cwhsu

Just wondering what people on here are using AND if they have tried more than one of these choices, what problems (if any )they found or opinions they have with certain options.

carcrazyboy68

i have tried the k&n drop in and i got the k&n cai...but on my intake i am running the short ram cause it is raining out side now. but i love the short ram. for our cars the short ram has one very minor bend in it so it flows very well.

bo0sty

i had a injen cold air and i rencently got a K&N drop in filter. i went back to the stock airbox because the intake was too loud for me. i couldn't feel any big differences but with the drop in filter when i hit v tech i can hear a very faint slight sucking noise like the cold air intake. its not loud but it seems it is more free flowing then the oem paper one.

dont get me wrong though the sound from the intake was very sporty and nice but i just didnt wanna hear all the time. obviously you'll get more power from and aftermarket intake. but if you want a more subtle sound like i do, get an icebox

valeratj

I have K&N and removed resonator.

Lets start by saying that search is your friend

Now, CAI gives top end gains, but midrange and low end lose TQ. Its also noisy. CAI is the only way to go for high power N/A setups. Drop-in filter gives more modest gain at the top end but it keeps the TQ where it is supposed to be. It is also as quiet as stock filter. Some say that paper filter gives the beast filtering result/cleans air better than the others, but after I drove 6000 miles, I opened the filter and air hose was absolutely clean.

HP gain from CAI is ~5WHP on a car with no other mods, so it wouldnt be at the top of my to-do list. Also, I wouldnt want to sacrifice low/midrange TQ for 2-3 extra HP compared to drop-in filter/icebox. just my opinion...

cwhsu

haha very nice info SO FAR~! I just wanted to poll though cause people could always vouch or give advice about anything but i wanted to know what people were really using vs. what they have heard/learned/read. So thanks everyone for your inputs keep'em coming.

And yeah i have heard of K&N drop in filters letting in more for airflow but i would think CAI's filtration probably do just as bad if not more than the drop-ins.

I also haven't seen any maf senors getting gunked up by oil from the drop in k&n's on this forum yet (correct me if I'm wrong), which seems to be an issue with some other cars.

Zhieson

Not to call you out or pick on you. But does anyone actually have a dyno that proves CAIs lose low/mid range torque?

This dyno shows that you don't lose any HP or TQ.

valeratj

^ Dude, thats a Fujita graph... they claim a 10 HP gain, but K&N's CAI claims to give only 4.8 HP with similar design. I tend to trust K&N more on this. Search for more dynos from independent sources rather than those who advertise their own product. Also, I was talking about driving at 1/4 or 1/2 of the throttle and my butt dyno

bluefang08

Comptech Ice Box

meeps

CAI's dont get wet unless you drive through a massive puddle. Short ram's don't do anything either, pointless waste of money.

matvey

IF you don't care about making your car sound aggressive; do this and you will not regret:

1. Remove the resonator boxes
2. Drop in a K&N filter.

Best deal ever for the gain (and tiny bit of sound too)

MBA

davidspalding

I bought a K&N when I got my TSX, since I loved my Jeep's K&N. But I'm concerned about having to do more frequent oil changes with it ... so I put paper in during the spring pollen bomb (literally tons of yellow fallout all over the place), and use the "pinkie" during the fall/winter season. Probably silly of me, I'm tempted to just use good paper and swallow the expense.

I posted in another thread (maybe you didn't see it, OP?), I'm curious about some Amsoil filter that claims to be better than paper, but it also requires "cleaning and recharging." :P

Takran

This is my vote, and also incidentally what I'm planning to do. I'm curious though, what kind of maintenance does the (foam?) filter element that comes with it require?


And I feel you on the pollen, around here it's a yellow haze on everything.

Gen4MDX

I have used them all on various vehicles, both gas and diesel over the last 20 years along with many aftermarket performance parts and have come to the conclusion that IMO "The factory does know best". Leave it the way the factory designed it and use the paper OEM filter.

sk1001

cwhsu

is there any particular reason? was it too tedious? was there no gains in performance...etc were there more problems than benefits?

cwhsu

wow looks like aftermarket especially drop in filters are taking a huge lead

I guess no one is having those "less filtration" or "too many dirt particles getting through to the engine" issues that everyone talks about, unless u use the oem or a paper filter.

tsxacurazine

I say K&N panel filter with resonator remove. sounds great and it does improve the breathing of the car

valeratj

+1. thats also my setup $40

Gen4MDX

Are you saying that OEM paper filters are less effective in filtering than a K&N or similar drop in? If that is the point you are trying to make, you need to do some research, as it is quite the opposite.

davidspalding

Again, a regular rally driver here at work told me she used K&N in her Miata, but because it lets a bit more dirt in, she thought it's better for cars that get regular (every 1000-1500 miles) oil changes, or even just changes right after a race. Makes sense. I may start doing my oil changes at 20% oil life when I have a K&N in it. But I'm leaning towards tossing it (unless someone wants to buy one on the cheap, it's only been in my car for about 15,000 miles total).

cwhsu

well the less filtration thing was one thing that i had read lots about~ so TSturbo your saying that K&N lets in more air AND filters better than paper?........... that would be the first time i heard that. and to the David~miata point if a K&N filter lets in more dirt than oem paper, does changing your oil more frequently cancel that out?

