Air Filter Location??

[CritiqueThisBus]

Hello All!

Dumb-as-a-Stump Bus owner here.

I have a 1998 Thomas Saf-T-Liner FE with a 1st Gen Cat 3126 engine. I've had the engine cover lifted and looking over the top of the engine and on the sides and I don't see the air filter housing. Am I looking in the wrong place?

Is it one of those crazy versions where the air filter is in a housing under neath the bus near the ground?

I've looked all over the googleverse and cannot find any pictures or videos of where this stupid thing should/would be located.

I've worked on cars and pick-ups for decades but these diesel buses are like trying to decipher Sanskrit. It took me 20 minutes to figure out where the darn oil dipstick was located.

Anyone got any pictures of their 1997-1998 Thomas FE with a 3126 so I can see where this thing is? Or at least point me in a possible correct direction?

[pkd1]

Originally Posted by CritiqueThisBus

Hello All!

Dumb-as-a-Stump Bus owner here.

I have a 1998 Thomas Saf-T-Liner FE with a 1st Gen Cat 3126 engine. I've had the engine cover lifted and looking over the top of the engine and on the sides and I don't see the air filter housing. Am I looking in the wrong place?

Is it one of those crazy versions where the air filter is in a housing under neath the bus near the ground?

I've looked all over the googleverse and cannot find any pictures or videos of where this stupid thing should/would be located.

I've worked on cars and pick-ups for decades but these diesel buses are like trying to decipher Sanskrit. It took me 20 minutes to figure out where the darn oil dipstick was located.

Anyone got any pictures of their 1997-1998 Thomas FE with a 3126 so I can see where this thing is? Or at least point me in a possible correct direction?

All I've got to share is the air filter on a 2003 Bluebird FE with a Cat 3126. No idea if it's similar for you, but it's that big canister between the entry stairs and the engine underneath. Hope this helps...good luck!

[EastCoastCB]

Originally Posted by CritiqueThisBus

Hello All!

Dumb-as-a-Stump Bus owner here.

I have a 1998 Thomas Saf-T-Liner FE with a 1st Gen Cat 3126 engine. I've had the engine cover lifted and looking over the top of the engine and on the sides and I don't see the air filter housing. Am I looking in the wrong place?

Is it one of those crazy versions where the air filter is in a housing under neath the bus near the ground?

I've looked all over the googleverse and cannot find any pictures or videos of where this stupid thing should/would be located.

I've worked on cars and pick-ups for decades but these diesel buses are like trying to decipher Sanskrit. It took me 20 minutes to figure out where the darn oil dipstick was located.

Anyone got any pictures of their 1997-1998 Thomas FE with a 3126 so I can see where this thing is? Or at least point me in a possible correct direction?

mine's a CE but look front passenger side. Find the intake, the turbo, and follow the tubing to wherever it ends up.

[CritiqueThisBus]

Originally Posted by pkd1

All I've got to share is the air filter on a 2003 Bluebird FE with a Cat 3126. No idea if it's similar for you, but it's that big canister between the entry stairs and the engine underneath. Hope this helps...good luck!

OK. I crawled underneath and BAM...just like in your picture.

Now..it took me the better part of an hour to wrestle the can and filter out of it's resting place.

Then I started doing online searches for a replacement and while I found a ton of listings for just the paper element, I found nothing for the entire metal housing and element.

So...I'm looking over the metal canister and does either end pry off or is it sealed and you have to get the entire unit? Why sell just the paper element if the canister can't be opened in order to replace just the filter?

If the whole thing has to be changed.....I'm kind of thinking to pry off the bottom, pull out the filter, design a bolt on bracket so I can open and close the bottom of the housing while it's up in the bus, then slap a new filter in and seal it back up.

Is this worth it or is there a source for these canister/filters I can still buy from?

I think some freightliners also used this same canister but I'm not 100% sure on that.

Dimensions are:

Body Length : 18-1/4"
Body Diameter 9"
Inlet Flange on Top: 1-1/4" long
The side outlet tube is in center of body:
6" in diameter opening
6" from bottom
6-1/4" from top

Attaching a couple of pictures for reference.

[Iceni John]

Racor's ECO series of air filters are sealed one-piece units without individualy-replaceable filter elements inside: when they need to be replaced, you buy a complete new unit. The ECO-BC is designed for external use: BC signifies Behind the Cab, while the ECO-LITE should be placed inside the engine bay, not outside. Racor's website lists all their different models and their ratings.

John

[CritiqueThisBus]

Originally Posted by Iceni John

Racor's ECO series of air filters are sealed one-piece units without individualy-replaceable filter elements inside: when they need to be replaced, you buy a complete new unit. The ECO-BC is designed for external use: BC signifies Behind the Cab, while the ECO-LITE should be placed inside the engine bay, not outside. Racor's website lists all their different models and their ratings.

