Debate: does reusing oil filters really save you money or just risk your engine?

I was out at a job site near Stockton three weeks ago helping a buddy swap the injectors on his 2002 Cummins. He swore by cleaning and reusing his oil filters to save $25 a change. But I pulled the old filter apart and the paper was starting to break down. Has anyone else run into this or am I being too cautious with a $15 part?

2 comments

2 Comments

zara_miller21d ago

Totally changed my mind on this after I tore apart a used filter from my own truck. Paper was basically mush in spots, no way it was catching anything small anymore. I used to think saving a few bucks was smart but not worth it if a tiny piece of debris kills your bearings. $15 every 5k miles is cheap insurance compared to a whole new engine. Hard pass on reusing them now.

rowan84921d ago

Sure, but "paper was basically mush" also means it was doing its job catching stuff. Filters are meant to trap particles and get clogged, that's why they degrade. If the paper came out pristine and looking new, I'd be more worried because that would mean nothing was getting stopped. You're paying $15 for a filter that sacrifices itself so your engine doesn't have to, isn't that the whole point? A "mushy" filter full of gunk is a filter that worked exactly as designed. And as for the $15 investment, what about the extra time and environmental waste from swapping perfectly functional parts? Seems like a win for the trash can but not much else.