I had a spare Benelli filter that I sent to GUD Automotive in Melbourne, Australia, for testing. Here's their report:.
"As per our telephone conversation, we have reviewed the Benelli filter you sent to us and have the following comments on it:Dimensionally the filter is most similar to the Ryco Z436 filter. The only potentially significant difference is the seal to thread start dimension. On the Benelli filter this measures 9mm, whereas Z436 is 6mm. This should not cause a problem if the threaded spigot on the mounting pad is threaded far enough down. If not the thread will bottom out and you will not get good seal compression. You can test this by checking when the filter seal first contacts the mounting pad and then ensuring you get 2/3 of a turn beyond this. (this should be done by hand - if you need a tool to tighten to this level you may have bottomed out the thread). Note, some mounting pads have a nut or other features which require such a high seal to thread start which may also affect this.
I also noted that the Benelli seal is white in colour, this suggests the seal may be made from a silicone rubber (It is very difficult to get good physical properties with nitrile rubber without using Carbon Black). As silicone rubbers have a much wider temperature range, this may have been done to account for very high engine temperatures, or because the filter is sent all over the world (ie Canada where start up temperatures of -40�C can be expected, to Saudi Arabia where ambient temperatures in excess of 50�C are common). If it is the latter, you should have no problem in Australia with the nitrile seal in the Z436. If it is high engine temperatures, then there is the possibility of the seal taking a compression set, and after a period, you could get oil leaks from the seal area. In extreme cases the seal can vulcanise onto the mounting pad and be difficult to remove. I don't think this is likely, but if you try the filter keep an eye out for the first change or so.
We also have done a restriction test and the Z436 shows slightly lower restriction than the Benelli filter (see below). Therefore the filter is ok in this respect.
I cannot comment on the life or efficiency of the filter, but I can tell you that the Z436 media uses a high quality full flow oil filter media with an absolute micron rating of approximately 30microns. This is where 99% of particles are expected to be filtered out. The filter is most commonly used on late model (90s onwards) Mazda engines and late model Subaru engines, where change intervals of 12,500km are specified.
I hope this helps you, and if you have any questions please feel free to contact me and I will answer them as best as possible.
Regards
David Brooks
Engineering Manager
GUD Automotive
245 Sunshine Rd
Tottenham Vic. 3012
| Flow | Restriction (kPa) | |
|---|---|---|
| Rate | Ryco | Benelli |
| l/m | Z436 | R180107101000 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4.5 | 6 | 6 |
| 9.1 | 8 | 9 |
| 13.6 | 11 | 15 |
| 18.2 | 14 | 20 |
| 22.7 | 20 | 25 |
| 27.3 | 23 | 30 |
| 31.8 | 30 | 36 |
| 36.4 | 35 | 41 |
| 41 | 42 | 47 |
| 45.5 | 46 | 55 |
Of course, this is great info, if you happen to be parked in Oz. I suspect that Ryco, an Australia manufacturer, doesn't get out much, and the Z436 may be difficult to find elsewhere in the world. But you get the idea. The flow restriction should be less than or equal to the Genuine part.
Other owners have used the following (without testing).....
Baldwin B1400
Hastings LF113 (suggested by Tax Tre, 13 July 2005)
K&N HP-1008 HiFlo (suggested by dean100yz, 23 Nov 2005)
NAPA 1365 - a NAPA Gold with anti-drain and overpressure bypass. (suggested by joebob, 17 July 2011)