Cone air filters

[puddlethumper]

What's the craic with these. I know they let more air through compared to paper jobby's but, for example, how long are they good for?

Any learned shiters with experience of them?

 

Yours sincerely,

          Filter dimwit.

[Bren]

They generally need a feed of cold air to be of any benefit - high under bonnet temperatures usually reduce power.

[twosmoke300]

Junk - noisy and don't gain any power . Car manufacturers aren't stupid . Look how complicated a modern air box is . They could make it quiet and restrictive very easily but they make it quiet and free flowing .

Good example is the Saab 9-5 one - flies enough air for a 500hp car !

[cobblers]

Yeah they're basically wank. Alright if you're bodging engines in stuff etc.

Apart from in some oddball cases where the OE airbox is purposefully strangled for some reason, they'll perform worse than the stock stuff in every area other than "making a row" which is OK if that's what you want, I suppose.

 

I had to fit one on my old T25 that had a Golf GTI engine in. It sounded absolutely loisy and did my head in.

[dollywobbler]

Engine Masters (same folk as Roadkill) did a lot of air filter testing (albeit with huge V8s) recently. It was quite interesting.

 

In the main, no advantage to be gained other than induction noise, and if you don't fit a cold air feed, you'll actually make things worse, as others have said. They can help IF you're making a load of other mods, like a free-flow exhaust.

[twosmoke300]

I've got a k&n on the Landy as part of an acr su conversion and the induction noise drives me mental

[Tamworthbay]

Wil swop 4 brkn eggsbox 2niit m8

[nisfan]

On your average family car will probably make it worse due to sucking in hot air from the bay.

I had a primera with one and when it was freezing outside you noticed it had a bit more go but went as soon as the temps got up.

If you must fit one best getting a k &n panel filter but usually a waste of money.

I think turbos are better with them?

[DodgeRover]

Don't forget some/ most of them need treating with filter oil and not just leaving dry...

[fordperv]

In most cases you would be much better with a replacement free flow filter element

[twosmoke300]

Yeh and that oil gets dragged onto the maf sensor ( if fitted ) and fucks them up too

[dave21478]

Plenty of cheap ebay pish that are really poor at actually filtering too....yeah it will keep the big lumps out, but its the small stuff you need to worry about.

 

Says the guy with one on his MGF. In my defence it was on it when i got it, and it sounds nice.

[New POD]

In most cases you would be much better with a replacement free flow filter element

 

In most cases you'd be better off finding (in a scrap yard) an air box from a car with twice the power and fitting that.

[Rave]

I've never bought one, but they came already fitted to my Mk1 MR2, Eunos Roadster and...106 1.5D (?!). They all ran/run fine and didn't/don't sound objectionable. As others have said though, unless you position the cone in a cold part of the engine bay, you're unlikely to see any power gain.

 

Edit: K&N filters can be washed and re-oiled, the kit containing the degreaser stuff and oil spray is about a tenner IIRC.

 

If you're thinking of fitting one for potential power gains I would google your model of car first and see if other people have dyno tested them. On most cars you'd probably do better rigging up a cold air duct to the standard airbox, if you think the manufacturer's own arrangements aren't up to scratch.

[fiatdaft]

All the negatives above plus you always seem to lose out on a bit low end torque.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Split_Pin]

Ive had one in my Astra for 10 years now. I swap between a foam Pipercross Filter and a more traditional fibre K&n. I dont have a cold air feed either as its right behind the Morette headlights which are nice and draughty.

 

I have not noticed any ill effects at all but there is zero advantage. In performance or noise.

 

Keep what youve got and just change the air filter every other year.

[puddlethumper]

Cheers collective. Interesting.

Ads "claim" they are better than paper and I can sort of see the logic. Paper does "sound" a bit restrictive and "free flow" doesn't.

Looks like I'll forget that then. Back to the drawing board.

[DodgeRover]

I run one on my pinto engine but only because that's what was recommended with the lpg carb I'm running

[Split_Pin]

Dont believe the claimed power 'advantages' from the manufacturers of this sort of paraphernalia.

 

What car are you looking to make go faster?

[rainagain]

This guy's site is good reading:

http://www.autospeed.com/cms/article.html?&title=Dont-Bother-Changing-the-Factory-Filter&A=111486

[uk_senator]

I put one on my Boxster when I first got it, it then blew 2 airflow meters.. (£600 a pop at the time).

Got a K&N panel in my XJR, no problems. Had one in my 2.0 Tempra, no problems, put one in my folks V50 1.8, no problems. Brothers got an enclosed cone filter on his 500 Abarth, no problems.

I have a pair of black tights on my Uno`s open air filter box, I think they are 8 dennier? 

[stuboy]

pipercross panel filter on the mondeo was noticeably better on acceleration

[unclecalzone]

Had a k&n panel or ramair foam one in every car I’ve owned, It’s amazing how many people never clean them or run them with no oil.

They never filter as well as paper apparently but I’ve never noticed any difference. I’d probably run a paper one if I lived in a dusty dry country

[stuboy]

Had a k&n panel or ramair foam one in every car I’ve owned, It’s amazing how many people never clean them or run them with no oil.

They never filter as well as paper apparently but I’ve never noticed any difference. I’d probably run a paper one if I lived in a dusty dry country

gonna see if i can squeeze 0.5 bhp with panel filter in the 1.6 focus

[Felly Magic]

The black Fabia estate I viewed last year had one bodged in, it was a boggo OHV 1.4, with a dead head gasket (coolant jet black and oily & mayo under the cap), car sounded fooked, air trunking looked like it had been cut with a blunt stanley knife, car ran like shit, I walked away as it had clearly been abused by an idiot

[nisfan]

Or do what some idiot did and tape a briilo pad over the maf on his clio.

[strangeangel]

No experience with cars, but using aftermarket air filters that require removal of the airbox on bikes and scooters has never ended well for me. This includes both no-name Chinese shit, and yer more expensive, better class of shit like K&N. I would avoid like the plague.

[Des]

In the past I've murdered a 50p charity shop find Ford fitment K&N onto an old Nissan van that maxed out at 75, opened out the main jet a shade and was rewarded with 85 MPH, although may have been down to the jet meddling alone.

[Noel Tidybeard]

a cone filter is standard on a hunda s2000

 

someone on civinfo forum did extensive tests on his 2.2 derv- panel, cone and std - standard filter won!

[paulplom]

I had one on my last T-5. It sounded great but I'm nearly sure it made it slower. No improvement anyway. I swapped it out again the next time I could be arsed.