Gen4MDX

No, not saying that at all. IMO, the stock paper filter is your best option.

davidspalding

No, the oil apparently picks up that dirt the enters the engine, it's part of its purpose, so with a wee bit less filtration, the oil will get dirty faster. So changing more frequently is a Good Thing (i.e. as oil gets dirtier, it does its job less effectively).

Of course the extreme is an engine that's run hard in a dirty environment like a rally ... changing the oil right afterwards makes sense. I trust someone who's heavily modded her car and raced it, then takes care of it as it's also her DD.

I was ready to chuck my filter based on that Oil Guy's indepth analysis of filtration, but if the result of a bit less filtration is that the oil gets dirtier, that's so easy to mitigate (just change the oil more often) I may just leave in the K&N.

I'm still curious about the new Amsoil EA filters though....

cwhsu

http://www.nicoclub.com/articles.php?id=180100

looking more into this it seems that though aftermarket intakes/drop in filters reach their max filtration sooner leading to less airflow~ unless I'm reading this wrong~ that is also on top of less filtration haha.

valeratj

^ The oil DOES get darker sooner with intake/drop in filter. I have personal experience with both. I dont worry too much tho. California isnt that dusty and my oil lasts 4k miles

davidspalding

That's enough for me. I just ordered a Hastings oem paper filter from Amazon, two-way $0 shipping. My K&N is out on Wednesday. Anyone want one for $15+s&H?

valeratj

^that looks more like anti K&N "research". what do u think ? it shows that K&N has the worst filtering AND the worst flow..... yea, thats how they made a name.

cwhsu

It does seem like that i guess, but trust me i really wanted to get a K&n filter or CAI but after researching i'm just not sure. I don't know if it is worth the trade off because im prolly going to drive my tsx into the ground. If thats the case i Don't want to risk it getting messed up in the long haul. I was actually hoping ppl would show me things to prove the opposite so i could go out and buy one to make my engine sound more throaty and feel more efficient. unfortunately all i find is negative stuff about k & n so i guess im sticking with paper.

valeratj

^ Well, yes as I said I have to change oil every 3000-4000 miles bc it gets really dark. I will try to put the resonator back and see if it makes any difference since it will suck the air from engine bay. If that doesnt work out, I will go back to paper too. I run expensive oil and I am growing tired of changing it every 3k miles when it should last at least 6-7k

cwhsu

wait wait so your saying if you change your motor oil in shorter intervals say every 3000 miles it doesn't matter if the filtration lets in more dirt? I change my oil every 3k anywayssss

valeratj

Well oil's side function is collecting/washing off the dirt. I change oil every 3k miles bc it gets dark by that time bc of the dust . Also u can buy motor flush from kragen or autozone and use it every 20-30k miles. It is supposed to flush out all the accumulated dirt and gunk. That thing is pretty cheap and easy to use. Just pour it into a cold engine with your old oil, start the motor and let it work for like 5 mins, drain old oil and refill the engine with fresh "blood". Lastly, buy a quality oil filter like Mobil 1

STL

I assume you already sold it?

Dktran31

if you want to add some flashiness to your ride, esp. your engine bay, and some added high rev hp get a inejn CAI for around $200-$300, if you want a more humble sleeper look, get the comptech icebox, if you wanna be cheap and gain 1 HP or so, get a K&N drop in

davidspalding

Sorry, I changed my mind (again). I use the K&N during winter, "cleaner air" months, and put a Honda/Acura filter in during the pollen season and hot summer.

eviljarv

that definitely looks like an anti K&N test paid by AC Delco, look at how K&N is last on every test but AC is first ???? looks fishy to me.

i've run K&N in all my vehicles and never had a problem, my last truck (99 Expedition) went 275K miles with no problems and oil changes anywhere from 3-4K miles.

i currently have the K&N and no resonator setup on my 02 TL-S and works just fine, all i do is clean and oil the filter with every oil change or sooner if needed.

if you are running a quality filter and oil you shouldnt have to shorten your oil change interval at all, i run full synthetic 5-20w amsoil with their EA filter and i can go easily 7500 miles between changes and if im doing a lot of hwy driving (i drive across country a lot) i'll go 10k miles before changing it. the whole thing about 3k oil changes is just a way for the companies to sell more oil, cars have come a long way from the 50s and tolerances are a lot tighter now a days.

davidspalding

Holy mother of God, that's a lot. I thought that trapped dirt is part of what makes the filter work....