Last year you could walk into a walmart, go to the oil section and find good diesel oil and in the case of the 7.3L powerstroke the FL-1995 filter on the shelf for $9.95. I change my own oil and filter in parking lots, at the campground etc. as we travel full time RVing across the US..

but for the past 6 months from store in CA, AZ, OR, WA etc.. I have yet to find a FL-1995 on the shelf,, there is a tag on the shelf but there is not box of filters.

SOOOO to day we are heading east on Hwy 2 from Michigan ND, great little town with camping and a 9 hole golf course as well, toward Grand Rapids MN.. along the way we spy a walmart and stop to get some supplies.. (for the past 3 months when we are close to a walmart I go in and check for filters with NO luck.)

Wll today was my day.. This walmart was in Grand Forks, home of the Grand Forks AFB so we drop in start shopping and i took a detour to the oil section and low and behold there was ONE filter on the shelf with on box but a tag with SKU .. I scoop it up and beam like a school boy ..

Not sure what is going on with getting filters.. I have gotten them through Amazon several times no problem.

has anyone else noticed this issue?? any idea if and or when it might get back to normalish??

 

I was actually surprised 2 weeks ago when my local Walmart didn't have any FL-1995's, but sadly I'm beginning to suspect that normal is becoming just a memory. Something we'll tell the grand-kids about, "I remember a time when I could order something on the inter-web and have it on my porch in 2 days or less." Gotta say I don't mind the social distancing though. I never liked people all that much to begin with.

 

Same deal around here, filters & oil

 

Here’s the cross reference for the Donaldson equivalent of the Motorcraft FL1995. You can find them on Amazon too, not as cheap but if you need a filter….


https://shop.donaldson.com/store/en-...rch?Ntt=FL1995

Amazon Link:

Amazon

Amazon

 

Shipped to the house for $9.42 and free shipping if you have prime

 

that works well if you house is in the same spot.. mine, in the past 14 days, has been in 3 spots.. Zurich, MT, Michigan ND and now near Winnie Dam and the headwaters of the Mississippi river.. Getting stuff shipped is still a pain in the azz even with locker, which are not in a lot of smaller cities.. or using USPS and general delivery.. been there done that..

 

Like you (not as much though), we travel long distance and I change the oil on our vehicles at rest stops, truck stops, relatives driveway, parts stores, etc... I changed all of our vehicles to a Fumoto drain valve and a K&N filter. The K&N is the white one with a nut welded on the end, not the black one.

This allows me to change the oil on all of our vehicles with no tools, or a single 1" wrench if the filter does not spin off by hand. These filters can be found at Wal-mart or any parts store. The prices at the parts stores are higher, but you can often use a coupon code or catch them on sale for ~20% off. The Fumoto drains slowly, but this gives me time to look over other critical areas of the vehicle like tires, other fluids, lights, etc...

I usually carry the oil for the change with me prior to leaving the house and bought it on sale or in a quantity that was cost effective. Based on what type of oil you are using, places like Wal-mart, TSC or parts stores may be your stop to check on inventory. Sometimes this doesn't work out and I need to pay a higher price at a remote location NAPA or small town AutoZoo.

1st world problems are great problems to have!

These are merely additional comments to give you something to ponder when you are driving across NE, IA or wherever that doesn't take much concentration.

Be safe out there sir and wave at us if you see us go by!

 

I haven't had an issue here in Texas.....yet. I keep hearing this mumbling about lack of oil and filters though. It's not looking good. Keep us posted!

 

Not being able to get the FL-1995 I have been using the Mobil 1 M1-601A.

 

I only use the FL-1995 because I bought a box of them years ago. Sold off some of the extra year before last. I don't like them. They start oozing at an early point for me and will not stop oozing/dripping until I replace them. "Too early" for me is due to running extended OCI's because of the large bypass filtration setup I've been using for over 10 years. I've not had the ooze issue when running either Mobil1 or CAT filters, but cannot justify the cost of throwing away the remaining FL-1995's I have. This next time, I'm going to skin the gasket surface with some anaerobic oil pan sealant to see if I can avoid the seepage. NOTE, the oozing/seepage does not start until after 5k miles.

 

I have been having the same problem here in Maryland. It is not just Walmart it is also auto zone and advanced auto that are sparse on them.

 

Would you happen to have the part number(s) for the cat filter(s)? I would like to switch to get maximum filtration, but I'm having some trouble finding the exact filter that would fit my 1997 7.3.

 

That white filter in the Amazon link is made in China. Are the red or orange filters also made in China, especially those from Walmart?

 

Oil Filter Cross Reference List (from another site - some info may be slightly outdated by now).

Oil:
Motorcraft FL-1995 (Ford part # F4TZ-6731-A)
Fleetguard LF-3630 (standard media), LF-3974 (Stratapore), LF-3374 (Stratapore--extended capacity)
Wix 51734
NAPA 1734
Baldwin B7039
AFE Proguard D2 44-LF004
K&N HP6001
Purolator Pure One PL44872, L44872
Fram ExtraGuard PH3786, ToughGuard TG3786, Wearever HD HPH3786FP
Carquest 85734
AC-Delco PF2174
Amsoil ASF99, SDF99
Donaldson P550371
John Deere TY24772
CAT 1R-0716 (made by Donaldson), IR-1808 (high efficiency) - see this thread>>> https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...it-a-7-3l.html

 

Note...the Mississippi doesn't start at the outflow of Winnibigoshish...it starts a bit south and west at Lake Itasca. The Mississippi does flow through Winnie and Little Winnie though.