2013-2018 Ram 6.7L Cummins Filter Kit Buyer’s Guide (Fuel, Oil, Air)

The $36 Filter That Sat in My Driveway for Four Days

The $36 filter set arrived on a Thursday. Four days later my truck was still on jack stands in the driveway, and I was on the phone with a returns desk explaining that a water separator with the wrong thread pitch isn’t a filter, it’s a paperweight.

The problem wasn’t the fuel element. The element dropped in fine. The problem was the housing base — the part that has to accept the factory water-in-fuel sensor and the drain bowl off the truck. The threads were close. Close enough that I got it started by hand and thought I had it. Then it bound up about three turns in, and I stopped, because I know what happens when you keep going with a sensor body that threads into aluminum.

I got my money back. What I didn’t get back was the weekend, or the second round of diesel on the driveway.

That’s the whole lesson of this kit on a 2013-2018 Cummins. It isn’t a filter. It’s two filters, a third filter, and a fourth, in three different places, and each one has exactly one way to be wrong.

Why This Truck Needs Four Filters in Three Categories

The 2013-2018 6.7L Cummins in your Ram 2500, 3500, 4500, or 5500 runs a Bosch CP3 high-pressure fuel pump feeding a common-rail system. Four separate filters stand between the outside world and that system, and they don’t run on the same clock:

Filter	Location	Job	Interval
Chassis water separator (68197867AA)	Frame rail, under the truck	Bulk water and sediment	15,000 miles
Engine-bay cartridge (68157291AA)	Top of the engine	Fine particulate, 3 micron	15,000 miles
Oil filter (5083285AA)	Under the truck	Soot, wear metals, sludge	7,500 miles
Engine air filter (53034051AB)	Passenger-side airbox	Dust and silt before the turbo	30,000 miles

Two of the four are fuel filters, in two different places, doing two different jobs. That’s the first thing people get wrong: they buy “the fuel filter,” fit it, and drive away with half the fuel system still running on a loaded element. The chassis separator is the coarse stage and the water trap. The engine-bay cartridge is the fine stage. Skipping either one means the CP3 is drinking unfiltered fuel at some point in the chain.

The 30,000-mile number is where this particular bundle earns its keep. On a 7,500-mile oil change schedule, the air filter lands on every fourth service and the dual fuel filters on every second. Every fourth service, all four fall due at once. That’s the interval this kit exists for.

What’s Actually Inside the Four Filters

The engine-bay cartridge is the one that matters most, and it’s the one budget kits fake. The Mopar 68157291AA carries a synthetic inner layer (NanoNet) rated down to 3 microns behind the pleated outer media. That inner layer is why the engine-mounted housing exists at all. On a CP3 truck the pump itself is genuinely tough — that’s why these trucks hold their value — but toughness isn’t immunity to water and 5-micron grit, and the fuel filters are the only barrier in the system.

The chassis separator does the job the engine cartridge can’t: it strips water. Rated around 4 microns with roughly 98% water separation efficiency, it’s a spin-on canister on the frame rail, and its base is precision-threaded so the factory water-in-fuel sensor and drain bowl come off the old unit and thread straight onto the new one. Those two parts are reusable — the sensor and the bowl — and they’re the reason a generic canister that “fits 2007-2024” is a gamble. The thread has to match, or you don’t have a filter, you have a leak.

The oil filter (5083285AA) is a full steel canister with a pre-installed sealing gasket rather than a loose one in the box. That’s not a marketing detail — a pre-seated gasket can’t be dropped, kinked, or forgotten, and forgetting the gasket is the single most common cause of an oil leak after a driveway service. Inside, it’s a synthetic-blend medium sized for the soot volume these engines produce, with a calibrated bypass valve. Budget filters get that valve calibration wrong more often than any other spec.

The air filter (53034051AB) is the one with a structural job. Deep-pleat panel element, metal mesh backing, rigid stabilizer bars. Under sustained boost, intake vacuum pulls hard on the element; a paper filter without that backing can distort and let unfiltered air slip past at the pleat edges and seal. The sealing border is the other half — a perfect filter with a hardened, flattened gasket leaks exactly as badly as a dirty one, and it leaks into your turbo.

What You Actually Pay — Live Price Comparison

Pricing pulled from the channels owners actually buy from. Verified September 2026.

