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Just wondering if anyone has researched improved oil and air filters for this car.
I am led to believe that Toyota's filters are already pretty good, but I am sure that - as fellow owners of cars that go far beyond just good enough - you can appreciate the desire to upgrade or have the best.
The stock oil filter in this car, at least between 2013 and 2015, is the 04152-YZZA2 (RWD) or the 04152-YZZA5 (AWD). The 2016s, as I understand, move to the smaller YZZA1 filter used in most 2GR applications.
It's a bit hard to find high end aftermarket filters in this size, but Toyota does have a TRD filter, the PTR43-00079, which replaces the YZZA5 and that is constructed with metal end caps, a metal centre tube, and synthetic media that is supposed to be 98% efficient at 20 microns. (As opposed to a small plastic end cap, no centre tube, and cellulose media of unknown efficiency.) For those who care, the TRD filter is made in the USA by Champion Labs and is supposedly quite similar to the Royal Purple filters by the same. The OEM filter, by contrast, is Thai and, I believe, Denso. I have a few on order now, actually.
The stock air filter is the 17801-31170. From the looks of it, this is a very good paper filter also made by Denso, possibly in Japan, with a very high pleat count and a lot of media. I was also able to determine that there are replacement filters by aFe, AEM, and K&N as well as your usual Wix, Fram and Purolator.
I would be very interested to know if anyone has tested an aftermarket air filter in this car, particularly the AEM Dry Flow 28-20452 or aFe Pro Dry S 31-10261, both of which have synthetic filter material, to determine whether they might be any benefit in terms of filtration efficacy relative to stock.
If anyone else knows of good aftermarket filters for this car, or has some perspective on why OEM Toyota filters might be the best, I would love to hear it. Even if finding the best parts to use might be pointless, I think it's part of the fun of owning a great car.
I wouldn't expect too much in the way of gains either; a filter is considered clogged at something like 10" H2O restriction, which translates to 0.36 psi or 0.0246 atmosphere. In other words, if a filter is lowering air pressure by 0.25% on a naturally aspirated engine, it's clogged.
On our car, the difference between a totally clogged air filter and no air filter at all would presumably be less than one horsepower at WOT (if it ran stoichiometric). The air filter is probably the least restrictive part of the entire intake system.
What I *would* be very interested in seeing would be:
1) How well does the filter fit into the airbox, compared to stock?
2) Does an AEM Prodry do a better job of separating air and dirt than the cellulose stock filter?
If it does work better as a filter, I would be very interested in buying one.
I wouldn't expect too much in the way of gains either; a filter is considered clogged at something like 10" H2O restriction, which translates to 0.36 psi or 0.0246 atmosphere. In other words, if a filter is lowering air pressure by 0.25% on a naturally aspirated engine, it's clogged.
On our car, the difference between a totally clogged air filter and no air filter at all would presumably be less than one horsepower at WOT (if it ran stoichiometric). The air filter is probably the least restrictive part of the entire intake system.
What I *would* be very interested in seeing would be:
1) How well does the filter fit into the airbox, compared to stock?
2) Does an AEM Prodry do a better job of separating air and dirt than the cellulose stock filter?
If it does work better as a filter, I would be very interested in buying one.
I'll take a side-by-sides of the stock versus AEM later today. Right now, I'm looking for any DIY engine air filter instructions on this forum. Should be an easy job, but looks like there are few plastic pieces to pop in order to get at the airbox. I haven't seen any DIY instructions, yet. Please link me to them if you find them. If no one else has done the DIY, it should be easy enough for me to take some photos of the process.
Last edited by Runamok81; Jun 25, 2016 at 09:17 AM.
Anyone know of a way to pop these push clips without breaking them? A few of mine were loose, and as I popped the others, they seemed prone to breakage. They are a cheap to replace, but would like to not have to.
Unclip the four sliver tabs around the air box. Life the lid and take the OEM filter out.
AEM Vs. OEM
Fits perfectly. To tidy up, reverse the process. Four latches on the airbox. Four push pin clips for the plastic engine bay piece.
The filter above is washable and re-usable. Butt dyno confirms the +/- 3HP gain. Amazing!
I like how the AEM has a defined housing, rather than the OEM filter. Amazing how many pleats the Denso product has - looked like 77 or 78 pleats, compared to the AEM's 15. The oil filter is very much the same way - the synthetic TRD filter has considerably fewer, but thicker, pleats.
Better filters
