DirtScaresMe
Trouble Maker
For maritime engines (Yanmar) I always like Purolator although we used OEM for warranty reasons. Any one use Purolator for 80s? Looks like the PBL30001/PL30001/L30001 fits.
If you're using a WIX oil filter read this (4 Viewers)
- Thread starter fj40z
- Start date
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So a $3-4k settlement probably sounds great to them, huh?
To the OP (and I'm posting this for everyone in case it's helpful to others), I am an attorney who has helped a few friends with legal matters over the years (not identical to this situation), and have been practicing for close to 20 years.
My advice is to continue pursuing this through Wix yourself at this time. They surely have a claims department. That's who you need to contact, not the local rep. Yes, they might say it's the wrong filter, but I don't think that is fatal. Their filter caused your engine failure. Just keep repeating that one sentence.
Also, I would pursue the same claim with O'Reilly's. You told them your truck, they handed you a filter. O'Reilly's and Wix can sort out the rest.
I'm hoping you still have the filter off your truck, if not see if they'll give it back to you. You paid for it and it's your property. If they are reluctant to give the filter back I would send them a written demand for its return, and if they say it's destroyed I think that's actually helpful. From what I can tell, you did not give them the filter, you lent it to them for examination of your claim. If they deny your claim, then they could reasonably anticipate you would pursue other avenues (including litigation) and they knowingly destroyed Your Evidence. That is not going to go over well for them in court. Particularly if you did not sign a release of the filter to them whereby you transferred ownership of the faulty filter to them. Who owns the faulty filter? You do, even now. And it's Your Evidence.
I would expect that Wix will offer you something eventually. That will be maybe half of what you would like to get. Then you have to decide if you want to retain a lawyer. If they don't offer you anything, I would try to find a lawyer who will send them a letter with photo attachments, a declaration from you, etc., and make it look very professional, for a flat fee. I would think a lawyer (or lawyer friend who'll do it for free) would do that for a few hundred dollars. Make a specific dollar demand and see what they offer. The flat fee is nice because whatever Wix gives you is yours, the lawyer is not taking a % cut.
Finally, keep track of your time. They will owe you that in the long haul, and you can include it in your demand letter. 10 hours at 50 bucks an hour would not be unreasonable, and would cover the flat fee for a lawyer to send a letter.
Sorry this is so long, I hope it's helpful.
Good luck.
-Russell
My advice is to continue pursuing this through Wix yourself at this time. They surely have a claims department. That's who you need to contact, not the local rep. Yes, they might say it's the wrong filter, but I don't think that is fatal. Their filter caused your engine failure. Just keep repeating that one sentence.
Also, I would pursue the same claim with O'Reilly's. You told them your truck, they handed you a filter. O'Reilly's and Wix can sort out the rest.
I'm hoping you still have the filter off your truck, if not see if they'll give it back to you. You paid for it and it's your property. If they are reluctant to give the filter back I would send them a written demand for its return, and if they say it's destroyed I think that's actually helpful. From what I can tell, you did not give them the filter, you lent it to them for examination of your claim. If they deny your claim, then they could reasonably anticipate you would pursue other avenues (including litigation) and they knowingly destroyed Your Evidence. That is not going to go over well for them in court. Particularly if you did not sign a release of the filter to them whereby you transferred ownership of the faulty filter to them. Who owns the faulty filter? You do, even now. And it's Your Evidence.
I would expect that Wix will offer you something eventually. That will be maybe half of what you would like to get. Then you have to decide if you want to retain a lawyer. If they don't offer you anything, I would try to find a lawyer who will send them a letter with photo attachments, a declaration from you, etc., and make it look very professional, for a flat fee. I would think a lawyer (or lawyer friend who'll do it for free) would do that for a few hundred dollars. Make a specific dollar demand and see what they offer. The flat fee is nice because whatever Wix gives you is yours, the lawyer is not taking a % cut.
Finally, keep track of your time. They will owe you that in the long haul, and you can include it in your demand letter. 10 hours at 50 bucks an hour would not be unreasonable, and would cover the flat fee for a lawyer to send a letter.
Sorry this is so long, I hope it's helpful.
Good luck.
-Russell
Generally, any destructive testing should be done in the presence of all interested parties. Most likely, WIX would hand a claim like this over to their insurance carrier and they likely have experts that would conduct the inspection. You could have requested to be present during that. Spilt milk at this point... sorry. However, I would still push as much as it makes sense to you.
