Give me the straight DOPE on Air filters

[OilPatch197]

I was always taught that if you can see light thru the filter media, the filter does not need replacing. Now they say to replace them every 12,000 miles.

Can somone explain to me how dirty can a paper air filter get until it restricts airflow enough to cause engine performance to suffer?

What is a good guideline to tell if replacement of air filter is needed?

 

[Maverick]

If I hold it up to the sun and cant see light through the filter pleats, it gets replaced.

 

[97BlackBetty]

I replace mine when I can see dirt piling up inbetween the pleats. They are relativiely inexpensive and because I play in the dirt some times are worse than others. If I am not really paying attention though, I make sure to change it at the beginning of summer and the beginning of winter.

 

[Sasquatch_Ryda]

Yup, at work if i can't see light through the pleats when I hold it up to the lights in the shop, it gets changed. Or if its obviously covered in dirty or if you bang it on the tire and it lets off a rather large cloud of dirt and dust. If it doesn't need it when the scheduled maintenance says it does, I don't change it out.

 

[Bryan22]

it's just a few buck, when i ran paper elements i replaced them every oil change. some say it's over-kill but that's just me.

 

[north44]

^^^^ All good advice.

I have a friend who has an auto parts store, and it always amazes me how variable standards are when it comes to a "dirty" air filter.

I've seen some customers enter with filters dripping with dirt to ask for a replacement - others come in to buy a replacement and the old filter will barely have any trace of dirt.

It's kind of like how people have differing standards of when their vacuum cleaner bags are full and need replacing.

I change mine at least every 50,000 km/30,000 miles - it works for me - it used to be every 40,000 km/24,000 miles, but the filter barely got dirty in that distance.

Even now it's fairly clean when I change it (all mostly highway miles).

But, better more often, than not often enough.