Alternative drop in air filters

[pejohnson]

Are there any other after market drop in air filters other than K&N?  I personally think the factory box is a very good design and want a more free flowing filter.  I have used K&N in past and like there product.  My only concern is using the right amount of oil.  I am curious if there are any dry filters that can be cleaned and still perform well. 

 

[Brucelinc]

I don't know of any alternative drop-in filters - other than the stock one.  How often would you need to wash and re-oil a K & N drop-in filter?  The instructions suggest 50,000 miles.  I never drive in dusty conditions and all I do is take the filter out and knock any bugs out of it once in a while.

I also modified my air box with a 3 inch hole in the left side and PVC drain pipe plumbed to an open space in the inner fender.  I have no idea if that helps anything but it added some sound fluff.

 

[Larrylu]

I don't know of any alternative drop-in filters - other than the stock one.  How often would you need to wash and re-oil a K & N drop-in filter?  The instructions suggest 50,000 miles.  I never drive in dusty conditions and all I do is take the filter out and knock any bugs out of it once in a while.

I also modified my air box with a 3 inch hole in the left side and PVC drain pipe plumbed to an open space in the inner fender.  I have no idea if that helps anything but it added some sound fluff.

I have thought about that very idea myself. How and where did you punch through?  I'd love yo see some pictures of that mod.

 

[IHeartGroceries]

We need to get somebody involved with developing a good dry flow for EB applications. AEM, for example. I'm running the K&N now, but I've never been sold on oiled filters. Seems to be alot of fixed data out there.

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[Joleat]

We need to get somebody involved with developing a good dry flow for EB applications. AEM, for example. I'm running the K&N now, but I've never been sold on oiled filters. Seems to be alot of fixed data out there.

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I've used oiled filters in the past and I've been very careful about the amount of oil used when "recharging" the filter. I don't know that the use of the oiled filter had any positive impact on the performance of the vehicle, but the placebo effect had me convinced that it did at the time. I later spent a couple of years as a shop manager and I saw a lot of gummy throttle bodies on vehicles with CAIs and oiled filters. Ultimately, that was enough evidence for me to avoid the use of oiled filters in my personal vehicles. Some time later, I stumbled across the video I've provided below. Use your own judgment, but I personally think the performance filters are more marketing hype than anything.

Cold Air Intakes Mythbusted

 

[Brucelinc]

It is difficult to have our cake and eat it, too.  Without the oil, the cotton gauze filter like K & N would not catch enough dirt to be effective.  If they elimintated the oil but added more paper and/or cotton gauze to improve the filtering capability, it wouldn't flow as well.

I have never had the need to clean and re-oil a K & N filter so I can't speak from experience but I wonder if some people who do re-oil get carried away with using too much.  In any case, I suspect the performance benefit is minimal but the placebo effect is alive and well.  I like the sound better, too.

 

[BiGMaC]

We need to get somebody involved with developing a good dry flow for EB applications. AEM, for example. I'm running the K&N now, but I've never been sold on oiled filters. Seems to be alot of fixed data out there.

I've used oiled filters in the past and I've been very careful about the amount of oil used when "recharging" the filter. I don't know that the use of the oiled filter had any positive impact on the performance of the vehicle, but the placebo effect had me convinced that it did at the time. I later spent a couple of years as a shop manager and I saw a lot of gummy throttle bodies on vehicles with CAIs and oiled filters. Ultimately, that was enough evidence for me to avoid the use of oiled filters in my personal vehicles. Some time later, I stumbled across the video I've provided below. Use your own judgment, but I personally think the performance filters are more marketing hype than anything.

Is there any evidence that the Motorcraft filter is inadequate?  It appears to provide all the flow that the engine can utilize (with out significant mods) based on dyno results.  I've posted a couple of places on the forum that in back to back open hood dyno pulls using my '13 SHO with a large external fan blowing on the engine at 79 degrees and about 30% humidity… first with the OEM intake and filter (6000 miles on it,  live on an unpaved dirt road) and then with the entire  filter box disconnected and moved aside aside so there is no restriction and just an open intake pipe showed less than 3 HP difference…. There is some "on the street" corroboration now also.
Just FYI..

IMHO any significant flow restriction is likely between induction opening after the OEM box and exhaust tips.

 

[IHeartGroceries]

I haven't seen any specific evidence. However, I think it is generally accepted that cotton elements flow better than paper. And the OE is paper, which is pretty typical.

The AEM cotton gauze is oil less, but unless I am mistaken, it is a filter developed by K&N. They even look like K&N filters.

I've used both K&N oiled and AEM cotton dry flow filters, albeit not on the SHO. Just the OE filter and the oiled K&N on the SHO.

