Do Performance Air Filters Actually Work?

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Performance air filters claim to increase horsepower and improve acceleration, but do they actually work? I took four air filters, included dirty & clean OE filters, a low cost aftermarket filter, and an expensive performance filter and put them to the test. To measure differences in horsepower and torque, each filter was put on a Mustang dynamometer, with multiple runs. A VBOX was used to measure real world acceleration differences.

The idea behind performance air filters is that a less restrictive air filter means the engine doesn’t have to work as hard to bring in air. That means it’s more efficient, and makes more power. It could also mean the engine pulls in more air, and with more air, the engine can inject more fuel to make more power.

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[chrisfix]

I cannot wait to see the results! I have been planning to do something similar but my problem was the sample size. Maybe now since you did it, n=2 so it's more results and we can get even better data! Nice work on the video!

[scottkolaya]

I always run K&N not so much for performance, but the fact you can wash them and reuse them over and over.

[rolfwittwer]

It would be good to see the difference in filtration effectiveness. Living in the driest state on the driest continent, dust ingress has damaged 5 engines in my 48 years of driving. Filtration performance is therefore more important than a tiny performance benefit. A dry paper filter is best because Brownian Motion results in capture of tiny particles by entrapment in the dry fibres. Wet filters do not capture the smallest particles in the same way, resulting in less effective filtration. How about a comparison?

[MIMC]

Did you try slapping on the k&n sticker on the car? +15 hp i heard.

[jdub]

Finally! Scientific proof that my Hyundai Accent with a parts store air filter is a sleeper! Thanks for the confirmation Jason!

[manbeefcake]

This is how YouTube videos should be. Thorough and thoughtful an complete and I don't know how to express my admiration for quality. Thank you.

[oliknow]

After years with a reusable, washable Filter I noticed how actually bad my Engine ran over time. At the beginning it was nice and had good performance, I changed back to a paper filter from a good brand. My observation was that no matter how good the filter was oild, cleaned, washed, whatever, it let through bigger particles and introduced more wear to my engine. I ditched it, the benefits did in no way outweigh the disadvantages. Wouldn't buy again, just keep your stock filter in good condition and change it once in a while.

[generalzod]

The reason why the dirty filter made a slight improvement over the clean filter is because the souls of the dead bugs have become trapped in the old filter and those trapped souls translate into greater power!

[urbannpa]

K&N is how I caught a mechanic lying about changing my air filter and charging me $17.00 for it. Got a vehicle inspection, and it clearly says on the air box "DO NOT REMOVE K&N FILTER". He wrote on the bill "changed air filter". When I opened the air box the K&N was still there. I trust mechanics about as far as I can throw them.

[MrPhoto]

But don't you get a sticker with the K&N? If you didn't put the sticker on you are missing out on an extra 5hp gain

[Longbowgun]

Something people don't think about when comparing power numbers: better horses can translate as better MPG as well.

[jettpwr]

Wow that's alot effort to prove that point. You definitely deserve a sub

[smc]

I would have liked to see a NO FILTER test (at least on the dyno) to see how much restriction there is with an air filter.

[BigKleib]

Ordered a high-performance filter and a turbo kit showed up... weird.

[bcjammer]

as a tech anytime a clogged up mass airflow came in and obviously failed it had a k&n. they’re like having no filter. I believe engine masters did a great filter dyno test…I wouldn’t use k&n even on a yrack car but thats just me

[MrSlashr]

Useful, unbiased information .. what a concept. Thanks EE!

[alkom]

The effort and quality you put into your videos is amazing. Subscribed. Hope you get to 2M very soon

[SWTrailsAndWheels]

Wow, I did not expect such clear and logical results. I thought any gains would be too small to see above the noise in the data.

[Lazirus]

Great informative video! There's a big missing piece though when it comes to long term effects of less filtration on the engine. The internet is full of people with opinions on this, but finding hard data is frustratingly difficult.

[millechemins]

The best youtuber out there, i remember 2 years ago, in my automobile mechanic school, on of my teacher showed one of your videos as a demo...from montreal canada