AIR FILTER ELIMENT on a V-6 - Toyota Tundra Forums : Tundra Solutions Forum

coal miner · #1 (**permalink**) 08-07-2003, 09:17 AM

Coal Miner is still in the dark when to change the air filter on my 2000 V-6 Tundra. Its used in average conditions & never off road. I hear some truck talk at the ol coffee shop in the morning on how one guy went 100,000 on his air filter & still hasn't changed it. Thats surely got to effect the performance but this guy says truck runs great. Heck, I have a double eliment oil wet filter on my log splitter & clean it every season. Just threw that in there for the fun of it.

dsconstructs · #2 (**permalink**) 08-07-2003, 09:41 AM

Some say as it gets dirty, the better it works. Perhaps it does trap more minute particals that way, but I think that it does affect airflow also. I just changed mine at 20,000 miles. It was pretty dirty. Besides, it was a good excuse to go to the K&N drop in for more air flow.

PXLpainter · #3 (**permalink**) 10-21-2003, 06:24 AM

I have the TRD rechargable filter and I clean it about every 3 oil changes - more if I'm doing major offroading.

Took my wife's V6 Camry in for an oil change last week - just had a major 24K dealer service done about 3K ago - and it looked like the original friggin' filter! It was thrashed and wayyyy beyond usable! I kept it along with the dirty tranny oil sample and marching it back to that crappy service dept. at Power Toyota of Buena Park!

Jeff

H2O_MAN · #4 (**permalink**) 10-21-2003, 09:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coal miner

Coal Miner is still in the dark when to change the air filter on my 2000 V-6 Tundra. Its used in average conditions & never off road. I hear some truck talk at the ol coffee shop in the morning on how one guy went 100,000 on his air filter & still hasn't changed it. Thats surely got to effect the performance but this guy says truck runs great. Heck, I have a double eliment oil wet filter on my log splitter & clean it every season. Just threw that in there for the fun of it.

After much research, I concluded the OEM filter is the best you can buy.
I buy a few at a time and change it every 15-20K. I have over 177K problem free miles on my 3.4L V6...

KLS · #5 (**permalink**) 10-21-2003, 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dsconstructs

Some say as it gets dirty, the better it works. Perhaps it does trap more minute particals that way, but I think that it does affect airflow also. I just changed mine at 20,000 miles. It was pretty dirty. Besides, it was a good excuse to go to the K&N drop in for more air flow.

Not exactly. The dirtier a filter gets, the more the filtering holes get congested and the more dirt it'll trap. Also, as you say, flow is hindered, and some dirt does work it's way through a dirty filter...look at the backside of any dirty filter and you'll see dirt that is passing through.

No one can say how many miles someone else should go before changing their filter. It depends on how they drive and how dirty their conditions are. Some city air is certainly dirtier than some country air, and vice versa. High speed driving pulls much more air through the filter and consequently pulls in more dirt.

My experience and all the reading I've done suggests that a K&N filter element, or one of the K&N clones, is only beneficial for those in a really dirty environment where the cost of frequent filter replacements is a lot. Most report no noticeable power or fuel economy increase, and some report more dirt passing through the filter.

Ken

file014 · #6 (**permalink**) 10-21-2003, 10:51 AM

I just took my '94 tercel in for a new starter, and pepboys changed the air filter for me. They said is was clogged. I said they were full of crap, but it was only $6 so I didnt figure I was getting gouged. I dont plan on changing the one in my tundra for a good 5 years or 50K. Take it out, beat it with a stick, but it back in.

There was another thread that K&N lets more air through simply because it doesnt filter as well.

Brian M · #7 (**permalink**) 10-21-2003, 12:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by file014

I just took my '94 tercel in for a new starter, and pepboys changed the air filter for me. They said is was clogged. I said they were full of crap, but it was only $6 so I didnt figure I was getting gouged. I dont plan on changing the one in my tundra for a good 5 years or 50K. Take it out, beat it with a stick, but it back in.

There was another thread that K&N lets more air through simply because it doesnt filter as well.

Be careful with the beating it part. That sometimes shakes alot of it loose and it subsequently gets sucked in the intake.