I'd rather not mess about with the oil, especially seeing as there's a lot of data out there suggesting the AEM dry flow is a great filter, and I've personally had a good experience with then. The oil is a mess both inside and out of the engine/intake tract. Plus, there's information out there touting the effectiveness.

Also, the dry flow is cleanable, just like the oiled units.

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[Brucelinc]

It sounds like the AEM filter is just what the OP is looking for.

 

[BiGMaC]

I haven't seen any specific evidence. However, I think it is generally accepted that cotton elements flow better than paper. And the OE is paper, which is pretty typical.

The AEM cotton gauze is oil less, but unless I am mistaken, it is a filter developed by K&N. They even look like K&N filters.

I've used both K&N oiled and AEM cotton dry flow filters, albeit not on the SHO. Just the OE filter and the oiled K&N on the SHO.

I'd rather not mess about with the oil, especially seeing as there's a lot of data out there suggesting the AEM dry flow is a great filter, and I've personally had a good experience with then. The oil is a mess both inside and out of the engine/intake tract. Plus, there's information out there touting the effectiveness.

Also, the dry flow is cleanable, just like the oiled units.

iHG….. I Completely agree with you on all points… In fact no matter what we do an oiled filter will be oiling our induction tubing,turbos and beyond….
My comment was related to high flow and performance…

The point in my last post was that I haven't seen any evidence that the 3.5 EB can utilize any more flow than the stock box and OEM filter provide unless mods other than downpipes are done (at least that it can't translate it into performance) … Sorry if I confused folks.  I realize other issues may be at play.

 

[IHeartGroceries]

Oh, I see what you're saying now.

Only thing I might add is that restriction is restriction. Any induction can benefit from reducing restriction. Generally, improvements to the intake, such as aftermarket solutions, reduce restriction, and usually also increase diameter, which would manipulate/incrase volume.

Additionally, if you're comparing paper to cotton, it is also worth analysing filtration effectiveness and efficiency.

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[20ecoboost10]

I have had the AFE dry filter in my Flex for about eight months now since I removed the Airaid CAI filter setup

Good fit in the stock box and seems to be well made



http://www.afeintakestore.com/afe-air-filter-31-10215-ford-edge-taurus-flex-fusion.html

 

[pejohnson]

Ohhh this may be the ticket for me.  Looks like it should fit a 13' SHO. 

I have had the AFE dry filter in my Flex for about eight months now since I removed the Airaid CAI filter setup

Good fit in the stock box and seems to be well made



http://www.afeintakestore.com/afe-air-filter-31-10215-ford-edge-taurus-flex-fusion.html

 

[DJE624]

If I didn't already have the K&N, I would try it.

 

[20ecoboost10]

I bought the AFE filter from Summit Racing $50.95 shipped, was the best price I could find for it back then

 

[IHeartGroceries]

Excellent! Thanks for sharing that!

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[SHOdded]

    aFe Pro-Dry S Air Filters
    StyleAFE Pro-Dry S Air Filter
    Vehicle 2010 Ford Taurus
    Submodel 3.5L V6
    AutoAnything SKU3766357
    Part Number31-10215

AA15 coupon code (15% off) $44.16 shipped.

 

[mjhpadi]

I have an Airaid oiled filter but was never completely sold on them.  They really can be a PITA to clean and re-oil.  The first time I cleaned a K&N filter it took almost 3 days to dry, so I needed an extra filter to put in the car.  Then when I re-oiled it, I used a bunch too much and had oil dripping out of the filter, so when re-oil the filter it is best to use just a touch of oil, wait at least 20 minutes to see if the oil has completely soaked through the gauze, and it not, a touch more and again wait to make sure you haven't overoiled it and clean all the oil off the non-gauze areas of the filter.  With the Airaid filter, I have found it stays much cleaner running it with the pre-filter, but again I'm sure the pre-filter adds some restriction.  I know when it's time to replace the filter I'm getting the Airaid dry filter.

 

[Odrapnew]

My first reply on this forum, but I figured I'd throw my 2 cents in.

If your car is stock, I would stick to the factory filter.  The oiled cotton/gauze may flow better at very high flows, but factory cars don't need it(and modified cars may not benefit much either).  On top of that, they are terribly inefficient compared to a factory paper filter.  In my company, if we had a filter with an efficiency as low as the K&N, we'd be looking for problems.  If you do choose to put a K&N on, DO NOT clean it often(maybe every 50K miles unless you are in very dusty environments).  You should really change/clean the filter based on restriction and not time, but we don't have that luxury of having something tell us that the filter is restricted(at least not factory on most passenger vehicles).

 

[krdiesel]

On the 6.0 powerstrokes using a oiled filter was bad news. The oil would coat the MAF and cause strange things to happen.  Plus the factory filter was excellent for keeping dust out of the turbo.