John

I shot over to Racor and they do not have this part number listed any longer. They have several "newer" versions but the housing are different sized and wouldn't fit my application.
I found the Baldwin Filters site and they have one that looks like it could work but for $163

I did a google-ator search and found a site that listed this type and size of filter canister as being you'd in multiple Freightliner applications and 2 Thomas applications. But now I can't find that site again. I should of saved it or at least taken a screenshot when I was there.

It listed Baldwin/Parker, NAPA, Advance Auto, WIX and several other options for buying one of these filters. The hunt continues!!

[pkd1]

Originally Posted by CritiqueThisBus

I shot over to Racor and they do not have this part number listed any longer. They have several "newer" versions but the housing are different sized and wouldn't fit my application.
I found the Baldwin Filters site and they have one that looks like it could work but for $163

I did a google-ator search and found a site that listed this type and size of filter canister as being you'd in multiple Freightliner applications and 2 Thomas applications. But now I can't find that site again. I should of saved it or at least taken a screenshot when I was there.

It listed Baldwin/Parker, NAPA, Advance Auto, WIX and several other options for buying one of these filters. The hunt continues!!

Not endorsing anything here, but...I got filters for my 2003 Cat3126 from Fleetfilter.com and all is well at this point. The air filter is the complete canister (price is higher as of this morning!), and it was a wrestle to get out and in. A bit of soapy water on the boot helped with the install. Good luck.

From FleetFilter.com

Wix 46861 & Napa 6861 Air Filter
46861 $180.44

Wix 57701 & Napa 7701 Trans Filter
57701 $17.70

Wix 51791 & Napa 1791 Oil Filter
51791 $10.91

Wix 33626 & Napa 3626 Fuel Filter
33626 $12.87

Wix 33231 & Napa 3231 Fuel Filter
33231 $30.53

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[CritiqueThisBus]

Originally Posted by pkd1

Not endorsing anything here, but...I got filters for my 2003 Cat3126 from Fleetfilter.com and all is well at this point. The air filter is the complete canister (price is higher as of this morning!), and it was a wrestle to get out and in. A bit of soapy water on the boot helped with the install. Good luck.

From FleetFilter.com

Wix 46861 & Napa 6861 Air Filter
46861 $180.44

Wix 57701 & Napa 7701 Trans Filter
57701 $17.70

Wix 51791 & Napa 1791 Oil Filter
51791 $10.91

Wix 33626 & Napa 3626 Fuel Filter
33626 $12.87

Wix 33231 & Napa 3231 Fuel Filter
33231 $30.53

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Thanky Thanky for the info.
I tried to get the filter on amazon but every time I went to place the order the "Ship Time" changed out in to April.
I ended up finding a Filter at NAPA for 2xs the $$. It was in stock though and I got it same day.

So....just for reference,The Napa Gold Line of air filters for the 1998 Thomas FE with a 3126 1st Gen engine with Turbo is P/N FIL 6898 and was $310 all in.
That was painful but it had to be done due to the time crunch involved.
However I plan to buy a couple more at the lower price from other sources while they are still available and store them away. I also plan on modifying the old canister I pulled out of the bus and see about turning it in to a quick-change unit where I can just open the bottom, drop out the paper element, replace it and button the can back up. This way I spend $40 instead of $180 to $300+. And not spend an hour wrestling with the darn thing.

Including pictures for anyone else who gets in to this situation so you at least have some fresh reference points.

Thank you all for the help. I love this group. Everyone knows their stuff!!

[mmoore6856]

with some welding skills you can cut the old housing open and convert it to replace just the element and save major bucks

[Booyah45828]

The capacity of those elements is pretty big. We only change them when the filter minder tells us to, and it's several years before they do usually.

I'm not sure if the hassle and fab work of making this a quick replace system would be worth it compared to the number of times it will need changed.

*This is on FE buses, RE buses run in dirtier air and are changed more often. If you're out west on dirt/gravel roads, an RE bus might need a new filter yearly. AN fe might not need it as often, but road surface and environment plays a big deal too.

[CritiqueThisBus]

Originally Posted by Booyah45828

The capacity of those elements is pretty big. We only change them when the filter minder tells us to, and it's several years before they do usually.

I'm not sure if the hassle and fab work of making this a quick replace system would be worth it compared to the number of times it will need changed.

*This is on FE buses, RE buses run in dirtier air and are changed more often. If you're out west on dirt/gravel roads, an RE bus might need a new filter yearly. AN fe might not need it as often, but road surface and environment plays a big deal too.

The filter housing had what looks like 2008 as the manufacture date on the sticker and when I pulled it down out of the bus and looked inside...it had a bunch of dirt and a dead bush in there. The guy or guys who owned this before me were not very mindful of the maintenance. At least not of the air filter anyways.

And given the cost and "pain in the butt" factor of changing it out...I'm guessing they didn't look too hard at it when it was PM time.

I'm hoping to see a bit of difference when I'm on the road next month. It was acting sluggish until the Turbo kicked in. I'm hoping this will help pep it up a bit and use less fuel too.