Nissan has some of their filters made by Denso in Japan, and they're supposedly good filters. Those are used in the engine assembly and supposedly the cars are shipped that way. OTOH, at least some of the filters they sell as aftermarket parts, the stuff you buy (and that your service tech uses) at your Nissan dealer, are made in China and have the typical cheap Fram-style cardboard end caps and substandard anti-drainback valve. They used to say the the blue Nissan filters were the cardboard Chinese ones, but I've seen reports that there are some of the white Nissan filters that are now made there too.
Point is, you buy a Nissan filter and you aren't sure what you're getting, and oil filters sold aftermarket are some of the biggest scams going. OTOH, you buy a K&N, Wix(NAPA), Purolator (bear in mind that all the oil filter brands in the US are made by about 6 companies) and you know that you're getting a good quality oil filter.
FYI, the K&N filters are essentially the same as the Mobil 1 oil filters. Both are made by Champion labs and part of their "non-Ecore" construction and they are highly regarded. The K&N is a Mobil 1 filter with a nut welded on the case.
Last edited by MacCool; 06-20-2011 at 08:04 AM.
|