campaigned, successfully, for adjustment of the classification of synthetics - ie, at what level of base stock purity the label 'synhtetic' can be applied. Magnatec is only just a synthetic, unlike the much better base stocks of the majors - Mobil in particular who patented polymerisation of C2 gas to make perfect straight synthetic chains, and whose synthetics are in a different league to the rest.

 

Mobil 1 remains expensive but there's a great tip for value when buying first rate quality oils - it's nice to know that thr Halfords synthetics are made by Mobil, and that Mobil doesn't make a different base stock for Halfords, just a different additive pack

 

i'm going to try mobil on my next sevice in 2k

[rtbiscuit]

Taken from another forum

What I discovered, is that oils, both dino and synthetic, are vastly different, in both their basestock and their additives. These differences contribute to differences in performance.

 

The API classifies oils into five different groups.

 

Group I base oils are the least refined of all of the groups. They are usually a mix of different hydrocarbon chains with little or no uniformity. While some automotive oils use these stocks, they are generally used in less demanding applications.

 

Group II base oils are common in mineral based motor oils. They have fair to good performance in the areas of volatility, oxidation stability, wear prevention and flash/fire points. They have only fair performance in areas such as pour point and cold crank viscosity. Group II base stocks are what the majority of engine oils are made from. 3000 mile oil changes are the norm.

 

Group III base oils are subjected to the highest level of refining of all the mineral oil stocks. Although not chemically engineered, they offer improved performance in a wide range of areas as well as good molecular uniformity and stability. By definition they are considered a synthesized material and can be used in the production of synthetic and semi-synthetic lubricants. Group III is used in the vast majority of full synthetics or synthetic blends. They are superior to group I and II oils but still have limitations. Some formulations are designed for extended oil changes. AMSOIL XL Motor Oils, Castrol Syntec and many others fall into this category.

 

Group IV are polyalphaolefins (PAO) which are a chemically engineered synthesized basestocks. PAOs offer excellent stability, molecular uniformity and performance over a wide range of lubricating properties. AMSOIL SAE Synthetic Motor Oils and Mobil 1 primarily use group IV basestocks. PAO is a much more expensive basestock than the highly refined petroleum oil basestock of Group III.

 

Group V base oils are also chemically engineered stocks that do not fall into any of the categories previously mentioned. Typical examples of group V stocks are Esters, polyglycols and silicone. Redline uses an ester basestock.

 

In the 90s, Mobil filed suit against Castrol for falsely advertising Syntec oil as synthetic, when in fact it contained a Group III, highly hydroprocessed mineral (Dino) oil, instead of a chemically synthesized (group IV or V) basestock. Due to the amount that the mineral oil had been chemically changed, the judge decided in Castrol's favor. As a result, any oil containing this highly hydroprocessed mineral (Dino) oil (currently called Group III basestock by the American Petroleum Institute) can be marketed as a synthetic oil. Since the original synthetic basestock (polyalphaolefin or PAO) is much more expensive than the Group III basestock, most of the oil blenders switched to the Group III basestock, which significantly increased their profit margins.

 

When I was trying to decide between Royal Purple and Redline, I discovered AMSOIL. What impressed me about AMSOIL was that it used the same basestock as the stock Mobil 1 (Group IV PAO basestock), but used oil analysis reports showed AMSOIL used higher levels of detergents and anti-wear additives. This was somewhat confirmed when Mobil 1 came out with their Extended Performance Mobil 1. When Mobil 1 came out with this new product, at the time they claimed that it had about 50% more detergent and anti-wear additives than the regular Mobil 1.

 

What turned me off to Royal Purple were several poor used oil analysis reports I reviewed, and the fact that they did not say on their website what type of basestock they used. Other companies such as Redline, Mobil 1, and AMSOIL were very up front with their basestock, so I wondered what Royal Purple was trying to hide.

 

My research indicated to me that Redline was (and still is) a very good oil, but I was somewhat concerned that its basestock was Group V, an ester basestock, and I'd read a few bad reports on the ester's effects on seals in the Corvette transmission.

 

Now, I'm heading towards Amsoil.

[Ekona]

Yes it is.

 

Anything to back that up?

