Originally Posted by PWMDMD
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I don't think it all that much retooling or down time. Both types of filter are probably spun on by hand and maybe torqued by a single piece of equipment at the factory. Other than that it's changing the casting.
Of course, it's not as if they're respacing the cylinder bores. My point is that they're doing it at all. It would have been very easy for Toyota to simply sit back and keep making these engines the same way until the designs were retired. But they're actually going back to spin-ons, and incurring the cost of doing so, whatever it is. Preparing for the first OC on the Prius, I went to the local dealer asking for two filters. When I felt the boxes, they were heavy, as in, made of metal. I looked and sure enough, spin on. Smugly sure I should be expecting cartridges (like our Avalon has and earlier 2ZR engines have), I challenged the parts guy. He politely "set me straight," and sure enough, he was correct. Incidentally, I could tell he'd had this conversation with an unbelieving DIY guy or two before.
The real point, however, is that Toyota is not making this change "willy nilly." Obviously, a lot of people out "in the field" have been complaining -- enough that they decided to make the change. I think it's a good change and I'm very happy they did/are doing it.