Could this AF have gone longer?

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This air filter has been in for a very long time. Not sure--for whatever reason the last air filter change I recorded was at 80K for the Sienna. I do know it was not changed in the last 20-30K miles; I would have remembered that.

OK here are the top (first pic) and bottom (second pic) views of the filter.



The manual says to change it at 30K. Let's just say that this is 30K--could it have gone longer? I know that I have changed air filters that looked dirtier looking at the top side, than this top was. And when I did change them, it was at 15-20K, not 30K. So could this air filter gave gone longer?
 
Looks like it could have went longer. But I would hesitate to increase the frequency. My experience with air filters has been that you can't judge how dirty the next filter change will be based upon a previous one.

I change my filters at 30k miles. One will come out pretty dirty, making me question the PM schedule in the Owner's Manual. But then the next filter, also ran 30k miles, looks like I could have left it in for another 15k.

From studies and discussions that I have read here, except for the most severely neglected filter, a dirty air filter does not put an engine at risk. If anything, a dirty filter will filter out smaller particles than a new filter. Also, every time you open the air filter box, you take the risk of silicon (aka sand and dirt) to get past the filter when it is removed. So changing more frequently may not be the best option. I just stick with what most OEM's recommend, which is typically 30k miles.
 
Originally Posted By: danez_yoda
^^^^^ YUP.

Pass the shop vac over it and her back in.


I did that and the silicon reading went down 25%. And that was with a 10% longer oci so not bad(did back to back UOAS). Then I just changed the filter.
 
Originally Posted By: SatinSilver
Originally Posted By: danez_yoda
^^^^^ YUP.

Pass the shop vac over it and her back in.


I did that and the silicon reading went down 25%. And that was with a 10% longer oci so not bad(did back to back UOAS). Then I just changed the filter.

Did you ever do an UOA on the oil after the intake gasket change?
 
Not yet but will soon. I've changed the oil since then but have 3k on the current fill. IMG hasn't been done yet just have to order the parts. The mechanic has been selected and price agreed on.
 
Originally Posted By: SatinSilver
Not yet but will soon. I've changed the oil since then but have 3k on the current fill. IMG hasn't been done yet just have to order the parts. The mechanic has been selected and price agreed on.

Looking forward to it.
This job wasn't hard, at least on the Corolla. I used this DIY except I did not disconnect the coolant lines to the TB, I just moved the TB to the side.
 
Originally Posted By: dlundblad
Looks dirty to me.

You did good by changing it.


Looks more than dirty! It is 20K past needing to be changed.
 
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