Filters: Fram? Racor? Luber-Finer?

[deprived]

My rig has about 40k miles on it and it stall has the original air filter from with a 2007 manufacturer's stamp on it.

In the past I haven't really given air filter brands all that much thought.

For my setup, I have only a few choicesL Fram, Racor and Luber-Finer. Teh price range runs from about $140 down to $99, so not a huge difference in price but enough to at least factor it in to my decision.

I imagine they all probably filter well enough but the thing I'm most concerned about is build quality because if that filter lets go, the next stop for any debris is a 2000-dollar turbo charger.

I've always bought Fram purely out of habit.

I'm not familiar with Racor or Luber-Finer.

What experiences or observations does anyone have in this area?

!!!!THANKS!!!!

[Tigerfan1]

Originally Posted by deprived

My rig has about 40k miles on it and it stall has the original air filter from with a 2007 manufacturer's stamp on it.



In the past I haven't really given air filter brands all that much thought.



For my setup, I have only a few choicesL Fram, Racor and Luber-Finer. Teh price range runs from about $140 down to $99, so not a huge difference in price but enough to at least factor it in to my decision.



I imagine they all probably filter well enough but the thing I'm most concerned about is build quality because if that filter lets go, the next stop for any debris is a 2000-dollar turbo charger.



I've always bought Fram purely out of habit.



I'm not familiar with Racor or Luber-Finer.



What experiences or observations does anyone have in this area?



!!!!THANKS!!!!

I would definitely change it as the manufacturer recommends to change every two years. There have been many engine failures due to filter material degrading and getting sucked into the engine. To prevent this some filter manufacturers are lining the inside of the filer with a screen material. The last one I bought had this. Not sure but I think it was a Baldwin. Bought it from the Filter Store. If you call them they are pretty knowledgeable

[Milford 47]

Racor is the only manufacturer if your air flow is inside out

Baldwin manufacturers several brands in a huge plant in Kearney Ne

Parker/Racor has several smaller plants

[Gary RVRoamer]

Parker-Racor and Luberfiner are well respected brands in the heavy truck/engine parts business. Either one would be a good choice.


I'll bet Fram was the lowest priced filter - they usually are in my experience. I think "you get what you pay for" applies here.

[lllkrob]

Here's a few others from quality suppliers:



WIX 46891


FleetGuard AH8501


Farr 062891-001

[HR2004]

I don't know what number you need but I got my fleetguard AF25354 thru Amazon for $63.96

[deprived]

Originally Posted by Milford 47

Racor is the only manufacturer if your air flow is inside out

That's an interesting comment! What is it about Racor that makes you say that?

[deprived]

Originally Posted by Gary RVRoamer

I'll bet Fram was the lowest priced filter

You know, I would have bet that as well but in my case, the Luber-Finer was the cheapest: 100 bucks versus 140. Amazon's pricing has always been a mystery.

[johnhicks]

I believe these are all manufactured by Farr.

[Larrikin]

You are really lucky that filter has not dusted your engine as old as it is.

Going forward, change it out at 2 years or less. That is a big deal because the filter elements will deteriorate from moisture as well as plug up with dust. Some of the parks we visited over the years were supposedly good parks, but our dust cloud enroute to our site going really slow was huge.

Parker/Racor is your vendor, be sure you get the right part and "dash number" for your configuration. I order mine from Freightliner. Be aware of the Mfg date of the article. They do have a dry shelf life of something like 3 years (not sure of that) but I got it from Parker.

[Mtn. Lion]

When I was in the parts business, WIX was the best. You can order from their website.

[RayChez1]

When I bought the coach new in 2003 it had Farr, then I went to Napa Wix and the vacuum gauge was showing that it was not the right filter. So I ordered Racor and I have been very happy with the performance of the Racor product. The vacuum gauge works properly now. And the Caterpillar engine runs with lots more power.

[DGBPokes]

At a Spartan seminar, I was told they had changed the recommended change interval from 2 years to 1. When challenged on that point, the response was the filter elements are paper. When/if the paper gets wet it can break down and come apart. If it does, the first thing it takes out is the turbo. That can be a $20K fix.

Remember the old Fram commercial....pay me now, or pay me later.

[Mtn. Lion]

Originally Posted by RayChez1

When I bought the coach new in 2003 it had Farr, then I went to Napa Wix and the vacuum gauge was showing that it was not the right filter. So I ordered Racor and I have been very happy with the performance of the Racor product. The vacuum gauge works properly now. And the Caterpillar engine runs with lots more power.

Fwiw, NAPA has their own specifications for their filters made by Wix. They are different than the Wix brand filters. I don't know that a Wix brand would have worked, but NAPA filters are not the same.