Hi Flow air filter
Pro
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 686
Likes: 4
From: Austin Texas
I don't know. But I've heard that the ones you oil... some of the oil gets sucked into the intake and contacts the MAF sensor and does bad things, so I'm with you, to avoid those oiled ones. I'm using paper filters
Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 4,017
Likes: 492
From: Poughkeepsie New York
It will if you over oil them. I've been running mine for 3 years and never had a problem. I probably just jinxed myself now haha.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 2,478
Likes: 254
From: Downers Grove Illinois
They also don't work very well if you don't clean them. I recently purchased a '92 that is in very good shape except for a few odd things like the K&N filter looks like it hasn't been cleaned in forever. I put in a paper element.
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 21,543
Likes: 3,216
From: Park City Utah
Le Mans Master
Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 9,061
Likes: 214
From: Epping NH
Instructor
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 113
Likes: 17
From: Fayetteville GA
Once bought a car that had a K&N filter installed. Cleaned and re-oiled "by the book," then held it up to the light and could see pinholes. Replaced it with a good paper filter.
This has been discussed at length here -- great information in this post:
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...longevity.html
This has been discussed at length here -- great information in this post:
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...longevity.html
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Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 21,543
Likes: 3,216
From: Park City Utah
I wonder if a general consensus will ever be reached about this (K&N being good enough). Even *I* go back and forth.
Originally, I thought they're the best. Bought into the marketing hype; best flow, washable/reusable...
Then I read that they don't filter well. Seemed legitimate, so I got "scared" and thought that I shouldn't use one. They're no good.
Then I read elsewhere that they actually filter better, if oiled properly. So who knows? I don't.
But I know this; I have run a K&N in my truck, which sees all sorts of conditions, from clean air to desert, off road, work sites lots of towing/WOT for extended periods (lots of air flow through the filter and engine). The truck has had the same K&N filter in it since I bought it, with 82,000 miles. Truck now has 289,000 miles and the engine performs identical to the day I bought it.
Conclusion? If the K&N doesn't filter as good as other paper filters, then how good is good enough? Are paper filters filtering that which doesn't need filtering? IDK. Does the K&N provide any meaningful performance gain? I doubt it, but maybe. My take-away is that it probably doesn't matter, either way.
Originally, I thought they're the best. Bought into the marketing hype; best flow, washable/reusable...
Then I read that they don't filter well. Seemed legitimate, so I got "scared" and thought that I shouldn't use one. They're no good.
Then I read elsewhere that they actually filter better, if oiled properly. So who knows? I don't.
But I know this; I have run a K&N in my truck, which sees all sorts of conditions, from clean air to desert, off road, work sites lots of towing/WOT for extended periods (lots of air flow through the filter and engine). The truck has had the same K&N filter in it since I bought it, with 82,000 miles. Truck now has 289,000 miles and the engine performs identical to the day I bought it.
Conclusion? If the K&N doesn't filter as good as other paper filters, then how good is good enough? Are paper filters filtering that which doesn't need filtering? IDK. Does the K&N provide any meaningful performance gain? I doubt it, but maybe. My take-away is that it probably doesn't matter, either way.
Last edited by Tom400CFI; Aug 9, 2016 at 01:44 PM.
Instructor
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 113
Likes: 17
From: Fayetteville GA
Everyone understands the inverse relationship between effectiveness of filtration and ability to flow air, right?
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 21,543
Likes: 3,216
From: Park City Utah
I don't claim to know, either, but an educated guess is that as soon as they get a little dirty, they filter quite well. But before that point, pretty sure they don't filter as well as paper (although they do flow better then).
Everyone understands the inverse relationship between effectiveness of filtration and ability to flow air, right?
Everyone understands the inverse relationship between effectiveness of filtration and ability to flow air, right?
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 6,528
Likes: 752
From: South Dakota
If you over oil a reusable, it could be a problem. If you don't oil a reusable it could be a problem.
I suspect any performance difference is negligible.
The only advantage that I see is no replacement costs for a reusable, however that is consumed by time to clean and oil the filter and the cost of the cleaner and oil. So even "no replacement costs" or "lasts forever" is not really a benefit.
I have had several K&N, Blackwing, SLP, Vara Ram, reusable filters and they have worked ok for me, but I have never bought one. They came on cars that I bought.
So "My take-away is that it probably doesn't matter, either way."