 

 

you as a porsche driver should know what they have done to it. Something to do with lower quality or semi synth base oils. Alot of people that used the newer one sent it away for analysis and the results was it doesn't lubricate as good and some of the detergents have been taken out.

Nothing more than my own personal experience, you?

 

Like I said, there's better stuff out there, but the simple fact that Porsche insist that you put it in all their cars tells you something about the quality of it. I'm not naive enough to think that they chose it specifically because it was the best over any highly lucrative commercial deals, but as a manufacturer you wouldn't want to recommend that any old junk gets put in your engine as you'll be the one dealing with the fallout via warranty claims. It will be of a certain quality, and that's more than can be said for a lot of oils out there. Pretty much anything that gets recommended as OEM will have a higher standard baserate than stuff that doesn't, but you also then get your Motul V stuff et al that is just so much better than anything else out there but is too expensive to use as OEM oil.

[Dblock]

Yes it is.

 

Anything to back that up?

 

 

you as a porsche driver should know what they have done to it. Something to do with lower quality or semi synth base oils. Alot of people that used the newer one sent it away for analysis and the results was it doesn't lubricate as good and some of the detergents have been taken out.

Nothing more than my own personal experience, you?

 

Like I said, there's better stuff out there, but the simple fact that Porsche insist that you put it in all their cars tells you something about the quality of it. I'm not naive enough to think that they chose it specifically because it was the best over any highly lucrative commercial deals, but as a manufacturer you wouldn't want to recommend that any old junk gets put in your engine as you'll be the one dealing with the fallout via warranty claims. It will be of a certain quality, and that's more than can be said for a lot of oils out there. Pretty much anything that gets recommended as OEM will have a higher standard baserate than stuff that doesn't, but you also then get your Motul V stuff et al that is just so much better than anything else out there but is too expensive to use as OEM oil.

 

Reading about how they have changed their formula's and people who have had their oil analysed and so on.

 

I said its not as good anymore. Yet with no proof you said yes they are.

 

They use cheaper quality base oils. I agree they are still Porshce's main supplier but they may be giving porshce better stuff/more addatives or oil quality isnt super important to porsche engines maybe? They take enough of it lol. Its still going to be decent oil but Porsche will charge you for the name.

 

But there is/was talk about them losing their vag and possibly merc approval because of their oil not being as good.

 

For the price you can get much much better stuff and recommending Mobil 1 IMO isn't going to be to the OP's benefit.

 

Also Rich it was Mobil 1 who sued Castrol's Syntec which was made with group 3 base oils and therefore claimed calling it syntec when it isn't synthetic isn't on.

[rtbiscuit]

I thought mobil 1 still fell in to the group IV as a PAO

 

I keep looking at things like Amsoil it seems to get very good rep but its soooooooooooooooooooo expensive, and when you need 8 litres for an oil change you have to draw a balance between quality and cost.

 

i would say that mobil 1 is a step up from castrol magnatec, but there are still better oils out there to try.

 

I noticed a change in MPG when i swapped to magnatec, it did drop by about 2mpg, i'm interested to see how this mobil 1 esp fairs.

 

i too have heard that mobil changed their base stock, but that it was still better than other oils out there.

[Dblock]

IMO Mobil 1 is just a name. Its pushed on people who buy german cars because it is expensive. Im not saying it bad oil, its probably good oil but there is better out there for the price usually. I have heard of dealers telling people to only fill with mobil1 even if the car is empty E.g. would you perfer to use mobil 1 or Fuchs Titan Race or whatever silkolene is now called. 9/10 people would say mobil 1 as they have seen it or heard of it and know its expensive. Not many people know of Fuchs and Fuchs dont have the brand name like what Mobil 1 do.

 

Amsoil get a really good rep but I know what americans are like too If you live in the US its not badly priced but to get it shipped over here is expensive.

 

Its the same with my 172 under the bonnet it says Renault recommends ELF. Now who the hell sells elf stuff, conveniently your Renault garage at 3 times the price of oil which is much probably the same/better.

[rtbiscuit]

i know what you mean, jaguar say only to use castrol (in the old jags its magnatec) Edge in their new cars.

 

i'd like to go back to royal purple, but i don't know if it meets the required ACEA numbers for my car. where as the mobil 1 does, millers crops up a fair bit as well. i use their brake fluid, but not tried their oils.