I had a yoga mat (let the jokes begin) that I thought had stained my carpet. The manufacturer asked me to ship it to them for testing, which they did, and maintained the mat was colorfast and could not have caused the stains. I requested the mat back, and since they had discarded it and not provided an opportunity for my own testing, they decided to pay the claim. In the meantime, I found out it was my shoes that I was working out in the same area where I used the mat, that was the cause. Therefore, I withdrew the claim. Moral of the story, chain of custody is very very important.
Man, Stephen, I REALLY hated to read this.
I had a yoga mat (let the jokes begin) that I thought had stained my carpet. The manufacturer asked me to ship it to them for testing, which they did, and maintained the mat was colorfast and could not have caused the stains. I requested the mat back, and since they had discarded it and not provided an opportunity for my own testing, they decided to pay the claim. In the meantime, I found out it was my shoes that I was working out in the same area where I used the mat, that was the cause. Therefore, I withdrew the claim. Moral of the story, chain of custody is very very important.
Man, Stephen, I REALLY hated to read this.
If the case does make it to court, you'll need an expert witness....
may I suggest, Marissa Tomei?
may I suggest, Marissa Tomei?
No need to jump on @fj40z for his lack of running a toyota filter. I believe he was putting this out there so more 80 series (and 60 series) owners realize there may be a problem with the WIX/Oreilly NAPA filters, and what he is going thru after the discovery. There are interchange charts for a reason, and it will only cost him his time and effort to escalate up the food chain at WIX. I had a similar issue with my 97 (have run the napa gold variant for years after seeing the recommendation from mud), and had low oil pressure. Mine developed a tick in the bottom end, and has done it for two years. Had I known that WIX would send a rep, I would have gone down that road. It's unfortunate he cut open the filter, but that is the same thing 98% of us would do when faced with the same issue.
The rep was very nice to @fj40z, and was surprised there was an actual defect with the filter. The question becomes if the unit came with that missing part and it is somewhere in the bottom end of the engine (causing some damage), or was it never installed in the filter at all. A case could very easily be proven that there are no differences between the 96 and 97 engines, so the interchange issue isnt an issue. Yes, it will be an uphill issue for @fj40z to get some financial restitution out of WIX for their apparent defective product.
I encouraged him to document and send a certified/return receipt letter, outlining the failure, with pictures, and the rep's investigation. He can also include costs for a long block, a rebuild estimate with OEM parts, and a rebuilt engine from a vendor.
The lawyer's advice above was spot on. be the nice squeaky wheel, and see what happens. He cant drive the truck, so there is some additional hardship involved. Keep hounding them, and hopefully they will cave. He has all the documentation and costs associated with his head gasket job that was completed, as well as mileage and videos of the engine prior to, and after whatever failed.
The rep was very nice to @fj40z, and was surprised there was an actual defect with the filter. The question becomes if the unit came with that missing part and it is somewhere in the bottom end of the engine (causing some damage), or was it never installed in the filter at all. A case could very easily be proven that there are no differences between the 96 and 97 engines, so the interchange issue isnt an issue. Yes, it will be an uphill issue for @fj40z to get some financial restitution out of WIX for their apparent defective product.
I encouraged him to document and send a certified/return receipt letter, outlining the failure, with pictures, and the rep's investigation. He can also include costs for a long block, a rebuild estimate with OEM parts, and a rebuilt engine from a vendor.
The lawyer's advice above was spot on. be the nice squeaky wheel, and see what happens. He cant drive the truck, so there is some additional hardship involved. Keep hounding them, and hopefully they will cave. He has all the documentation and costs associated with his head gasket job that was completed, as well as mileage and videos of the engine prior to, and after whatever failed.
DirtScaresMe
Trouble Maker
I'll just leave this here, in case anyone would like to let them know that they should stand behind their products a bit more or otherwise handle this issue a bit better: WIX Filters - Contact Us
Nope I just bought 10 @ $37.50
Ten (10) 90915-YZZD1 Genuine Toyota Oil Filters w/ Drain Gaskets Avalon Camry | eBay
Don't remeber the exact price I paid but it was about 36 dollar for 10 shipped. Came in Toyota packing box and everything and sold by a Toyota dealer. Very little chance that they are Chinese knock offs.
One thing I noticed when I change oil is that the Toyota filter shells are noticeable harder/thicker than all after market filters. The filters came with plastic seal/cover and rubber gasket is pre-greased. Lots of little details show that they are of higher quality even for being made in Thailand. And they are way cheaper than after market ones, why wouldnt anyone use OEM in this case.
