A filter includes a filter element with an enlarged end cap at one end of a media ring with an elliptical flange set oblique or angled to the longitudinal axis of the element. The flange carries a sealing element, and is closely and sealingly received in a head casting of the filter to divide the head casting into inlet and outlet partitions. The end cap directs fluid from a transverse port in the housing into an axial flow path into the central cavity of the element, where the fluid flows radially outward through the media, and then out through an opposite transverse port in the head casting. The element can be removed when it is spent from the head casting after removal of an end closure.