Oil Filters

Genuine Nissan Oil Filters

An oil filter is the cheapest part in the service and the one with the most leverage. It is the only thing standing between the oil and the metal particles, carbon and debris that every engine generates, and a filter that bypasses early sends unfiltered oil straight through the bearings.

Engine Filters and Transmission Filters Are Both Here

This is worth reading before you order. The catalog carries engine oil filters, which is what most people are looking for, and also transmission oil filters and transmission filter kits, which are a different service entirely. They sit on the same page because both are filters, not because they are alternatives. If you came for an oil change, you want the engine filter.

Why the Genuine Filter Matters More Than It Looks

Filters differ in things you cannot see from outside: the media, the bypass valve pressure and the anti-drainback valve. The bypass setting is the one that matters on a cold Wisconsin morning, when thick oil would otherwise be forced through a filter that cannot flow fast enough. The anti-drainback valve is what keeps oil in the filter when the engine is off, so the first seconds after a cold start are not running dry. A filter built to the engine's own specification gets both right.

Transmission Filter Kits

The transmission filter kits are worth knowing about if you have a CVT. A CVT service is not an oil change with a different fluid: the filter, the pan gasket and the correct fluid all go together, and the kits exist so that nothing is missing halfway through the job.

Confirming Fit

Filters are specific to the engine, not the model. Two vehicles of the same year and model with different engines take different filters, and superseded part numbers are common in this category. Add your vehicle or enter your VIN and order the number the catalog returns rather than the one written on the old filter, which may have been replaced by a newer revision.

Do Not Skip the Drain Plug Gasket

The other part that belongs in an oil change order is the drain plug washer. It is designed to crush once and seal, which means a reused washer is the most common source of the slow drip that appears on the driveway a week after the service. It costs almost nothing and it is the difference between a clean job and a stain you keep wiping up. One more habit worth keeping: write the date and mileage on the new filter with a marker before it goes on. It costs five seconds and it settles the question months later when nobody remembers whether the last change was at 42,000 or 47,000 miles. And if the car is under a maintenance plan or still in warranty, using the genuine filter removes an argument before it starts. Warranty disputes over engine damage tend to turn on whether the service was done to specification with the specified parts, and a receipt for the genuine filter is the cheapest documentation you will ever buy.

Related: spark plugs and wiper blades.