How Are Racing Oil Filters Different From Standard Oil Filters

Sure, the daily commute can put a lot of stress on your car, but that's nothing compared to what a full-fledged racecar goes through. In a grueling endurance competition like the Le Mans event, racers must drive for 24 hours straight, and this year's winner — the Ferrari 499P hypercar that gave Ferrari its third Le Mans win in a row – covered some 3,276 miles. It's not only world-class endurance competitions that place extra stress on engines, though — even running local auto-cross events can put added strain on your ride. 

That's why racers usually rely on parts and accessories engineered specifically to withstand extreme conditions, including the oil filter. In fact, the lowly oil filter can be all that's standing between the checkered flag and a blown engine. After all, the filter is what helps ensure an adequate flow of clean oil for your motor, creating two potential pain points. If not enough oil gets through, the physical parts of the engine won't get enough lubrication, and the metal-on-metal friction can build up to the point where the engine is permanently damaged.

On the other hand, if the filter openings are widened to allow more flow, more debris and contaminants can get into your engine, potentially leading to internal damage. With that in mind, typical oil filters are built to find a sweet spot between maximum oil flow and maximum filtration. In comparison, racing oil filters tend to prioritize flow over filtration and are engineered to be more robust for operation at hotter temperatures and higher pressures. 

To fully understand the differences between a regular oil filter and one made for racing, it's a good idea to explain exactly what they do and how they work. The heart of the matter is the filter media, which is usually made of paper, synthetic fibers, or a mix of the two materials. This basically acts like a sieve to catch foreign objects in the oil as it lets the oil itself through.

The filter is contained in a metal, can-like housing with a baseplate and a gasket on the open end, allowing it to connect to the engine with a tight seal. The baseplate has an arrangement of holes that lets the dirty oil enter the housing, where pressure from the oil pump pushes it through the filter media and then through a larger, central hole, back into the engine. Most modern oil filters also have a bypass valve that comes into play if the filter media is entirely clogged — if clogging occurs, the valve lets unfiltered oil flow to the engine as emergency lubrication.

It's worth pointing out that cartridge oil filters replace spin-ons in some new cars today. With cartridge filters, the housing is built into the engine, so you only have to replace the filter media and gasket. It helps cut down on leftover trash, as you don't have to throw away the housing with every filter change.

You may technically be able to use a racing oil filter on your street car, but you probably shouldn't. Yes, racing oil filters tend to be made from more durable, higher-quality materials. However, the benefits of allowing oil to flow through the filter more quickly are unlikely to outweigh the risks of allowing unfiltered debris to potentially damage the engine. Remember, dedicated track machines often undergo complete oil changes much more frequently than street cars. So, if some tiny particles get through the filter during the event, they won't have a chance to clog things up or damage the engine.

Racing oil filters can viable options for occasional track days or to help keep modified high-performance engines in top shape. That said, if you use racing oil filters for these applications, you have to factor the filter's reduced efficiency into your routine maintenance. That is, you should change your oil and oil filter more often. The good news is that replacing the oil is usually pretty easy — that man who spent three days trying to remove an oil filter just had some serious bad luck. 

All that said, racers usually base their oil filter choice on their specific form of competition. In drag racing, for instance, drivers focus more intensely on filtering out even the smallest bits of dirt and debris. That's why, for most people, the bottom line here will sound familiar — it's almost always best to use the oil filter recommended by your automaker.