Your motorcycle’s oil filter protects your bike’s engine from excessive wear caused by contaminants and metal particles that break down the oil’s effectiveness.
Here’s how to choose a high-quality filter that will work well with your motorcycle and keep its engine in good shape for many miles.
Your motorcycle needs an oil filter because…
The oil circulating through your bike’s engine handles many vital tasks that it couldn’t do without an effective filter. The oil must…
- Absorb impurities…
- Help cool the engine…
- Lubricate engine parts…
- Seal piston rings…
- Catch metal particles…
- And more
Here’s what’s inside an oil filter…
A typical “spin-on” filter looks like a metal can. Inside, it contains a filtering material designed to capture contaminants, dirt and metal particles.
Motorcycles need a filter capable of trapping particles as small as 25-30 microns. That’s less than half the width of a strand of human hair.
The filtering element in economy products can’t catch the smallest particles. High-quality filters contain extremely fine micro-fibers that can trap minute particles.
How a filter works…
Your motorcycle’s oil pump pushes oil through holes in the oil filter’s base plate, then through the filtering material which traps particles and contaminates.
After passing through the filtering material, the oil flows into a hollow central channel that directs the oil back into the engine.
The importance of a safety relief valve…
Filters have a safety relief valve. They need one to let the oil bypass the filtering material entirely if the element gets clogged or when the oil is very cold and thick.
Relief valves on motorcycle-specific filters will open at pressures as low as 8 to 11 psi. Filters intended for cars or trucks usually open between 11 to 17 psi.
You should not install a filter on your motorcycle that has a relief valve designed to respond to higher car/truck oil pressures.
What the anti drain-back valve does…
If your motorcycle’s filter is mounted horizontally, it must have an anti drain-back valve.
This valve prevents dirty oil and contaminates in the filter from running back into your bike’s oil pan when you turn off the engine.
The condition of the filter’s base gasket is vital…
Your filter’s base gasket must be strong and resilient to prevent oil leaks and engine damage.
Many motorcycle oil pumps can move more than a gallon of oil a minute at pressures approaching 100 psi.
At such pressures, you can see how quickly all the oil in a motorcycle can get forced out of the system if the base gasket moves, breaks or otherwise creates a space.
Without oil, your bike will experience extreme engine damage.
Over time — depending upon how often you ride your motorcycle — the filter’s base gasket will deteriorate and lose its ability to keep the filter tight and in place.
This will cause leaks and even complete oil loss if you don’t change the filter and gasket in time.
How to determine when to replace your motorcycle oil filter…
The age and quality of your filter’s base gasket is a primary consideration when determining when to replace your motorcycle oil filter.
If you even think it’s been on too long, then change it.
Otherwise, follow your bike manufacturer’s oil- and filter-change recommendations.
Changing the oil and filter more often than the manufacturer recommends isn’t a bad idea, either.
If you’re not sure what the manufacturer recommends, you’d be on target by changing the oil and installing a clean filter and new gasket every 3,000 to 5,000 miles.
The key features to look for when selecting a motorcycle oil filter…
So when you are searching for a motorcycle oil filter, look for one that has…
- An anti-drain-back valve…
- A safety relief valve that opens between 8 to 11 psi…
- A high quality base gasket…
- The ability to trap particles as small as 25-30 microns…