New air filter evaluation - ProGuard 7

greiswig · **Posted:** Thu Apr 20, 2006 7:51 pm

Hi, all,

I recently got a ProGuard 7 filter for my CRD from Upscale Automotive. (See http://www.upscaleauto.com/ for more info on them). A friend of mine who has a Sprinter had recommended this shop to me. The Sprinter has a similar motor to the CRD, at least in terms of being a diesel and having small displacement. They have been thinking a lot about the CRD and how to optimize it the same way they've been working on Sprinters. Part of this work has been his encouraging words to AFE to make a ProGuard 7 filter available for the CRD.

Anyway, I have the stock exhaust except for a 2.5 AeroTurbine muffler. The engine has about 8,000 miles on it. The stock filter that was being replaced has been in there since new.

My first impression was that there was no noticable difference. In ordinary driving, I really didn't notice anything. Then, I was driving on a long, fairly steep grade and trying to pass other vehicles doing about 60MPH. The CRD favors torque over horsepower, so usually punching the go-pedal gets you a hasty revving of the engine without the hasty increase in acceleration associated with gas engines. This time was different...the engine revved up quickly, and there was noticably more power there. Clearly something was going on.

But, being a skeptic by nature, I figured that *any* new filter might have done this. I went to Bi-Mart and got a Fram replacement paper filter. Next day, I repeated the hill climb, being as careful as possible to keep the conditions similar. Nope...that's about what I remembered the old filter being like. Back in with the ProGuard 7, and the next day a repeat. Sure enough, my seat-of-pants impression is that there is a noticable amount more revving power available there.

You can find some more info on the ProGuard at http://www.afefilters.com/pg7.htm . It looks like a good compromise between flow and filtration to me.

greiswig · **Posted:** Mon May 01, 2006 4:10 pm

C'mon, folks...wasn't this the topic of a fair amount of discussion some time ago? The idea that someone should offer a performance air filter that actually *filters*? No interest at all?

oldnavy · **Posted:** Mon May 01, 2006 6:50 pm

Check out this link on airfilter testing and you will see why few here use anything but OEM filters. ISO Filter testing

Forgot to mention the AFE Proguard was in the test.

onthehunt · **Posted:** Mon May 01, 2006 7:42 pm

Was that AFE filter in the test a pro-guard seven? AFE makes several different types of air filters.

oldnavy · **Posted:** Mon May 01, 2006 7:52 pm

onthehunt wrote:

Was that AFE filter in the test a pro-guard seven? AFE makes several different types of air filters.

I don't know, look up AFE 73-10061 filter and see. I think the Proguard is about the same as a K&N filter.

onthehunt · **Posted:** Mon May 01, 2006 9:02 pm

I tried to look up that number but it doesn't match up with any AFE filter?? There is a 73-10060 and a 73-10062 but nothing on 73-10061. Typo???

oldnavy · **Posted:** Mon May 01, 2006 9:14 pm

onthehunt wrote:

I tried to look up that number but it doesn't match up with any AFE filter?? There is a 73-10060 and a 73-10062 but nothing on 73-10061. Typo???

Most likely, just look up which one is used in a Dynamax diesel.

longarm · **Posted:** Tue May 02, 2006 5:10 am

Hmmmmm, I don't know. I had a K&N conical filter in my last two trucks and they were way better than the paper filters I have used in the past. I think the oil based will breath better but the paper will filter stuff like ash and sand alot better.

Are filters the same for the CRD and the 3.7???

LibertyCRD · **Posted:** Tue May 02, 2006 7:29 am

Looks like a great filter...but how much are they? Are they more expensive than a K&N? Do I understand right that they have one specifically for the CRD?

oldnavy · **Posted:** Tue May 02, 2006 7:29 am

longarm wrote:

Hmmmmm, I don't know. I had a K&N conical filter in my last two trucks and they were way better than the paper filters I have used in the past. I think the oil based will breath better but the paper will filter stuff like ash and sand alot better.

Are filters the same for the CRD and the 3.7???

3.7 & 2.8L have same filter. Just remember nothing filters as well as stock and that was proven in the ISO test on the Chevy V8 Duramax diesel listed above.

The exception maybe the new nano tech filters, I hear great things about them fom mfg. Just haven't seen any report of it being put to the ISO testing required for any proper filtering claims.

longarm · **Posted:** Tue May 02, 2006 2:26 pm

Whats a nano tech filter and where can I obtain one from. I'm about to take a 1400 mile road trip in just over a week. I'd love to try one of these out and report on it.

oldnavy · **Posted:** Tue May 02, 2006 4:32 pm

longarm wrote:

Whats a nano tech filter and where can I obtain one from. I'm about to take a 1400 mile road trip in just over a week. I'd love to try one of these out and report on it.

I think AMSOIL has them, they are made by someone else I believe. Try Greg at Lubespecialist he was the one telling me about them a while back.

scubanw3 · **Posted:** Tue May 02, 2006 10:32 pm

The filter used in the Duramax test was a ProGuard 7 filter. The 73 prefix is the ProGuard designation. There is a fractional difference in filtration. The ProGuard is about .5%-.7% less than the factory media (depending on the report you look at). Even the factory filter isn’t 100% We have them available for $55.95 plus S/H and they fit both the 3.7L and the 2.8L. Our customers lov’um and swear by them. They are a good alternative to a cold air intake system. Good performance at very reasonable cost. The K&N runs about $47 but there are definitely differences between the products. The nano tech filters are supposed to be similar in filtration capabilities but as far as I know no reports yet. Hope this helps.

New air filter evaluation - ProGuard 7

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