Homemade cold air!

Looks really good op and defenitly that helps it from getting hot air from the engine. It be nice to put a cover on top.

 

AFE is as good as it gets.

A piece of toilet paper is going to be better than that Spectre.

The main advantage of AFE is it is a dry filter so there's less risk of fouling the MAF, which is extremely common with over-oiled K&N.

But filtration quality?

Toilet paper is better than Spectre, and K&N/AFE are better than toilet paper.
The factory filter is most effective.

 

Your welcome to send me a new conical afe filter any day of the week.

 

So the stock factory one is better for keeping dirt out, but the AFE gets better flow?
It being a dry filter, do you just wash it out every so often, then dry and put back in?

 

Better flow, but the question becomes, better in what way?

The stock system with the OEM filter can flow more air than any normally-aspirated engine can draw.

The mod has only two purposes... make noise and look cool when you open the hood.

 

I beg to differ. I have recorded around a 1-3 mpg gain based on if it's city or highway. I have tracked this for 5 tanks of gas and I get about 20 to 50 more miles per tank. This is significant enough for me to be pleased. As far as horse power goes? Miniscule to none.

 

k&n is an oiled filter element. the oil can get onto the maf and thats not good. the afe is a dry flow filter. saves money after you reuse it a number of times too

 

I think it shows ingenuity on a budget. You will be dangerous when you have more money to play with and this level of creativity. Good start.

 

You can't see the k&n or the AFE can you? Doesn't the air box hide the filter?

 

I do like the ingenuity that you put into the airbox. Shows that you have a good eye, and will be good at mods later on possibly. However a 1-3 mpg gain? That equates to about a 15% increase in fuel economy, if you originally had about 17 mpg average. There is no way possible that you got 3 mpg gain. How did you measure your increase versus what you had before? The only way to properly measure is to fill the tank, drive it for a specific number of miles, then refill tank to the exact same point that you filled it the first time. Have you done that exact procedure before and after you did this mod?

 

I'm sorry, did you say something? I was hypnotized by your sig....

 

^^ x2 haa

 

Well I have a bit of a lead foot in town. So the 1mpg is reasonable. I did 3 tanks of purely in town driving and what I would do is reset my trip meter when I filled up. Then when I had to refuel I would take the mileage on the trip meter and divide it by how many gallons I put in my truck and I wrote it down. Same for the 2 tanks of highway driving. What I noticed from the highway is that my truck stayed at a lower rpm. I assumed this was from better flow so it did not have to work as hard. So if an oiled filter is bad what's the purpose of it?

 

Follow the link in my signature and you'll see my fuel economy on every tank since last April. Variance from 22mpg to 26mpg, with no changes to the truck.

This is what makes it so hard to quantify MPG improvement/loss. 2 or 4 tanks is statistically insignificant... you have to track trends for months and hundreds of gallons.

This was not from the intake. You simply were not driving as fast.
The speed is directly linked to the RPM at highway speeds when the torque convertor is locked.

Because people will buy what slick marketing people try to sell them.
The fuel/oil/coolant additive shelves at auto parts stores are loaded with products that do not do what they claim, but people swear by them.

Oiled and washable filters were designed for racing.
High flow is important... every bit of help they can get in power production is taken advantage of.
But these engines are not expected to run longer than 500-1000 miles between rebuilds.
The filters only need to keep out contamination that will cause immediate serious engine damage.

 

Rich, would you say the AFE air filter is snake oil as well, or does it offer as good of protection as paper filters, just is cheaper in the long run b/c it is washable?

 

Not snake oil... but not as good as stock.

Even Amsoil admits that their EO air filter (it's an AFE) does not filter as well as the OEM filter, but it does better than K&N on both flow and filtration.

As for cheaper, unless you're bashing the desert every few weeks, the OEM filter is good for 30-60k. They are $16 each.
If $16 per year is a significant expense, then there are other areas in your life where you can likely save more.

 

30-60k, I was told to change the air filter with every oil change. Dangit, sucks that I ordered the AFE filter this afternoon.

 

Did you read your owner's manual?

 

Didn't come with one. Bought used. That's just what someone told me a long time ago. I never did it b/c I'd check it and it'd look clean, but def changed mine more frequent then every 30-60k.

 

I generally change mine once a year... but still... it's $16 a year.
That's like a buck fifty a month. I just do it once a year so I don't forget.

Used to go by miles, but I was always misplacing the box flap that I had written the mileage on.