Channel	What’s in the box	Price	The catch
TruckTok 4-Filter Kit	Chassis separator + engine cartridge + oil + air	$123.30	One box, matched OEM spec, one checkout
Doc’s Diesel Combo Kit 2013-2018	Same four filters	$167-168	$44 more than this kit
Doc’s Diesel Maintenance Kit 2013-2018	Same four part numbers	$192-194	Highest aftermarket price of the group
Mopar OEM assembled (Diesel Filters Online)	Dual-fuel kit $119.95 + oil ~$12 + air ~$35	~$167	Three separate orders
Mopar/Racor dual-fuel kit + oil	$137.50, plus air at ~$35	~$172	Still needs the air filter bought separately
Amazon Mopar OEM fuel/water set (Jamlyn-Supply)	Both fuel filters only	$121.35	No oil filter, no air filter
Amazon white-label 3-filter (CARMOCAR and similar)	Both fuel filters + oil	$36.99	No air filter, no published third-party specs
Amazon Doc’s Diesel 4-filter (with cabin)	Fuel + oil + air + cabin	$131.99	Adds a cabin filter this kit doesn’t cover
Mopar dealer, fuel filters only	Both fuel filters plus labor	$300-700	Quoted locally, not published — market-dependent
Amazon, Mopar brand, fuel filters only	Both fuel filters	$85	One owner’s purchase price; listings move around

Two observations worth making.

First, the honest aftermarket comparison is the Doc’s Combo Kit at $167-168, because it’s the same four filters in one box. Against that, this kit is roughly $44 less — about 26% — with the same filter count and the same kind of third-party ratings behind the media.

Second, the $36.99 Amazon bundle looks like a $86 saving and isn’t. That kit covers the two fuel filters and the oil filter, and stops there. Add an air filter and you’re at roughly $65-75, you’ve ordered from two sellers, and nobody in the chain has published a water-separation or micron figure you can check. On a CP3 truck the pump will tolerate more of that than a CP4 would — that’s real, and it’s why these trucks are popular. It’s just not the same thing as a filter with a spec sheet.

What to Look For When Buying

2013–2018 vs 2019–2024 Year Cutoff

The 2013–2018 6.7L Cummins uses the spin-on 68197867AA chassis filter, whereas 2019+ trucks switch to the **68436631AA** bottom-loading cartridge element. They are completely non-interchangeable.

WIF Sensor & Drain Bowl Thread Precision

Ensure the chassis canister base is precision-threaded to accept the factory reusable Water-In-Fuel (WIF) sensor and drain bowl without cross-threading or leaking.

Verification of Dual Fuel Filters

A complete fuel service for 2013–2018 Ram trucks requires BOTH the rear chassis separator and the engine-bay cartridge. Beware of partial kits shipping only one element.

Air Filter Structural Backing & Perimeter Gasket

Check for a rigid stabilizer backing (metal mesh or heavy polymer) and a tacky perimeter gasket to prevent pleat collapse and unmetered dust bypass under high turbo boost.

Genuine Heavy-Gauge Steel Oil Canister

The 5083285AA oil filter must feature a heavy-gauge steel housing with a pre-seated gasket and calibrated bypass valve to handle heavy 6.7L Cummins EGR soot loading.

Installation: Four Filters, Three Categories

Do the oil change first — you’re already under the truck, and the oil has to drain anyway. Then the chassis separator while you’re still down there, the engine-bay cartridge last (it’s the one that leaves you priming), and the air filter whenever you want, because it takes five minutes.

Step 1: Chassis fuel/water separator (frame rail)

Do this with the exhaust cold. The separator is under the truck in front of the rear differential, above the driveshaft, hung on a crossmember — and hot diesel exhaust will burn you through a sleeve, so if the truck just came in, let it sit.

Put a pan or a cut-down water bottle under the drain, then crack the drain valve open (about a quarter turn) and let the water and fuel run out before you touch the housing. Water sits at the bottom, so the first thing out of the valve is the part you actually want gone. A little leakage at this stage is normal; that’s the pressure coming off the housing. A short piece of 3/8-inch fuel line slipped over the drain nipple keeps the diesel headed for the pan instead of raining off the crossmember and onto the driveshaft.

There’s also a small plastic clip holding the assembly up against the frame — pop it loose. It frees the drain plug, keeps the housing away from the exhaust, and gives you room to reach in.

Then unplug the water-in-fuel sensor before you break the housing loose — otherwise you’re twisting a wire, not a filter. Spin the old canister off and set it down level. If it’s seized and there’s no room for a filter wrench, a C-clamp around the body will break it loose where a strap or cup wrench can’t get purchase; once it cracks free, the rest comes off by hand.

The box ships with two new O-rings — one for the filter base and one for the sensor. Fitting the canister and forgetting the second one is how people get a slow weep at the sensor.

