'13 Cruze LS Air Filter Pics - A3145C

[99Saturn]

Changed the air filter for the first time on our Cruze today, 46K miles. Didn't expect to see the cotton or whatever it is square glued to the filter material. Guessing this is denser than normal material that is supposed to help catching smaller particles? I think without a filter gauge this is probably hard to say but, anyone seen evidence that this cover over the "traditional" filter material gets plugged faster?

Some pics for those interested.

 

[dishdude]

Doesn't look bad for 46k.

 

[KGMtech]

I've never seen that before! prefilter is extra cost, not something you'd expect on a Cruze as OEM. You could almost tear off the prefilter and go another 30k miles on the filter element.

 

[sciphi]

Looks the same as mine. About the same level of dirt from the ones I've replaced.

I think the felt-like material is a pre-filter to filter out the large chunks before they hit the main filter. Nothing like a bee or other small insect tearing a tiny hole through the paper when it could have been avoided. I keep it intact on my car.

 

[Donald]

No sure, but you would put the filter to catch coarse particles first then one to catch fine particles. Least the fine filter clogs with fine and coarse particles.

 

[aualtima3.5]

Surprised GM is stepping it up.

How has your cruze been treating you? I looked at them briefly, but went with a midsize instead.

 

[Gebo]

A little advice I learned the hard way from pre filters. I have an older honda lawn tractor. It had a pre filter. Every year I'd remove the pre filter and only replace it because the main filter looked PERFECT. Well, after a few years I noticed my engine was starting to misfire. Plugs would foul up. Replaced several things but nothing worked. Spent about $150. One day it hit me that may be the plugs were fouling up due to lack of air. I changed the main filter and surprise. It ran perfectly. I'm guessing the main filter got clogged with so much "microscopic" dirt that I ended up choking the engine. So what is the moral of this story? You cannot judge an air filter by its cover.

 

[Jimzz]

Originally Posted By: KGMtech
I've never seen that before! prefilter is extra cost, not something you'd expect on a Cruze as OEM. You could almost tear off the prefilter and go another 30k miles on the filter element.



Yea that was a trick many did on some European cars. Take the prefilter off and blow out the filter and run a little while longer.

I bet the filter could have gone longer as its a smaller engine for a large filter like that. Heck my old 1st gen CTS with a 3.6 had a smaller air filter than that.

 

[99Saturn]

Thanks all - Not really evident from my pictures but the pre-filter (didn't really think cotton square was the right name but it was the best I could think of ) is glued on with three beads of glue so there is no removing and replacing it, but they are relatively cheap.

Originally Posted By: aualtima3.5
How has your cruze been treating you? I looked at them briefly, but went with a midsize instead.


No complaints really, but I'm not that picky either, and don't drive the car much (I'm probably responsible for ~2,000 of those miles). This is the LS with the 1.8l (non-turbo) engine. Car's lifetime mpg average is a little over 37 mpg. Handles well with snows in the winter (Xi3's to be put back on soon - it if ever cools off here). Only issue has been a thermostat which was covered under warranty and normal maintenance.

 

[mattwithcats]

GM says this is a lifetime filter...

I changed my Dad's at 17K, and will change it again at 35K...

It was a pain to open the filter box...
Screws were cheap, soft metal...

Prefilter is to keep backfire out of the filter, I believe...

 

[99Saturn]

Originally Posted By: mattwithcats
GM says this is a lifetime filter...


My manual says change at 45K or every 4 years, whichever comes first. Not sure if that changed over time?

 

[BobFout]

VW has versions of their air filters with the fuzzy foam on the bottom. They're used in engines that don't have other ways of keeping snow and moisture from reaching the filter face.

 

[sciphi]

Originally Posted By: mattwithcats
GM says this is a lifetime filter...

I changed my Dad's at 17K, and will change it again at 35K...

It was a pain to open the filter box...
Screws were cheap, soft metal...

Prefilter is to keep backfire out of the filter, I believe...


It's not a lifetime filter. Every 45k miles is what is in my owners manual.

A good #2 Philips bit will take all the screws right out without issue. I've changed mine 3 times. The screws look fine.

 

[rrounds]

Originally Posted By: mattwithcats
GM says this is a lifetime filter...

I changed my Dad's at 17K, and will change it again at 35K...

It was a pain to open the filter box...
Screws were cheap, soft metal...

Prefilter is to keep backfire out of the filter, I believe...

How does a pre-filter keep a backfire away from the air filter?

ROD