anyone use K&N Air Filters? are those really reusable/washable??

[ajwklajdskla1]

Replacement Air Filter

Replacement Air Filter

www.knfilters.com

Replacement Air Filter

Replacement Air Filter

www.knfilters.com

Each filter cost about 65$ and overview states "K&N® washable, reusable High-Flow Air Filters™ feature a state-of-the-art design of layered, oiled cotton media engineered to improve airflow and capture contaminants, and are designed to provide an increase in horsepower. Each performance air filter is reusable, engineered to last for the entire lifespan of your vehicle, and backed by K&N's 10-Year/Million Mile Limited Warranty. K&N drop-in replacement filters are designed to install easily into your factory air box. Upgrade today and start enjoying superior airflow and superior performance from K&N's most popular product".

I am interested in getting those and wondering if anyone here already have them on?
If I were to install those on my car, I would clean every 10,000 miles or so but I wanted to see what others say about those filters before I get these.

 

[Slip_Angle]

I went with the AEM dryflow filters in the stock airbox. No oiling. The difference is small vs stock filters. What does make a much larger difference is removal of the stock intake inlet under the bumper. Even better is adding the VT snorkels.

 

[ominousone]

I have them on my 19 3.3T Sport. IF, there is any power increase, it is not detectable. I've had KNs on motorcycles and other cars and they are pretty easy to clean. I think I paid a little less at O'Reilly a few months ago.

 

[Volfy]

I replaced the original dry element filter that came with the new-to-me Injen CAI with the largest K&N replacement cone filter that would fit. It is wider but slightly shorter length, such that I can R&R without loosening the whole system. That was the biggest gripe I had with the original blue Injen filter - it won't come out once installed without me having to loosen the baffle plate. With the way I'm sealing all the open crevices, that won't be as easy to do. That was just a bad design.

The washable reusable bit is true. However, if you dig a bit deeper, K&N does say that once washed and re-oiled, the effectiveness of the filter drops (to 70% IIRC, but don't quote me on that). Would that be any worse than a brand new paper filter? Dunno. If you oversize the crap out of the filter element (kinda like what I have done here), 70% probably will still outperform stock. Personally, I wouldn't bother with washing and reusing. I like it mainly because I believe the oiled type filters are better able to trap smaller dust particles - and retain them - compared to dry elements. There is a reason why virtually all high-performance dirtbikes use oiled filters.


AS

 

[ajwklajdskla1]

Thanks everyone for sharing your thoughts. I guess I will just get those and try it out myself.
will check the filter every 10,000 miles or so to see how the filter looks.

 

[DAYTA]

While I haven't touched my G70's intakes, I can say from personal experience that you need to service K&N filters properly and be careful not to over-oil the filters.

The jury is still out on whether an overoiled filter can damage the MAF sensor. I know K&N has already attempted to address this as an "urban myth", but I would still always recommend exercising caution (and restraint) when re-oiling any filter.

 

[Volfy]

Possibility of damaging MAF sensor might have been a concern back in the early days when Bosch first adopted the technology. These days, MAF sensors are much more robust and no longer susceptible. Fuel Injected dirtbike run large oiled-foam filters that are just about dripping wet. If that were a problem, it would have been widely known in those circles by now.

Even amongst cars and trucks... with the crankcase ventilation typically recirculated back into the intake runner, usually AFTER the air filter, it isn't at all uncommon for engine oil to get into the intake stream. Given that the intake valve carbon build-up caused by this recirculated oil on GDI engines has become a very very well known problem by now, don't you think all that oil would've caused widespread MAF sensor failure also?

Again, if this is a genuine problem, we would have heard lots of reports of MAF failure by now. The lack thereof means it is safe to put that "urban myth" to bed.

 

[DAYTA]

You raise an interesting point, but I don't know if the PCV system is an apples to apples comparison to an over-oiled air filter.

For one thing, a properly functioning PCV system manages blowby vapors/gases which would most likely take longer to accumulate and cause an issue vs liquid oil dripping from a filter. Also, it could be different on the G70 as I haven't yet checked the location of the MAF sensor, but on other vehicles I've owned the MAF sensor is positioned within the intake tube above where the breather tube feeds into the intake manifold. In those applications, I wouldn't necessarily expect the blowby gases to impact the MAF sensor like an over-oiled filter might, again assuming the PCV valve/system isn't malfunctioning.

That said, while I still maintain that one should always be careful when servicing/reoiling an air filter, I would tend to agree that a damaged MAF sensor should not being an issue in all but the most extreme cases.

 

[Volfy]

I did a quick search for "oil catch can" on the "Kia Stinger Owners" group on FB, and out pops a dozen or more posts of owners showing vids and pics of what they found in their OCC. Here's a good example:

Is every Stinger/G70 like this? Of course not. At lot depends on how the car has been driven and how well the piston rings seal against the cylinder bore. The harder you push the engine, the higher the peak cylinder pressure, the more blow-bys gets past the rings, the more oil gets blown into to the PCV line. When we changed out the stock intake last year, both Stinger and G70 showed a trace (but clearly visible) amount of oil coming out of the PCV vent tube into the intake plenum. Given how long the charge pipe snakes around the engine before getting into the intake manifold, where the MAF is mounted, that trace amount of oil has probably turned into oil vapor and passed through the MAF safely. Still, AFAIAC, oil catch can was a must-do install.

This is yet another reason that, while I have no problem taking my cars to AutoX/track, any other time (which accounts for 99% of the miles driven) I prefer to drive Map 0 and as gently as I possibly can given the traffic situation. This minimizes cylinder pressure and, in turn, piston ring blow-bys... not to mention wear and tear on the rest of the car.

 

[JCtx]

They filter for crap, and your engine does not need any more air than it gets with stock air filters, so do your engine a favor, and leave the stock filters alone . Or at least buy a dry filter that filters better, especially if you live in a dusty environment. K&Ns are great racing filters, but crappy street ones.

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