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Are OEM Chevrolet Oil Filters Better Than Aftermarket?

Do you need to change the oil and replace the oil filter on your Chevy? You may be wondering whether to get an OEM or aftermarket replacement filter. This comparison guide will help you evaluate each option.

If you take into account the following factors, you may conclude that OEM is the better choice:

  • Quality
  • Fitment
  • Cost

Let’s talk about each factor in more detail.

1. Quality

Filter quality

Image Credit: ACDelco

When it comes to oil filters, quality is everything. The quality of the following components will determine whether or not the oil filter will last until the next oil change:

  • Filter housing
  • Gasket
  • Pleated filter

Filter Housing Quality And Construction

The oil filter housing is always subjected to the motor oil running through the filter. That's why the housing has to:

  • Be able to deal with high pressure for a prolonged period of time
  • Be well built
  • Be sealed well

If you use an oil filter with poor filter housing quality and/or construction, you'll run into issues. For example:

  • If the filter housing is too thin, it can deform and crush when you try to remove it.
  • A too thin housing can also bulge and crack from the oil pressure.
  • An oil filter gasket that's made with low quality materials can get brittle and crack. This causes the oil to leak out, thus depriving the engine of oil.

The filter housing quality and construction on OEM oil filters are always solid. So you'll never have to worry about your oil filter springing a leak. Aftermarket oil filters don't offer the same guarantee.

Aftermarket oil filters are notorious for having low quality filter housing and gaskets. Some aftermarket oil filters are well built, but it's hard to tell those apart from the shoddy ones.

Pleated Filter Quality

The pleated filter inside the oil filter housing cleans the oil. That's why the quality of the pleated filter makes or breaks the part.

A pleated filter with the following criteria will serve your car well until the next oil change:

  • Uniform pleat openings
  • Thick and high quality filter material
  • Tightly packed pleats

Chevrolet designed its oil filters with quality in mind. That includes using high quality, tightly packed pleated filters. An OEM oil filter gives you the assurance that its pleated filter will last long without any issues.

Quality is not guaranteed when it comes to the pleated filter material in aftermarket oil filters. Many aftermarket manufacturers use inferior quality filter materials to save a few bucks. What's concerning is that aftermarket manufacturers can get away with it. It's impossible to tell the quality of the filter material because you can't open the filter and look inside.

If you use an aftermarket oil filter with cheap pleated material, you're gonna have a bad time. It will be only a matter of time before the cheap filter clogs up and starts sending dirty oil back to the engine. This will increase engine wear and maintenance costs.

You can only cross your fingers and hope that your aftermarket oil filter lasts until the next oil change without any issues. The pleated filter quality is important. If you want to play it safe, get an OEM oil filter. It's because you know for a fact that OEM oil filters contain high quality pleated filter material.

2. Fitment

Install

For optimal performance, the oil filter has to fit just right. That means it needs to have the right dimensions and components.

To put it plainly, if your oil filter doesn't fit right, oil will leak out. OEM oil filters are exact replicas of the oil filter that came with your car. That means OEM oil filters always have the right dimensions and components.

Aftermarket manufacturers design their oil filters to their discretion. They may or may not choose to follow OE specs. So if you decide to buy an aftermarket oil filter, you're running the risk of installing a filter that doesn't fit your car right. It's not uncommon for aftermarket oil filters to:

  • Be slightly too big or too small
  • Not come with all the right components, such as a rubber gasket
  • Come with the wrong thread size

Also, some aftermarket manufacturers design their oil filters with all types of oil in mind. That means you’ll end up with a universal oil filter that:

  • Won’t fit your car well
  • Won’t work well with the type of oil in your engine
  • Will probably let some dirty oil pass through to the engine

When you put a universal aftermarket oil filter in your car, it won’t work well with the oil you put in the engine, and it will likely let some dirty oil pass through.

An OEM oil filter will:

  • Fit into your car perfectly (which means a much lower chance of oil leaks)
  • Successfully filter the type of oil in your engine
  • Last until the next oil change without any issues

Again, OEM oil filters are the much safer choice.

3. Cost

Change oil

At first glance, aftermarket oil filters seem like the winner in this category. Aftermarket oil filters are usually cheaper than OEM oil filters. However, OEM oil filters actually come out on top when you consider the long term costs. Even the most expensive OEM oil filter is much, much cheaper than a new engine, or any repairs related to premature wear.

How To Find The Right OEM Oil Filter For Your Chevrolet

Another advantage OEM oil filters have over aftermarket filters is the fact that the right part number is easy to find. When you look for an aftermarket oil filter, you have to do a lot of research. Even if you put an hour of research into finding the right aftermarket oil filter for your car, it’s still not guaranteed that you’ll find one that will:

  • Fit your car
  • Filter oil well

It takes only a few minutes to find the right OEM oil filter. Chevrolet has a massive database of OEM oil filters. Each oil filter is assigned to a certain Chevy model. You only need to find the right part number for your car. To do this, look up your Chevy in our catalog of OEM oil filters. If you need help finding the right part number, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us.