Do Performance Air Filters REALLY Give You More Power?

Performance air filters and induction kits promise to give you more power, but do they actually increase your engines performance? The theory behind aftermarket air filters is good, less air filter restriction means more air into the engine, which should mean more BHP at the wheels, but is this always the case?

To find out I've tested 9 different air filter configurations using a normally aspirated 4.0 litre V8 E92 BMW M3 and a turbo charged Skoda Octavia VRS on a very accurate dyno developments dyno. The Skoda uses the same 2 litre EA888 engine as found in cars like the VW Golf GTI, Audi S3, Audi TT, Golf R, and many others which should give us a really broad overview of what types of air filters and induction kits do with different types of engines, and what power increases you might get.

On test is stock OEM paper filters, high performance foam filters from k&n and pipercross, induction kits from ram air and Eventuri, and we'll also run the cars with no air filter.

[jfnonyt]

I love anything this guy puts out, even if it isn't fully tyre related, he is just so meticulous with his testing.

[aygwm]

Short answer: “No.”
Long answer: “Possibly, but no.”

[llfu]

Stick to OEM, all I needed to know when LLF got his M4 tuned at Pure Turbos, they recommended the OEM housing and filter.. They make 800hp+ monsters

[Ozaneee]

Finally a not a tyre related video in Tyre Reviews channel

[tadasstrikauskas]

Many guys switch old used paper filter to new K&N or other high flow filter and are astonished by "HOW MUCH MORE HP NOW I GOT, IT FEELS A LOT NIPPIER etc."
But they do not take into account that they are comparing OLD USED filter vs NEW.
As the comparison should be NEW vs NEW where difference is minimal.
Thanks for video.

[rev]

I found the best way to get more airflow into my M3's engine was to bolt on my supercharger.

[Freshiemaster]

The intake system on M cars are generally fantastic from stock. The only true benefit from aftermarket is sound.

[TylerJeremiah]

“10 power”
“Hot air bad, even if it’s lots”
Couple quotes in there made me laugh 😂

[Well_Theres_Your_Problem]

Bigger holes means more air... and more dirt. Project Farm channel have a great film on the dirt filtering (or lack thereof) of high flow filters.
I know I'm not using them anymore especially for the minuscule power gains

[shifty]

Don't be afraid to make content that is not directly about a car tyre - this was fantastic.

The main part I watch your content is your meticulousness and how easy it is to understand your explanations and logic.

Thumbs up.

[BiggMo]

I’d vote for a filtration follow-up, find a lab to test the quality of the filtration- I’ve always wondered if some of these high flow filters are allowing dirty air enter the engine - actually potentially damaging the engine. Maybe an interview with an engineer to get perspective on just how damaging abrasive air can be on an engine

[dj_efk]

Jonathan, thanks for the interesting swerve in terms of subject matter - As someone else has said, not only do these aftermarket filters make no worthwhile performance improvement, As you called out, Project Farm has proven just how much more dirt they let into the engine too, so they are to be completely avoided - spend your money on OE or else top quality aftermarket standard filters instead!

[staison]

I’ve installed aftermarket intake system on my bmw 118i. Best decision ever. Don’t think I got any power increase but the car felt more lively. Not to mention the sound! Got that aggressive blow off sound.

[JRCarReviews]

Filter alone won’t do much change, you need to remap the computer that regulates amount of air let in the engine. Computer controls amount of air mixture with fuel to burn and create power.

When you remap your engine, only then you would make use of filter that lets more air thro. Be aware more air means more dust. K&N filter has oil over it to prevent that, but it also gets dirty faster cus of that.

I would avoid it and just use stock air filter.

[masonwright]

I did notice a slight gain in torque between the filters on the bmw as it being NA usually hard to get bhp from stuff like this but torque seems to get increased with more flow on naturally aspirated engines

[rolexr]

Best Intakes are with a completely closed box, tube optimized with a symmetrical cone filter in it. Sucking air really from the outside with a light ram effect.
Got one in my 2019 Mustang 5.0 and was really impressed with the result of throttle response and low rpm torque!

[TheLondekZdroj]

Performance air filter makes a positive difference if it's a part of a comprehensive upgrade, involving at least exhaust and dyno tuning. In modern cars induction systems are very well engineered and if you only change the filter it may lower the performance and increase MPG. Sometimes it will give you the impression of a better performance because of change in the torque curve but those go away quickly as soon as you start recording times or put your car on a dyno :/. For small but noticeable performance gains just keep an eye on the tires pressure and get rid of unnecessary junk from your car :D

[greybuckleton]

Really great to see someone not just talk about intakes but actually do back to back dyno testing. WHen I used to work on Hondas, there was a decent cold air intake system that placed the filter inside the right fender. That was good for power above 4000rpm, 3-5bhp. Just dropping a pod inside the engine bay, sounds great, but is often worse.

[Cornerer]

I have Pipercross on my Mk6 Jetta. While power increase is minimal, the biggest difference is how much more responsive it's got in low throttle as well as off-on throttle situations.

[photosmithy]

This made me chuckle, back in my youthful days i owned a Integra type r, air filters were an area of hot debate ie 50% believed in stock, the other 50% stated better performance with other filters. I was in the stock camp. Good seeing your great testing methodology being used on other car related stuff.