Ok... I have a 1998 Ford Mustang GT which is in the shop right now b/c of a bad ground (I'm assuming.. I've already asked on the newsgroup about it.. I'll find out tomorrow probably what the problem is)... but anyway.. I was _planning_ on getting a K&N air filter.. my current one is just a paper one.. but I've seen several occurances of "K&N is a waste... not enough bang for yer buck" etc.. what SHOULD I get then? Financially limited... is there anything I can switch to that will give a few extra horses that won't let dirty crap inside my engine? Thanks, fellas =).
If you're looking for a power gain, you won't get it from an air filter. Take a close look at your intake track. As long as it's smooth and open, that's the best you can do. Save your money for something that will really work - like gears.
It's not unsubstantiated, it's physics. Larger pours = more stuff getting through. The only way to increase airflow without letting more dirt in is to increase surface area while still having smaller pours in the filtration media.
BTW Green filter, claims filtration down to 0.50 microns. They claim to get 10 to 20% more air flow by increased _SURFACE AREA_. Compare to K&N 's 5.5 microns which is where the standard SAE J726 test leaves off. And their larger pours with magical dirt "attracting" oil.
So if you're interested in a higher flow air filter, the Green Filter at least claims to do it in a way that's physically possible (without decreased filtration). K&N's claim of "oil attracting" the dirt is pure hokum and should be a big red warning flag to anyone mildly familiar with how our world works.
The absence of proof is not proof. Most Americans seem to think that their car will fall apart when it reaches the dreaded 100,000 mile mark on their odometer. There are people who lease cars, and trade in financed cars after one year or 12 to 20 thousand miles believing that it's cost effective to not have to bother with any of that nasty "scheduled maintenance". So the absence of large amounts of anecdotal evidence about the K&N isn't very surprising. Considering that a car with 100 to 150k miles on it is often considered to be well past it's prime or on it's last legs. Especially a performance car that people might put a K&N into. Ostensibly beating on it harder than they might normally.
Everybody is basically telling me to get gears... well I've made a few phone calls in the past about getting the gear ratios changed to 3.73 or even
4.11.. and they said "sure you'll feel a damn noticeable boost".. approx. cost for labor was like $400 which I don't mind paying when funds are available.. but 1 person also warned me that my RPMs would be much higher... this is a car I hafta drive everyday for normal driving.. including interstate driving... so I can't really afford to run 3000 RPMs in 5th gear while going 70mph... kill my gas mileage. What do steeda underdrive pulleys do? Sorry for all the questions I'm new to all this... only thing I'm learning from are the 2 repair manuals I have & this awesome newsgroup =).
I've notice no great difference in gas mileage on my car with 3.73 around town (maybe a mile to a gallon less and actually picked up about a mile to a gallon on the highway. If 3.73 seem a little strong try 3.55 (come in the new cobras) and are a great compromise gear. The 4.10 are a little strong unless you have an automatic trans then it would be about like a 5 speed with 3.73.
Under drive pulleys have their own problems on some cars such as battery drain and cooling problems in some cases. Exhaust systems are another way you can get HP perhaps a new X or H pipe with high flow catalytic converters and a catback system (mufflers and tail pipes section of exhaust). Shorty headers on a stock engine aren't really worth the effort involved unless you do more later.
I had to laugh today about this. While I was talking to Eddie today, I asked him about his K&N test data. He smiled and asked me why. After I told him, he said, "who gives a shit about a Mustang owner who thinks K&N filters are harmless; I'm not putting them in my fleet."
I've pulled a LOT of paper air filters from diesels, and you wouldn't believe how loaded with dirt they can become. I'm surprised he even bothered to test reusable filters to begin with.
This crap is just as bad as the AMSOIL vs. whatever "debate". All bullshit and no fact.
If you guys want to run OEM paper filters, that's just great. Just don't play holier than thou with testimonials from no-names and other opinionated horseshit. Let's save the bashing for the trolls, eh?
At 143,000 miles my LX has been running just fine with a K&N for years. For my 2 cents, personal experience certainly beats any claims or opinions I'll read about in a newgroup.
Joe Calypso Green '93 5.0 LX AOD hatch with a few goodies Black '03 Dakota 5.9 R/T CC
JD Adams wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:
How people can justify installing underdrive pulleys over a K&N in a discussion involving engine logativity is beyond me.
Now I'm not a mechanic and I'm not going to pretend to be one; but I simply cannot accept that running our accessories at a slower speed is any more healthy then installing an air filter, which *might* allow more dust & dirt into the engine. For example, our water pumps were designed to circulate water at a certain rate. Now, we're working the engine harder and giving it less coolant? That just doesn't make any sense.
I'm sure *someone* knows... but it's not you or I... ;-)
I dunno. Drive around at highway speeds in third gear for the life of the car and I doubt it'll last as long. I'm not willing to test that theory however.. I don't have the cash to get two new cars and test them as such. It would prove about the same thing though... less load on the engine, more RPMs, which one will last longer with the same maintenance. Even that could be down to assembly quality and everything else...
Before you buy the French made Green filter hold it up to the light and compare it to a K&N. You might also want to compare the depth of the pleats as well. From what I have seen the imported green filter utilizes the same pleat size for all of their applications while K&N will change the pleat size for improved flow.
All I care about is the filtering quality, and the amount of air allowed to flow...Anything else is incidental..........In my case, the K&N unit vs the Green Filter was won hands down by the Green Filter.......Quality of airflow has increased, and the particle filtering was right on par at
10 microns...Tested in real world conditions using my 2000, 5.4L powered Expedition, then taking them both in to the local college labs for some testing after 2,500 miles on each one (right out of the boxes).............Seeing that I sell neither of these items, I call that about as unbiased as they come...........
Bill S.
Dave Dix> Before you buy the French made Green filter hold it up to the light and compare it
MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.