Thanks for saving me at least a couple dollars.

[Deamos]

Took my Sorento in for an oil change and to get one or two minor concerns checked.

As it is up around 15k miles the dealership decided to do a "multipoint checkup" which turned into the service writer bringing my air filter out because it was "dirty."

I asked if something had changed, if the filters were no longer good for 30k like the manual said. Of course he said no and I told him to just leave it and I would have it swapped at the appropriate time.

Anyway there's a reasonable chance that before I started reading this forum regularly I might have had them swap the filter just because it definitely did look dirty. At least I know the filter is doing its job.

So knowledge gained here saved me at least a few dollars today.

 

[crazyoildude]

Yup the stealers love to rip you off there are a few that are honest but very very few.

 

[JimPghPA]

Now days, the electronics keeps the air to fuel ratio what it should be ALL the time. So even if the filter reached a point where it caused some restriction, the electronics would still keep the air to fuel ratio exactly what it should be. If your filter ever got too dirty the electronics probably would throw a code.

That said, there are some areas in this country where there is soooo much dirt in the air that an air filter can be seriously clogged in a short time.

I once took a car to a strip mining town to service the electronics on a remote controlled locomotive that was used at one of the mines. (BTW, that remote control system had many safety checks to insure that the signal controlling that much power (actually they had two locomotives both connected to run as one with twice the power) was legitimate). I arrived the previous evening, serviced the locomotive the next day and left to drive back home. There air in that town was literally brown. And I knew that my air cleaner had to be shot. I stopped at the first gas station that was far enough away from that strip mine town to have clear air, and bough a new air filter. Before installing it, I scooped the dirt out of the air cleaner by hand, and then use a whole role of paper towels to clean the air cleaner before putting the new air filter in. That gas station must of sold a ton of air filters, with that town ruining filters in literally one day.

 

[JHZR2]

^what town?

Sounds like it must have been an unhealthy place to exist! People must have had cement in their lungs!

 

[Chris142]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
^what town?

Sounds like it must have been an unhealthy place to exist! People must have had cement in their lungs!
silocosis. However you spell it. Was common in underground mining before osha made things safer.

 

[JimPghPA]

The air was brown from brown dirt that was constantly being thrown up buy the tires of the trucks that were winding up and down the dirt roads of the mountains all the time.

I think the town I stayed in was Eagan Tennessee. It was 1980 so that was a few years ago. If you bring up Google earth and zoom in on the area of Tennessee just below Virginia and Kentucky and then do a search for strip mine it actually will come up.

What I remember most was, about a block from the small apartment there was a small Dairy Queen or Ice Cream shop where the girls were pretty. And as it was about a decade before cell phones, I brought along a base CB radio with single side band and the simple T wire antenna I rigged up worked good.

The roads where the trucks were literally rig-zagging up and down the mountains could be seen in the distance. And while those roads were dry enough for those trucks to throw dirt into the air, when I got close to the strip mine there were mud holes that almost got me stuck. The owner of the strip mine showed up via helicopter to ask it I got the remote control working. I was in the office still wearing the belt box remote transmitter, the locomotives were sitting down hill from the office with the engines still running, and I pushed the horn button that made the horns on the locomotives blast, to show him that the remote was working (was not going to move it with it being out of site while I was in the office).

 

[solorexpy]

I had a stealer tell my wife that she HAD to install a mopar filter or her warranty would be voided. Not knowing any better, she had them install the filter. Of course, they charged $23 to do so. I thought it was a rip off. Once she told me about the ordeal, I clued her in to the Magnusson-Moss Act. She called them out on it and they basically admitted no wrong doing but the mgr said they should not have told her what they did about the mopar filter. Found out afterward that the filter cost $26 at AutoZone!

 

[Jim Allen]

Good story and a useful lesson. Thanks.

 

[Deamos]

Originally Posted By: crazyoildude
Yup the stealers love to rip you off there are a few that are honest but very very few.


They're largely honest, but that particular tactic did sour me on them a little. Ah well, at least the guy didn't try to pressure me into it.

 

[Deamos]

Originally Posted By: solorexpy
I had a stealer tell my wife that she HAD to install a mopar filter or her warranty would be voided. Not knowing any better, she had them install the filter. Of course, they charged $23 to do so. I thought it was a rip off. Once she told me about the ordeal, I clued her in to the Magnusson-Moss Act. She called them out on it and they basically admitted no wrong doing but the mgr said they should not have told her what they did about the mopar filter. Found out afterward that the filter cost $26 at AutoZone!


Wow that's an expensive filter.

I didn't even ask what they wanted for the filter replacement though I'll likely have them take care of it in the future, Kia OEM filters seem to be high quality. The options on amazon are generally around $12.

 

[Deamos]

Originally Posted By: JimPghPA
The air was brown from brown dirt that was constantly being thrown up buy the tires of the trucks that were winding up and down the dirt roads of the mountains all the time.



Interesting tale, thanks for sharing. I think I'm glad I've never put any of the vehicles I've owned through that kind of torture.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Jim Allen
Good story and a useful lesson. Thanks.


+1 good stuff!