With my philosphy of "If it Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It" I was wondering if I was replacing my air filter when it wasn't needed. So I thought of a test that might give me the answer.

So I made 3 runs each of about a mile up hill with the old filter, no filter and a new filter. I started at 50 MPH and ended up at about 57 MPH and also timed the runs with a stop watch.

Without listing all the data there was virtually no difference in either the top speed or the elapsed time of any of the conditions that would would show any difference.

Checking the mileage for the last 1200 miles, I got 30 MPG.

Conclusion: Air filter did not have to be replced. So I gave it a good blow job with an air hose nozzle and reinstalled the used air filter. I'll check it again in about 25,000 miles. The test car is rarely driven on dirt or dusty roads so your results may differ if you drive in dirty or dusty conditions.

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