Oil filter "bulged"

[Noreast]

Did an oil change for the start of the season and my oil filter was bulged up and loose inside.... Talked to a lot of friends all said maybe the oil pressure bypass in the pump was bad so I got a gauge on it asap. Cold start it's 95-100psi. Once she warms up it'll idle at 25psi , cruising around 50-60 and at wot I believe it was around 90. The car has a melling high volume pump in it but with the idling pressure at 25 pretty sure the bypass is fine right? Just want to get some input on it... maybe it was just a weak filter? Motor craft 820s always used.

 

[98$vt]

Did the stretching cause the actual filter to be loose causing the rattle inside? Or did you cut it open to see if there was anything funny rolling around?

 

[2DXTRM]

Oil pressure readings for a 4.6 sound normal to me. What grade oil?

 

[Noreast]

I didnt cut it open its gotta be from the stretch and the filter inside was just flopping around. I run mobile 1 5w-30. I couldnt find any threads of anyone having problems with the ford filters

 

[DVJ38]

W....T....F. Damn man, that's a strange thing I have to say. No idea.

 

[iamtheshaner]

Pressure sounds a little on the high side and that's the only way you are going to bulge a filter like that. Buddy of mine had 90#s of hot pressure on a 5.4 trike that we could never explain but it never blew up the filter....

 

[Noreast]

Yeahh the wot seems a little high but I've driven the car a few times and keeping an eye on the filter and it seems good. I just want to make sure I'm not harming the motor ( pretty fresh rebuild )

 

[iamtheshaner]

You really can't hurt much with too much pressure and the 10psi per 100rpm thing is even not-so-critical. I've never built up a mod motor before but I know from experience that a high volume pump needs to be coupled with a larger sump because naturally the HV pump could suck the small sump dry. A tight clearance motor with a HV pump assembly and matched sump I would expect slightly higher than normal oil pressure but by no means should the pressure be so high you can't keep a filter on it.

Another consideration would be if your heads are filling up. The heads have a volume restrictor built into the B1 rear cam cap and B2 front cam cap but the orifice in it is calibrated to the typical output volume of the OE pump. Throw more volume at it and not only will your main line pressure go up but you also run the risk of filling the heads faster than they can drain. The long term result is leaks, consumption through PCV and consumption through valve seals.

Maybe you got a defective filter but Motocrafts are pretty much the best built filter out there.

What are you using for a gauge?

If it were mine I'd drive with a gauge taped to my hood for a while and keep an eye on the filter between runs. Maybe run a 5W20 oil - especially if she's a summer weekend warrior-type rig.

Do you know if your HV pump came with just the gerotor or the whole assembly?

 

[Noreast]

hmmm. The pump was a whole assembly i believe i didnt supply the parts but saw the pump before it went in. I have a glowshift electric pressure gauge i know mechanical is better. The motors been in the car for 2 years and this is the first time its happened which is why im hoping its a bad filter issue. She is a summer/weekend car so maybe 5-20 would be better?

 

[iamtheshaner]

Yep sounds like a manufacturing issue with the filter to me unless you had a freak instance of your regulator sticking. Id don't see why 5w20 would hurt anything - if it was built with bearing clearances on the tight side it's almost certainly a better choice. Keep an eye on it for a while otherwise I'm sure you have little to worry about.