Take the sensor out of the old base and clean it with used diesel. It’s plastic, and it’s reusable. A dedicated sensor socket is the safe way to break it loose, or a large pair of smooth-jaw channel locks applied carefully to the flats — smooth jaws matter, because a serrated jaw bites into plastic. The failure mode is a damaged or rounded sensor, and that’s a whole new assembly rather than a $10 tool. Peel the old ring off with a small flathead screwdriver, working it out from under the lip. Thread the sensor into the new base by hand until it’s snug; it doesn’t need to be cranked. Fit the new canister with the fresh base seal, seating the ring all the way around and checking that nothing is trapped under it, wipe the sealing face clean of grit, and spin the assembly on until it seats. Lubricate the gasket with clean oil if it’s dry. Hand-tight plus a nudge — this is a filter housing, not a lug nut.

Step 2: Oil filter (under the truck, with the drain)

Warm the engine, shut it off, let it sit ten minutes, then crack the drain plug — it’s a 3/8-inch square drive, so a ratchet with an extension goes straight into it with no socket required. Pull the oil filler cap off the top of the engine while it drains; it lets the oil run out noticeably faster. The sump holds three gallons (12 quarts), so bring a drain pan sized for it or you’ll be swapping pans mid-drain.

The oil filter lives on the passenger side of the block, reachable through a small opening in the fender well — you reach in and it’s right there. If it needs a wrench, fine, but filters installed by hand come off by hand. Before the new one goes on, check the mounting face for the old gasket — if it stayed glued to the block, remove it. Two gaskets stacked will leak and can back the filter off.

A filter plug — the threaded cap that screws into the top of the old filter — is worth owning on this truck. The filter comes out through that narrow fender opening, and the plug lets you carry it out without leaving a trail of oil down the fender. It doubles as a handle for lowering the new filter into place one-handed.

Lubricate the new gasket with fresh oil, pre-fill the filter (these hold more than you’d expect), spin it on by hand until it contacts, then three-quarters of a turn more. Hand-tight is the spec here — that’s what makes the next one come off without a wrench, and it’s why the filter plug matters more than an oil filter wrench does.

Step 3: Engine-Bay Fuel Filter Cartridge Replacement (68157291AA)

Attach Drain Hose — Slide a 1/2-inch ID hose over the drain nipple above the front differential and route it into a catch bucket to prevent fuel spilling onto the axle.

Relieve Pressure & Drain — Open the top pressure release valve a couple of turns counterclockwise using a Phillips screwdriver, then open the drain valve to bleed fuel into your pan. *(Crucial: Close the pressure valve before starting or the truck won't build fuel pressure).

Unscrew Cap — Use a 28mm 6-point shallow socket on a wobble extension to unscrew the composite cap.

Replace O-Rings & Seat Cartridge — Check the housing bore to ensure the old bottom packing ring didn't stay stuck. Install fresh O-rings on the new cartridge, lube with clean diesel fuel, press down until it snaps into place, and torque cap to 30.5 N·m (22 ft-lbs).

Key-ON Priming Sequence — Cycle key to RUN (or press Start twice without touching brake) for 20 seconds. Repeat 6 to 10 times to purge all trapped air before cranking.

Step 4: Engine air filter (five minutes)

The airbox is on the passenger side, and it’s the easiest filter in this kit. Count your fasteners — some lids take three screws with four slip-in tabs at the back, others take six fasteners plus a clamp bolt on the intake hose. The three-screw lid takes an 8mm socket (5/16 inch works too); a screwdriver will turn them, but a socket won’t slip and chew the heads. The screws don’t have to come out — loosen them and leave them sitting captive in the lid, and the whole lid lifts away and goes back on with the fasteners already in place. Pull the lid forward to release the rear tabs, lift it clear, and vacuum the housing out — there will be bugs, leaves, and grit in there, so don’t skip it.

The element has a soft rubber sealing edge, and that edge is the seal. Seat it flat, make sure the rubber isn’t folded or hardened, and set the airflow arrow pointing the same way as the original. When you refit the lid, engage the rear tabs first, then the screws — get the tabs wrong and the lid won’t sit flush no matter how hard you tighten it.

The book interval is 30,000 miles, but plenty of owners — anyone towing, running gravel roads, or living somewhere dusty — change it every 10,000 to 15,000 instead, and a fleet operator running these trucks on highway miles puts his at 15,000 to 20,000. Some owners simply do it with every oil change. It’s the cheapest filter in the set, and it’s the one with no dash warning, so a short interval here is cheap insurance.

