[TR] K&N Filters

[Justin Wagner]

Correct me if I'm wrong...  but the idea of K&N's is that you allow more 
air flow by providing a less dense/restrictive filter medium than say, 
paper, but it has a trick up it's sleeve to balance the increase in 
volume.    The smaller particulates that might have passed through the 
filter otherwise, are caught, like flypaper, to the the oiled medium.  
Subsequently, you have to clean the filters in a bath and re-oil on 
reasonable intervals based on exposure.

It's truly "apples and oranges" to compare filter media without 
comparing the benefits versus the disadvantages.

The K&N offers very good air flow with less restriction than paper.
The K&N filter can be cleaned and will last for years.  (And, 
subsequently, can be cleaned before specific events, like a day of racing.)

That said, you do have to clean them!   And you do have to maintain the 
oil on the filter medium in order for them to perform correctly.

In my opinion...

K&N filters are FAR better than running without filters or with 
something basic like a stocking, or thin foam, etc. over velocity 
stacks, etc.
It's also far better than having to maintain and replace standard 
filters that are restrictive even when new.
It's also far better than the foam type filters and will last longer.   
I bought cars with old foam filters on them and some of the foam often 
disintegrated in my hands.

That said, one has to balance their own personal needs, finances, and 
the conditions that the filters are likely to experience in determining 
the best choice of filter media. 

The experience mentioned by Randal where a filter was hit by water 
suggests to me that the filter was simply quite dirty and when hit with 
the water the material trapped in the oil of the filter was released in 
the form of a mud.    Answer to that?   Don't mount filters where they 
can be hit by water and keep the filters clean!   I highly doubt that 
the material that caused the clogging was actual filter material 
itself.  If the K&N's sloughed off fibers to the extent that they'd 
block engine parts, by being hit by water just once, why would there 
even be a filter left after years of cleaning and, supposedly, casting 
off of fibers?  It's not like it can grow new fibers between cleanings! 
   I had one set of K&N's for about 15 years, and I didn't sense any 
difference in density or weight.

Yes, I'm biased... I like the K&N system.

--Justin