Non-car kids and vehicle maintenance - air filter related

[Chumango]

We have a car (2008 Mazda 6, around 140K miles) that resides at kids house(s) in a distant state. We use it when we visit and put plenty of miles on it when we do. They handle registration and periodic oil changes (saves us time during our activity-packed visits), but they are busy with their own lives and kids.

Visiting again this week, and I checked fluid levels, etc., and was dismayed to find an undersized air filter in the housing. It had been there for about 5,200 miles. My guess is that they selected the wrong engine when looking up the air filter part, as there were two engines available that year. The filter part number matched the wrong engine. It is a little shorter than the correct filter, leaving a small open gap at the end. That gap was very evident to me when I opened the housing.

At first opportunity I put in a Carquest premium air filter, the best I could find around here. I also replaced the oil (it was due, about 5,200 miles on Dino oil from Jiffy). Put in was M1 EP HM and Fram Ultra to hopefully reduce the particulate count circulating through the engine and hopefully slow a valve cover gasket leak that showed up. I debated Valvoline R&P since this car has lived its life on conventional oil, but what I can see through the oil fill port is clean with no sludge or varnish, and as far as I can tell oil consumption is minimal.

I think a large percentage of the population knows next to nothing about cars and wouldn't even notice if the wrong part were installed, as was the case here. Cars just go, right? Take it to Jiffy Lube on occasion is all that is needed. At least they have done that.

 

[dubber09]

IMHO, engine air filter normally lasts 2 years, either do maintenance when you visit AND teach them what and why you do, or buy filter/s and leave the filter with the kids for them to replace it later if they know how.

 

[JTK]

I've involved my sons in our vehicle maintenance when I do it, and it just doesn't spark their interest. Two of them are driving age. My daughter actually has more interest and likes to keep track of maintenance intervals, asks questions and listens/feels for any issues.

I loved watching and being involved with anything car related when I was a kid. Different times. Less distractions.

 

[GMBoy]

I guess being I am a retired GM engineer....why would Mazda even waste time with 2 completely different air filter housings? They should have went with the same for both engines and would have eliminated part numbers (cost savings is substantial just with that) and would idiot proof the air filter replacement process.

 

[Chumango]

IMHO, engine air filter normally lasts 2 years, either do maintenance when you visit AND teach them what and why you do, or buy filter/s and leave the filter with the kids for them to replace it later if they know how.

I hadn't thought to do that, not recognizing the degree of lack of knowledge. I will do it differently in the future.

I guess being I am a retired GM engineer....why would Mazda even waste time with 2 completely different air filter housings? They should have went with the same for both engines and would have eliminated part numbers (cost savings is substantial just with that) and would idiot proof the air filter replacement process.

That was my thought, too. The two filters are very close to the same size, so it is clearly not an issue with flow area.

 

[eljefino]

That was my thought, too. The two filters are very close to the same size, so it is clearly not an issue with flow area.

It's an engineer thing. Air filter boxes are probably the last things to "fit" in a completed engine compartment CAD mockup. So they may pick an off the shelf filter with the right airflow and approximate right size and incorporate that into the intake design. But then they need "more room" and compromise that design, with a smaller filter. My 09 Camry 2.4 takes a slightly smaller filter than the 02 I used to have with the exact same engine. There's no obvious reason... typically I'd blame some new smog gizmo needing room but IDK.

Off topic, I saved a Mitsubishi Eclipse when I worked at a tire store. Kid owner wanted to use "his" filter with 20mm threads (as appropriate for the Mitsubishi engine) but his car had the Dodge Neon 2.0 motor with 3/4" (~19mm) threads instead. It's been documented that this exact mixup will thread on but blow off later, taking the engine with it. So I put a Fram PH16 on it.

 

[Oillover]

I loved watching and being involved with anything car related when I was a kid. Different times. Less distractions.

Aside from two channels on TV and household chores, the car was the most interesting thing to observe and tinker with!
Especially if it was a cool color.

 

[dubber09]

Aside from two channels on TV and household chores, the car was the most interesting thing to observe and tinker with!
Especially if it was a cool color.

There you go, and we were wondering about late decades electricity consumption hike

 

[Passport1]

The automotive apathy (noted in the opinions here) is because we saw a car like this;

Wikipedia

And they see a car like this;

Wolf gormet

 

[joekingcorvette]

When the farms decreased so did the mechanical aptitude for kids. Farmers and acreage owners always had tractors, cars, trucks, mowers, tillers, and all kinds of things that required mechanical knowledge and some basic maintenance. Even smaller towns had lots of kids that played on mini bikes, motorcycles, go carts etc. All that died many years ago and it's not really coming back to the extent it was.

 

[Number_35]

I guess being I am a retired GM engineer....why would Mazda even waste time with 2 completely different air filter housings? They should have went with the same for both engines and would have eliminated part numbers (cost savings is substantial just with that) and would idiot proof the air filter replacement process.

Mazda has used the same air filter on different engines in the past - our '90 MPV (2.6 inline-4) and '97 (3.0 V6) used the same AF.

 

[Jim K]

< these 2 are not non car kids.