They were always small, but today I got a new one. Wow! They're tiny, almost like a toy or something. I guess it's the surface area inside that counts. I'm curious if cars from the factory get the same filter. I think the p/n# is the same as it's always been...

 

Because of the relatively small amount of oil the VQ uses in the maxima, drain intervals need to be short. Because they are so short, the filters don't have to be able to trap as much crap, ergo, the smaller filter.

 

I don't think they are small to me. They look pretty typical size filter. Yes, the oil drain is pretty short, only like four quarts of it.