Air Filters

[SmokinBBC]

Whats better and who uses which filters on a street performance engine?

The el cheapo 7 bucks wix/purolater/STP type filters.

The little more expensive el cheapo filters (15 to 20 bucks).

Or the K&N type pricey rechargeable filters.

 

[JeffP1167]

My friend tried K & N and fram filters on his 90 vette and he said the K & N felt a little better but the hassle of cleaning it and price verses a fram wasn't worth the minimal performance gain.

 

[Twin_Turbo]

Another prob w/ the oiled filters & maf cars is, if you clean them and oil them too liberal the oil will be sucked on the maf and cause issues.

 

[big2bird]

I like the K&N filter. And no, no oil on the carb top.:smash:

 

[clutchdust]

I'm a fan of the K&N type personally. Both have their merits, but the K&N is better at actually doing the job of filtering air.

 

[MYBAD79]

i've used a K&N filter for 7 years and 100000 miles on my 99 Z28, cleaned every 3000 miles, no issues whatsoever and after I sold the car I sold the filter and a few other parts and got a good chunk of the money I spent back.... can't complain

I have an Airaid filter on my C6 and clean it every 3000 or twice a year.... worth the money IMO

or you can just do what my buddy does: he wraps his stock style paper filter in cling wrap to keep all the dust and dirt off. works like a charm, his filter is 10 years (60000 miles) old and still as clean as it was on the day he bought it. :lol:

 

[DeeVeeEight]

I have used both. From a street performance point of view I like the K&N style for the supposed increased air flow and because it adds a little bling under the hood.

I tried the cling wrap technique but my plugs kepts fouling and performance was lacking.:smash:

 

[SmokinBBC]

I've been using the K&N since 2003...cleaned and recharged at least once a year. Probably only 10 to 12k miles on it.

I picked up an el cheapo a while back for a couple of bucks. The other day I was going to clean/recharge the k&n.....so while it is out drying, I pop in the el cheapo and take it for a ride.

You know what....I could swear that I could not tell the difference:lol:

It's a Drive Works filter. Probably made in China.

 

[JeffP1167]

I've been using the K&N since 2003...cleaned and recharged at least once a year. Probably only 10 to 12k miles on it.

I picked up an el cheapo a while back for a couple of bucks. The other day I was going to clean/recharge the k&n.....so while it is out drying, I pop in the el cheapo and take it for a ride.

You know what....I could swear that I could not tell the difference:lol:

It's a Drive Works filter. Probably made in China.

If K&N told you there really is no difference would you have spent 60.00 buck on there junk hahaha

Probably the only reason their tests improve is the car was driven a 100 miles to a track with a fram in and then run. then allowed to cool a hour so they could change there magic power and then run again when car was cool.

As far as does it filter better? Of course you think it will because that oil attracts dust and dirt LOL Naturally it will show more dirt then a fram. But is it filtering any better no.

Maybe I should stick a fram air cleaner sticker in my window hahaha

 

[clutchdust]

Interesting little tidbit here though. I took the Halltech (K&N copy) off the c5 and cleaned it a few weeks back. I didn't tighten the clamp enough and the filter came loose. Fortunately, it didn't actually fall out but the way I found the problem is the car started running odd. Apparently the computer looks for a certain value across the MAF and running without a filter gives it a value outside that window and the ECM doesn't really know what to do.

 

[SmokinBBC]

I've been using the K&N since 2003...cleaned and recharged at least once a year. Probably only 10 to 12k miles on it.

I picked up an el cheapo a while back for a couple of bucks. The other day I was going to clean/recharge the k&n.....so while it is out drying, I pop in the el cheapo and take it for a ride.

You know what....I could swear that I could not tell the difference:lol:

It's a Drive Works filter. Probably made in China.

If K&N told you there really is no difference would you have spent 60.00 buck on there junk hahaha

Probably the only reason their tests improve is the car was driven a 100 miles to a track with a fram in and then run. then allowed to cool a hour so they could change there magic power and then run again when car was cool.

As far as does it filter better? Of course you think it will because that oil attracts dust and dirt LOL Naturally it will show more dirt then a fram. But is it filtering any better no.

Maybe I should stick a fram air cleaner sticker in my window hahaha

Not sure that it is junk. It is definitely better made than the DW.

Now this doesn't make sense:

"Naturally it will show more dirt then a fram. But is it filtering any better no."

If the Fram is showing less dirt, is it going into the engine?

 

[big2bird]

As far as does it filter better? Of course you think it will because that oil attracts dust and dirt LOL Naturally it will show more dirt then a fram. But is it filtering any better no.

I don't recall anyone saying it filtered better. I believe the claim is, for it's size, it flows better, and is reusable.
I can say I have one on my 81, and one on my truck. I have never found any dirst inside past the filter, and a touch of oil on the MAF sensor once due to over oiling. The 81 carb is clean as a whistle.
I will say it certainly is equal if not better, so to each his own. I know I no longer have a landfill of paper filters.
My oil filter is cleanable/reusable also.

 

[BBShark]

What do you guys use to clean them? I don't get very good results with the K&N spray cleaner stuff. I still see dirt trapped in the pleats and the cleaner flushes off instantly.

My usual method is to flush them with water from the inside out. Not perfect but better than hosing off the outter surface.

 

[SmokinBBC]

I use the spray that came with it and put a pretty good amount on the filter. I flush it from the inside out as well.

 

[big2bird]

I use the spray that came with it and put a pretty good amount on the filter. I flush it from the inside out as well.

Yep. I soak it with the cleaner heavily, then let it sit a few minutes before rinsing inside out.

 

[JPhil]

I use cheapo paper filters & just replace them regularly. Maybe blow it out once. Why spend so much money for one you need to spend a bunch of effort to maintain when you can just replace it for a heck of a lot cheaper. (You like that, Gene? :lol
But more importantly it is my belief that a dry paper filter has smaller 'pores' for filtering than an element that relys on oil to suspend the dirt. The oil will trap the dirt that strikes it but it then builds up, restricting the pores so thus the filter needs larger pores to keep being able to pass enough air as it plugs up over time. The filter media itself is only a structure to hold the oil which is the filtering element. And as the oil inevitably drains down it leaves those larger pores open & dry thus reducing the filtering more.
The K&N type reusable filters will show better performance when clean but, in my opinion, that is because they have less restriction due to the larger pores-- but that means reduced filtering.

 

[mrvette]

I use cheapo paper filters & just replace them regularly. Maybe blow it out once. Why spend so much money for one you need to spend a bunch of effort to maintain when you can just replace it for a heck of a lot cheaper. (You like that, Gene? :lol
But more importantly it is my belief that a dry paper filter has smaller 'pores' for filtering than an element that relys on oil to suspend the dirt. The oil will trap the dirt that strikes it but it then builds up, restricting the pores so thus the filter needs larger pores to keep being able to pass enough air as it plugs up over time. The filter media itself is only a structure to hold the oil which is the filtering element. And as the oil inevitably drains down it leaves those larger pores open & dry thus reducing the filtering more.
The K&N type reusable filters will show better performance when clean but, in my opinion, that is because they have less restriction due to the larger pores-- but that means reduced filtering.

hehe...in FACT with the TPI changeout years ago, I went K&N on the oval induction years ago.....when going up/over on the car, I have TWO ~3.5?" filters on a V pipe up front...both of them the K/N reusable types....it's WAY more than that engine could ever use, but looks cool, draws less air through each grossly oversized filter...so no restriction...and 'Ram Air'....:lol: