Here I am

Air filters

Attention: TDR Forum Junkies
To the point: Click this link and check out the Front Page News story(ies) where we are tracking the introduction of the 2025 Ram HD trucks.

Thanks, TDR Staff

Old School Cleaning of Carbon From Inside Cylinder

Jasper Transmissions

I've using a NAPA FIL 9946 which is the 4 inch made by Wix. They also list a 9946FR and both are Gold filters, no description as to what is different, other than the price...... OK the Wix number is 49946 and the FR stands for FLAME RETARDANT, and it costs $6 more at NAPA than the non-FR filter.

Charles
 
I just bought some stuff at NAPA yesterday, less and less impressed with NAPA as time goes on. The wire strippers wouldn't strip wire....cheapest Chinese crap ever. Away from home working on SIL jeep wipers. 10 or 15 years ago it seemed like NAPA generally had better quality stuff than the cheapo parts stores, maybe that was just bias, IDK. Not anymore.
 
I just bought some stuff at NAPA yesterday, less and less impressed with NAPA as time goes on. The wire strippers wouldn't strip wire....cheapest Chinese crap ever. Away from home working on SIL jeep wipers. 10 or 15 years ago it seemed like NAPA generally had better quality stuff than the cheapo parts stores, maybe that was just bias, IDK. Not anymore.

That’s the NAPA impression I got 20-25 years ago. I tend to avoid NAPA.
 
When I bought the 04 it had the Banks Ram air intake on it. Banks wants $140 for a replacement filter, I took the box top off and attached a AH114 to the hose and placed it in the box. No way I would pay that for a paper filter
 
Mine does, thin layer of foam filter media glued to the bottom. Box had "WIX Racing Filters" on it and just the 49946 number. Orange seal around the top like my last Mopar filter from Genos. The Mopar filter looked similar with the orange seal and yellow or maybe golden color filter media, no foam though and a good bit more money. I have no idea if the foam is good or bad, it is dry, can't do much.
 
My favorite is the WIX 49946, well made thick filter and it has the foam on the bottom. About $24 online.
NapaGold 9946 is the same as the WIX 49946.
I think NAPA still carries good stuff, but they have different levels of quality.
 
The black and white Fleet Guard filter I had a couple years ago was lighter and had more flex. It was thick like the Wix, just not as hefty. I hated those original thin filters, they plugged up quick. Maybe it was the white color but the top of the filter turned grey with dirt. The yellow Mopar and Wix ones stayed bright and didn't show any dirt on top while the bottoms were pretty dirty. I pull mine often and look at the intake for signs of dust. I had an oiled type filter from AFE, it didn't stay in my truck long. I run lots of dirt roads so I go through air filters.
 
NAPA has given WIX the boot as a filter supplier, and now has contracts with Donaldson and others for filters, so what you buy may not be what you think it is.

I just went to O'Reilly's and got a couple of WIX 57620XP which are designed for synthetic oils, and a WIX 48846 air filter. Cheaper than NAPA would have been. I was buying my NAPA filters during the fall filter sale, and stocking up for all of my vehicles, so I guess I won't be doing that again.

Charles
 
NAPA has given WIX the boot as a filter supplier, and now has contracts with Donaldson and others for filters, so what you buy may not be what you think it is.

I just went to O'Reilly's and got a couple of WIX 57620XP which are designed for synthetic oils, and a WIX 48846 air filter. Cheaper than NAPA would have been. I was buying my NAPA filters during the fall filter sale, and stocking up for all of my vehicles, so I guess I won't be doing that again.

Charles

Thanks for the heads up.
 
NAPA has given WIX the boot as a filter supplier, and now has contracts with Donaldson and others for filters, so what you buy may not be what you think it is.

I just went to O'Reilly's and got a couple of WIX 57620XP which are designed for synthetic oils, and a WIX 48846 air filter. Cheaper than NAPA would have been. I was buying my NAPA filters during the fall filter sale, and stocking up for all of my vehicles, so I guess I won't be doing that again.

Charles
Any idea why NAPA gave Wix the boot? Could it be NAPA was concerned with their quality diminishing?
 
Back
Top