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Does K&N filter really makes any difference (except for price) ?

1.7K views 8 replies 7 participants last post by  PortugalFocus  
#1 ·
Hello happy people,

Since recently I got borged with Toyota stuff and fixing it here and there myself... i was thinking about air filters, i bet mostly you used some modded ones, but when speaking about normal rectangular ones ... which filters are above average (except obviously price wise) ?

So far I kept using cheap FRAM air filters, either cheapest one or a Toughguard. I replace it once a year (~12-15k miles). Last April I put cheapest FRAM air filter again. now wondering, what would change if I have used K&N (4x more expensive) ?

thanks for sharing your experience.
 
#3 ·
LOL :lol:, that's what i thought, but really? K&N makes oil & air filters 2x-4x more expensive than others. so what is it with them? i sense some BS in their marketing ... they look almost same to me as other brands (with minor changes) ...
 
#5 ·
Dont use an oiled filter. K&N OR Toughgaurds, stay away from that. The oil on the filter will contaminate the air sensors and just cause a buncha problems. When I used a toughgaurd I had to clean the air sensor 3 times....

The plain fram is fine, there cottony now so theres really no point in paying more for a toyota one.

Oh yeah the K&N has to use the oil since better flow = less filtration, so the oil has to catch whatever the filter element can.
 
#7 ·
glad i used oiled air filter (FRAM Toughguard) only once, no problem with O2 sensor fortunately. I usually use plain paper FRAM filters. will continue.

I suspected K&N is over-advertised. found one thread elsewhere stating similar opinion about K&N.

thanks for confirmation and info!
 
#8 ·
Hah weird.

I run a K&N Panel filter in my 3VZ, works fine, yes... no enhancement by any means, but no issue with it and simple enough to clean. Half the time I can just get a compressor and blow the dirt out of the unit before I need to get the oil to clean the filter itself.

Panel filters, you won't see much performance change at all... you'd have to go for a decent Pod setup with proper CAI before anything even THINKS of changing in my experience.
 
#9 ·
I have had my K&N in my 1mz for 4+ months now with no issues. I take mine out every other oil change and blow it out. I switched to k&n mainly because I COULD clean it. I never expected performance out of it but I'm glad I got mine. I spent about $40 on it new. So I'm pretty close to starting to recover that money.