When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Guys, could you please shed some light here for me?
Got this 2002 F-350 7.3 Regular cab, and want to change the air intake just to let if breath a little more freely...
The engine is stock and it has a 4" Magnaflow Pro (with muffler) system... It will be my daily town drive, (not a working truck in dusty condition) and eventually a little light off-road... Not planing any further mods (for now) on the engine, but I think that a better air cleaner set up would help the engine breath smoother in combination with the Magnaflow system.
I'm kind off staying away from the oiled filters based on what I read so far...and gravitating towards Ford AIS or Banks Ram-Air... What do you say?
Many thanks!
Another option depending on if you want to spend the money on one of the bigger names is just to get a Napa 6637. It's about $50 and is a-lot better than the stock setup. Looks a little different and some people don't like them for that but I like mine. Lots more air flow. Welcome to guzzle's 6637 Filter Restriction Sensor Web Page Couldn't find the installation of just the filter but bottom picture in that link shows you the end result.
My truck came with the afe washable paper filter I am very happy with it the 450 got the s&b set up dry filter with enclosed box it was interesting to see with the enclosed box only a small section of the filter became very dirty vs the afe the entirety filter. Already sounds like an exam question on one of my d exams lol Both do great I opted for the dry because the 450 can hit over 40 psi on boost at and the oil seems like just one more hassle like it was on my old Jeep.
The favorites when it comes to intakes for our trucks are the S&B and Ford AIS. Ford AIS filters exceptionally well but hits a ceiling for performance mods, so many chose to employ the S&B. The 6637 filter performs just as well but is an open element. No, no concern for hot air. That myth has been debunked time and time again despite still finding its way into these debates. However, the closed filter set ups do allow you to wash the engine bay with one less thing to bag to keep dry. That is what I am envious of and one day my envy will get the best of me when my truck decides to quit changing my 'truck fund' priorities. If choosing to save some money and going with the 6637 style filter, then Donaldson is where it's at. The B085011 is superior to the Napa and Wix paper filter parallels and last I checked was only $38 on Amazon. One step further and you can go with the better flowing, water resistant 6637 Donaldson Blue only to be had from Riff Raff. Clay sells a nice kit with intake tube, clamps, and a pre filter to extend the life of the filter. I pieced together my kit on Amazon because I wanted to see if I could bear the increased turbo noise for as cheap as possible to control the regret factor, which ended up being nothing more than a thought cloud in my truck-maintenance-log saga. I have now made my way over to the Donaldson Blue I have now.
The favorites when it comes to intakes for our trucks are the S&B and Ford AIS. Ford AIS filters exceptionally well but hits a ceiling for performance mods, so many chose to employ the S&B. The 6637 filter performs just as well but is an open element. No, no concern for hot air. That myth has been debunked time and time again despite still finding its way into these debates. However, the closed filter set ups do allow you to wash the engine bay with one less thing to bag to keep dry. That is what I am envious of and one day my envy will get the best of me when my truck decides to quit changing my 'truck fund' priorities. If choosing to save some money and going with the 6637 style filter, then Donaldson is where it's at. The B085011 is superior to the Napa and Wix paper filter parallels and last I checked was only $38 on Amazon. One step further and you can go with the better flowing, water resistant 6637 Donaldson Blue only to be had from Riff Raff. Clay sells a nice kit with intake tube, clamps, and a pre filter to extend the life of the filter. I pieced together my kit on Amazon because I wanted to see if I could bear the increased turbo noise for as cheap as possible to control the regret factor, which ended up being nothing more than a thought cloud in my truck-maintenance-log saga. I have now made my way over to the Donaldson Blue I have now.
That's a nice chunk of info, tks a lot!
And good point about the increased turbo noise, didn't think about it... so I take the the higher the flow, the louder the turbo noise too?
How does the Donaldson Blue performers regarding noise? Or any of the other options?
Many thanks
How does the Donaldson Blue performers regarding noise? Or any of the other options?
The 6637 style filters are all pretty equal in noise to my ear. The AFE big boost may be louder from videos I've watched but I've never ran that one personally. Under load, the turbo will scream more but it doesn't bother me like it does some.