While the lid is off, look at the intake boot below the airbox. The rubber on the underside dries out and splits with age, and a cracked boot feeds unfiltered air straight to the turbo — inspect it, and replace it if it’s stiff or crazed.

Step 5: Reset the oil and fuel monitors

Two monitors need clearing after this job, and neither one clears itself.

Oil life: put the truck in RUN without starting the engine and wait for the screen to settle. Scroll with the left-hand steering-wheel buttons to the Oil Life menu, press and hold the right button, scroll down to the confirmation, and press right again. It reads 100%.

Fuel filter life: scroll to the truck icon (Vehicle Info), arrow across until you reach Fuel Life, then hold the right arrow. It will ask whether you want to reset — select yes and hold the right arrow again. One quirk: it settles at 99%, not 100%. That’s normal; that monitor never quite reads full.

While you’re under there, rinse the areas where diesel spilled. A hose is enough. Diesel on the frame or the exhaust doesn’t evaporate the way spills of other fluids do, and the smell finds its way into the cab through the HVAC intake — which is the kind of thing that turns a clean service into a follow-up call.

Five Expensive Mistakes

Mistake #1: Buying a “fuel filter” when the truck has two

The chassis separator and the engine-bay cartridge are separate parts in separate locations. Buying one leaves half the system on a loaded element. If a listing doesn’t clearly state that both fuel filters are included, it probably doesn’t include both.

Mistake #2: Fitting a canister that won’t take the WIF sensor

The frame-rail housing threads onto the reusable water-in-fuel sensor and drain bowl. A canister with the wrong base thread looks right, installs partway, and then either leaks or refuses to seal. If the listing doesn’t say the base accepts the factory sensor, don’t assume it does.

Mistake #3: Ordering the 2019-2024 chassis filter

From 2019 the chassis filter becomes 68436631AA, a cartridge element in a permanent housing rather than a spin-on canister, and it loads from the bottom under a 28mm cap. The part numbers look similar, the listings overlap, and the two do not fit each other. Match the year range first.

Mistake #4: Reusing the separator seal

The seal that comes with the new canister is a one-time part. Reuse the old one and you get a slow weep you won’t notice until you smell diesel in the cab on a warm day — and by then it’s been weeping onto the frame rail for a month.

Mistake #5: Skipping the air filter because nothing told you to

There’s no warning light for a loaded air filter. You get rising EGTs under load, slower turbo response, and a slow drop in fuel economy — symptoms that read like an injector problem until someone opens the airbox. The air filter is the reason this bundle is four filters instead of three.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this kit fit my truck?

It fits the 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018 Ram 2500, 3500, 4500, and 5500 with the 6.7L Cummins turbo diesel. If you have a 2019 or newer, the chassis filter changed and you need the 68436631AA-based setup instead.

Which filters are in the kit?

Four: the chassis-mounted fuel/water separator (68197867AA), the engine-bay fuel cartridge (68157291AA), the oil filter (5083285AA), and the engine air filter (53034051AB). Three categories, two of them fuel.

What are the correct part numbers?

Chassis separator: 68197867AA / 68197867AB — also sold as MO-867 (cross-references FS20089, BF46031, P551833, PS11937, WF10112). Engine cartridge: 68157291AA / 68065608AA — also sold as MO-291 (cross-references FS53000, FS43255, MO291, PF9870, L6806F, FF1199). If you’d rather run Fleetguard than Mopar, the pair is FS53000 for the engine-bay cartridge and FS200089 for the rear water separator — that rear number does show up written both as FS200089 and FS20089 depending on the listing, so match it against your application rather than the digit count. Oil: 5083285AA (cross-references PF1070, B7181, LF16035, LF3972, PH3976A, P550909, 57620). Air: 53034051AB (cross-references CA10261, 46930, AF27684, PA4318, LAF8837).

Can I stretch the fuel filters past 15,000 miles?

Some owners do. One owner who ran his truck to 20,000 miles reported that the engine-bay cartridge still looked nearly new at 15,000, which is a real data point. It’s also one truck, on one fuel supply, in one climate. The book number is 15,000, the parts are inexpensive relative to what a fuel system costs, and severe duty — heavy towing, short trips, dirty or high-moisture fuel — pulls the number down rather than up. Plan around 15,000 and treat anything longer as a decision you’re making deliberately.

How do I know the Mopar filters I ordered are genuine?