The D1 is not exactly "correct" for the 1FZ. It is shorter and is used on 22Rx, 3VZ and 5VZ engines. The diameter and the base are comperable. See Phil's post #33 above for specific attributes.
Super frustrating.
The 51348 and 51515 are the same filter: True or false?
The only difference between the 51515 and the 51348 is the physical dimensions of the filter: T/F?
The 51515 is the large WIX filter recommended for the 1fz-fe motor through 1996? What happened from 1996 until 1997 for the filter recommendation to change? What about direct ignition 1fz-fe motors built from 1998-2008?
What impact will a failure such as this have on market share moving forward?
This is a failure of more than just a filter. This is also a failure of customer service, manufacturing practices, and public relations. Most of us have more than one car. Many of us work on cars for a living. The majority of us are asked questions about general maintenance - and people make decisions based on our responses.
I wonder how many of us will feel confident using or recommending WIX to our customers, families, and friends. It really sucks to see one of the best brands fail to stand by a product trusted by so many enthusiasts.
I'm sorry about your motor. I'm starting to get pissed about the response from WIX. I know they're just employees reading from the company playbook, but it seems like someone would have had the sense to speak up and make it right.
Edit: Considering the impact of this forum: WIX has already lost the cost of replacing the motor. And it hasn't even been posted 24hrs yet.
The 51348 and 51515 are the same filter: True or false?
The only difference between the 51515 and the 51348 is the physical dimensions of the filter: T/F?
The 51515 is the large WIX filter recommended for the 1fz-fe motor through 1996? What happened from 1996 until 1997 for the filter recommendation to change? What about direct ignition 1fz-fe motors built from 1998-2008?
What impact will a failure such as this have on market share moving forward?
This is a failure of more than just a filter. This is also a failure of customer service, manufacturing practices, and public relations. Most of us have more than one car. Many of us work on cars for a living. The majority of us are asked questions about general maintenance - and people make decisions based on our responses.
I wonder how many of us will feel confident using or recommending WIX to our customers, families, and friends. It really sucks to see one of the best brands fail to stand by a product trusted by so many enthusiasts.
I'm sorry about your motor. I'm starting to get pissed about the response from WIX. I know they're just employees reading from the company playbook, but it seems like someone would have had the sense to speak up and make it right.
Edit: Considering the impact of this forum: WIX has already lost the cost of replacing the motor. And it hasn't even been posted 24hrs yet.
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I just did an oil change last week using the 51515 and put about 200 miles since then...all is good so far.
Should I replace that 51515 now??
Should I replace that 51515 now??
Your call. I run only OEM filters on my vehicles. When I bought my '09 Challenger at 15,000 miles it had a K&N oil filter on it. Before I took the car home I racked it and spun that off and put a Mopar SRT filter on it. The oil was fresh M1 0-40 so all id did was top that off.
jfz80
Cruisin’
I wouldnt feel the need to change anything..... think they are great filters. I have one on mine, and a spare on the shelf. I think it was a numbers game and they make millions of filters assembled by human hands and check 1/10 for depth and thread bore as I understood. Mistakes are bound to happen and its unfortunate the end result is costing the PO but mostly disappointing how they chose to handle it even though the reasoning is understandable.
- Thread starter
- #56
Man thanks for the input!! Super helpful and I really appreciate it!!
I still have the filter.
- Thread starter
- #57
I do agree with @jfz80 about them being great filters. Believe it or not less than a week later I bought one to do an oil change for my 60. Hardest oil filter purchase I ever made. This was however before I was told the filter was indeed defective and they would not be willing to help me out. I'll never buy another of their products.
pengfinn
dead set
...I've got a Wix sitting in the back of the truck right now waiting for oil-change'o'clock. What part# is the Toyota oil filter for the 3F-E?
Did you get the 10 - 90430-12031 factory drain plug gaskets included, a $11.13 value
Note - I did use one gasket if anyone counting
![IMG_8714[1].JPG](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg xmlns%3D'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg' width='1920' height='1280' viewBox%3D'0 0 1920 1280'%2F%3E "IMG_8714[1].JPG")
- Thread starter
- #60
To anyone that may ever concerned with oil filter failure on a 97 I would not run the 51515. I would use exactly what they call for and if you wanna use a WIX get the 51348. Or you can do like I'm going to do and never run anything but the Toyota filter again.