Any open element filter is going to be noisy under the hood. I'm cool with whistle out the back, but that underhood noise is canine in nature - what lasts minutes to others seems like years to the cab occupants. The quietest and best filtration is by far is provided by the un-modified Ford AIS - this should have come with the truck originally, so I'd call it a factory upgrade. Everything other than the Ford AIS has a caveat here and there - generally involving reduced noise abatement, reduced filtration, reduced capacity, or any combination thereof. One of the absolute worst options is to leave the stock intake in there - it has way too many defects, a high failure rate, and doesn't breath like we want. If you stick with the stock turbo and injectors, I recommend the Ford AIS. If you have bigger plans that involve dollars and horses (like I did) - I went from the Ford AIS to the S&B without regrets, and a fellow member bought my used AIS.
The 6637 is an excellent filter and the price is hard to beat. The downside is that it is louder so it depends on how sensitive you are. Some members don't mind it at all, others it bothered enough to change to something quieter.
I did the 6637 filter for a while, the noise didn't bother me. I then went with an AFE filter, open element like the 6637 and now I have the Ford AIS set up. The AIS is a very quiet intake.
The 6637 is an excellent filter and the price is hard to beat. The downside is that it is louder so it depends on how sensitive you are. Some members don't mind it at all, others it bothered enough to change to something quieter.
I did the 6637 filter for a while, the noise didn't bother me. I then went with an AFE filter, open element like the 6637 and now I have the Ford AIS set up. The AIS is a very quiet intake.
Originally Posted by Tugly
Any open element filter is going to be noisy under the hood. I'm cool with whistle out the back, but that underhood noise is canine in nature - what lasts minutes to others seems like years to the cab occupants. The quietest and best filtration is by far is provided by the un-modified Ford AIS - this should have come with the truck originally, so I'd call it a factory upgrade. Everything other than the Ford AIS has a caveat here and there - generally involving reduced noise abatement, reduced filtration, reduced capacity, or any combination thereof. One of the absolute worst options is to leave the stock intake in there - it has way too many defects, a high failure rate, and doesn't breath like we want. If you stick with the stock turbo and injectors, I recommend the Ford AIS. If you have bigger plans that involve dollars and horses (like I did) - I went from the Ford AIS to the S&B without regrets, and a fellow member bought my used AIS.
Great, thank you all for the input. So far I feel more and more inclined to go for the ford AIS. Would it be correct to say that even though it has this great filtration capability, still offers better air flow than stock?
Also, don't really wanna play around with other stuff in the engine... quite happy with the exhaust and air cleaner upgrade. This is what I always do to my old tractor-ish Harley-Davidson, stick some higher flow pipes and air cleaner, and it's a runs smoother without breaking the bank or anything else.
Great, thank you all for the input. So far I feel more and more inclined to go for the ford AIS. Would it be correct to say that even though it has this great filtration capability, still offers better air flow than stock?
Yes it does.
Originally Posted by steelandspeed
Also, don't really wanna play around with other stuff in the engine... quite happy with the exhaust and air cleaner upgrade.
You say that now . My truck started out the same way 11 years ago and now it won't all fit in my signature.
I replaced the factory air filter system with AIS couple of years ago mainly because the original plastic box was damaged. It was a straight bolt on installation and no difference inside the cab noise as far as I can tell. I have not installed the additional foam sleeve to the fender inlet yet (no reason!).
The engine is all stock, with 4 inch exhaust / muffler and around 220,000 miles.
You say that now . My truck started out the same way 11 years ago and now it won't all fit in my signature.
LOL tks! Time will tell... and found myself today looking at gentle turbo upgrades... lol
Originally Posted by arto_wa
I replaced the factory air filter system with AIS couple of years ago mainly because the original plastic box was damaged. It was a straight bolt on installation and no difference inside the cab noise as far as I can tell. I have not installed the additional foam sleeve to the fender inlet yet (no reason!).
The engine is all stock, with 4 inch exhaust / muffler and around 220,000 miles.
Yeap, I'm 95% ready to invest on the AIS to be very honest... that's probably the way. Just wanna rule out any other possible good option for my kind of use... which will be mainly tarmac with little dust... So there will be no regrets thinking that I have bought the "wrong" ones... Will do some more digging on aFe Diesel Elite Momentum just to clear my mind... or not! lol
Here is one you don't hear much about. It's on my 99 which I purchased from my brother-in-law. He indicated it made a Hugh difference when pulling the 5th wheel. I like the open look on the filter but still seals to cold air intake. To be honest I personally would not of purchased this from their website as the pictures really don't do it justice. It fits in the engine compartment really nice. On my 97 I went with the 6637 filter, no regreats
03-12-2019, 12:03 PM
. My truck started out the same way 11 years ago and now it won't all fit in my signature. 