Open the box before you fit anything. Genuine Mopar filter packaging includes the printed literature and the correct part number and markings on the element itself, and the box should contain the O-rings for that application. Re-boxed counterfeits usually get one of those wrong: no literature, a marking that doesn’t match the number you ordered, or a bag with no rings in it. It matters most on the oil filter, which is the most counterfeited part in this set.

When should I buy the four-filter kit instead of the three-filter kit?

When the air filter is actually due. It lines up with every fourth oil change — the 30,000-mile mark. If your air filter was changed recently and the fuel and oil filters are the ones that are up, the fuel-and-oil kit is the cheaper right answer for this interval.

How long does the whole job take?

Budget about 60 to 90 minutes. The oil change and the two fuel filters are the bulk of it; the air filter is five. Overlapping jobs — letting the chassis separator drain while the oil pan drains — is where the time comes back.

What tools do I need?

A socket set, a filter plug for the oil filter, an oil filter wrench or strap wrench for the spin-on canister, a 28mm six-point socket for the engine-bay cap, a drain pan sized for three gallons, hose and a bucket if you’re redirecting the under-hood drain, and a torque wrench for the fuel cap. No lift required.

What oil should I run?

12 quarts of 15W-40 brings a standard sump to full; 5W-40 is the common cold-weather choice. Confirm against your owner’s manual and your configuration before you buy.

Can I do the fuel filters one at a time?

You can, and some owners do — fitting and priming one, starting the truck, then doing the second. It shortens the prime and reduces the amount of air you’re chasing. Just don’t fit one and forget the other.

Why did my truck not start the first time after the fuel filter change?

Air in the system. Cycle the key to RUN without starting so the lift pump pushes diesel through, and repeat until the pump tone settles. A first crank that doesn’t fire is normal; keep cycling and it will catch. If it still won’t fire after several cycles, check two things: that the bleed valve on the engine-bay housing is fully closed (an open valve means the system never builds pressure), and that the fuse for the lift pump hasn’t blown.

Do I need the cabin filter too?

Not in this kit — this one covers fuel, oil, and air. The cabin filter (68406048AA) is a separate position and only matters if your particular cab was built with the slot. If you want everything in one box, the five-filter version adds it.

Does this kit include the CCV filter?

No, and that one catches people out. The crankcase ventilation filter is a separate service item — commonly quoted around 60,000 miles — and it’s one of the most-skipped parts on these trucks, because unlike the fuel and oil filters there’s no dash warning and no obvious symptom until there is. On the 6.7 Cummins it lives in the valve-cover assembly (Mopar 68002433AA / CV52001). It has nothing to do with fuel or oil filtration, but a clogged one raises crankcase pressure, and pressure finds the weakest seal to push oil past. If your truck is past 60,000 miles and you’ve never had it done, price it into the same service.

Is the cheap Amazon bundle a bad idea?

Not automatically. The $36.99 sets cover both fuel filters and the oil filter and will physically install. What they don’t do is publish third-party micron and water-separation ratings, and they leave the air filter out entirely. On a CP3 truck you have more margin than a CP4 truck would — but it’s still your fuel system absorbing the difference.

How often should I drain the chassis separator between filter changes?

Every oil change is a reasonable habit, and more often on a truck that sits, runs in freezing weather, or burns fuel with a lot of moisture in it. It takes a minute and a bottle, and it’s the cheapest thing you can do for the fuel system.

Get All Four Filters in One Box

If your 2013-2018 6.7L Cummins is coming up on the 30,000-mile mark — or the air filter is the one service item you’ve genuinely never done — this kit puts both fuel filters, the oil filter, and the air filter in one box, matched to the truck and ready for an afternoon in the driveway.

Get the 2013-2018 Ram 6.7L Cummins 4-Filter Kit

Want to see what other owners are running on these trucks? A few threads worth reading:

• 2013-2018 6.7L Ram Chassis Fuel/Water Separator — Replaces 68197867AA
• 2010-2024 6.7L Ram Engine Fuel Filter — Replaces 68157291AA
• 2007.5-2024 6.7L Ram Diesel Oil Filter — Replaces 5083285AA
• 2007.5-2024 6.7L Ram Diesel Air Filter — Replaces 53034051AB

Legal Disclaimer

This guide is for general informational purposes only and is not a substitute for your vehicle’s factory service manual or the advice of a qualified diesel technician. Always verify the correct part numbers for your specific model year, VIN, and configuration before purchasing or installing filters. Installation of any aftermarket or replacement part is performed at your own risk; the author and retailer assume no liability for damage, injury, or loss arising from the use of this information or the products referenced. Filter change intervals are manufacturer recommendations and should be adjusted for your driving conditions, towing load, and fuel quality.