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Are K&N Air filters really that much better? I like the idea of having a washable, re-usable air filter. Seems better for the environment than tossing an old dirty filter, and better for my wallet long term. However, I did notice they sell the cleaning and oil kits for the air filters which of course then adds to the cost of owning a K&N, which defeats the purpose of paying upwards of 400% more than a traditional air filter. Curious to hear other’s opinions on this.
Thanks in advance
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I had one years ago and haven’t purchased another one since. I don’t think they are bad filters, but I’ve settled on using a conventional air filter.
My only complaint comes when it comes time to clean the filter. The filter must be completely dry before re-oiling it. It took 2 or 3 days for the filter to dry naturally. I needed to get to work, so I bought a paper filter to use in the meantime, which somewhat defeats the purpose.
I have one good anecdote with the K&N: I had the oil changed at a quick-change franchise in the dead of winter. They tried to upsell an air filter replacement by showing me the dirty filter that “they removed from my car”. But, it was the wrong size, shape (round vs panel), and color. There were several other customers that witnessed the event, and they were more upset than I was. Needless to say I never returned.
Fram had a washable, non-oiled filter about 10 years ago, but I don’t know if it works, is available anymore, etc.
if you want things simple ill be honest, stick with a paper filter, they only cost 12 bucks, and when they are dirty you throw them away and get a new one. Personally i like K&N, i currently have a K&N cold air intake with a massive cone filter at the end of it, sure sounds nice.
the big issue i have seen as a mechanic with them is if they get really super dirty, they actually begin to rust and fall apart, at least from what i have seen they have sort of a thin steel mesh around the cotton gauze element, if that goes long enough it gets rusty and pretty much falls apart, and the cleaning process can be tedious and involved! i also hear guys talk about how it “Lets more dirt in.” the sad truth is even a paper filter will let tiny dirt particles buy, just prevents dirt particles of size enough to cause engine damage from getting through, a K&N filter prevents larger dirt particles from getting through and smaller ones are filtered out because its coated in a oil and the dirt sticks too the oil.
another point i would like to make very clear is you are not going to get massive power gains from a K&N Panel filter, you may see 1-2HP at the most, and that’s not really noticeable, in order to get a increase in performance that is Noticeable there must be at least a 7% HP increase, so lets say you are running a car that has 200HP, this mean you must get about 214HP at least and you won’t get that with a panel filter.
Another issue you have to consider is the oil can get on mass airflow sensors, this means if you are running a K&N filter and you have a hot wire mass airflow sensor, its probably a good idea to clean off the MAF sensor once in a while with some MAF sensor cleaner really good.
so is it worth it to you? well it depends… honestly if you want simplicity no its not ill be honest.
If I was building an old-school carburetted ride, I’d have no problems using an oiled filter. With modern cars and their sensors that sniff the intake air flow, I’d use a dry filter.
Thank you everyone for the replies! I wasn’t looking for increased HP but rather a long term, life of car, savings on air filters and hopefully avoiding tossing old, used filters into the landfill. I don’t mind the added complications of the cleaning and oiling, etc. I think I’ll try K&N on two of my four cars and see how things go. Will keep in mind all the valuable feedback you guys gave.
Thanks again!
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