New K&N Intake

I've been following a series of posts on 6-speed about the new K&N intake vs the EVO intake. The guys from Vividracing were saying its a 20+hp gain, but nobody believed it and are waiting on the dyno sheet. In the meantime, I got my performance products catalogue today, and on the back they are advertising for the new K&N intake also. Thought I would post the ad and see what folks think - I thought the Evo guys were smoking something when they said they get a 12hp gain...but 23hp? for real? Someone over on 6-speed was trying to organize the "shootout" between the Evo intake and the K&N...that would be interesting for a third party independent to do a dyno run with both on the same day....

that's awesome!!!

OK, Where can I get one? I'm not seeing it on the K&N website...

i'm curious about that design... does it use any parts of the factory airbox? it's a bargain compared to the EVO kit @ $599... heck that's almost half price... anybody try it on yet?

Evoms only claim 10-12 hp on an intake, this one is 23? hmmm, someone chime in please?

just a guess here but would the K&N be more efficient....? it looks to be closer to the cold air duct than the EVOMS by way of tube design.... if somebody is doing a shootout... I'd like to see it on a super hot day.... see which one chokes the most...

Take a look at the graph. It states 'gain up to 23 hp'. You could sell a repackaged one and advertise it for 'up to 50 hp'. Under some really weird circumstances someone might get 'up to 23' but I doubt it.

$321.95 for 23hp is a great deal, if it was true.

Looks cool. I am sure it sounds good, too. I like that it utilizes the stock air tube for cooler air. Hmm, might have to get one. Maybe there will be a group buy?

I tend to believe a company like KN. The other guys are probably pissed bc it's half the price. Although, the evo peice is very high quality, I always thought it( and all pcar aftermarket parts) are waaaay overpriced. Competition in the marketplace is a good thing, now if KN would start making superchargers.....

You must be kidding me? Repeated dynos on several 996's and they can claim this...what is the world coming to...complete BS? Can you say...blew another MAF.

I pre-ordered it from Vividrracing last week. I trust K+N. I"ve always had great results from their products. Plus the ad says UP TO 23hp. Kinda of like the tornado injection.Thats up to 10hp and it will outlast the car. I'll post my findings after the install. I should get it mid to late June. I also think it looks sick.

whats the Pricing on this?

It looks cool, but it looks like you will need to remove the entire think in orfer to remove the air filter for cleaning... would be cool if you could just remove the filter itself & not the piping.

I figured out how to have the filter gain 23 hp.... test the stock filter on a 996 3.6l and the K&N on a 3.6l X51

Like C43 above, I am going to order one of these from Vivid as well once they are in inventory. The design looks pretty slick to me and I like the isolation of the air filter better in this application than EVOMS. Some of you guys have commented on MAF sensor errors with oil/cotton filters, but having used these products before on my motorcycles and in speaking with some people who have used them in 996 cars, the key is to ensure that it's not OVER-oiled (the oil being the binding substance for dust particles). Like most things, people tend to think that more is better when cleaning it. Last, as for the HP claim, the graph does show a modest increase along the rev band, but you'll notice that the 23 HP gain is highlighted from just before 5500 RPM for stock and just after that level for the K&N. What I do like, regardless of power gain, is the increased smoothness of the curve and the fact that it'll likely sound a lot better back there. So, frankly, for 300 buckeroos, what's there to lose? As mentioned above, I'll install and get back to you with feedback.

23 hp gain solved. They hooked up sptschoice as a blower

For $300 its worth testing, can't argue there. Changing the settings on the dyno such as smoothing or running in Std instead of SAE can yield what looks like bigger improvements. Also a old dirty air filter for the stock pull will exagerate the difference.

Now that is actually a very good point, Ed.

I installed one of these (K&N Cold AIr Induction) on my Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland (4.0 H.O.) and it made an Instant improvement - rpms at idle dropped from 1100 to 600, the throttle response is immediate, and when you put your foot into it, as when passing on I-95 or, in my case, dragging the boat up the launching ramp, you get a ROAR of response and a kick in the butt. Much fun. In my appication, the filter itself comes off very easily for cleaning. Unlike a Tornado, this really works.

sounds too good to be true......marketing hype?

I bet you're right brother man!!!

Listen, it shouldn't be all that shocking. Go get a straw and breathe through it. Then try running and see how long you last. Then remove the straw and see how you feel. Therefore, the concept of a freer flowing system is logical. Now, does it add HP? Who knows? But it does offer at least the possibility of being effective and thus warrants a shot in my book. I guess the reason why it seems possible to me is that noise and fuel regulations in this country are particularly restrictive. It goes without saying that power tends to be loud. Ergo, if you try to make something quieter, you might be making it less powerful and/or responsive. Besides, what's the worst that happens? You notice nothing, take it off, and return it. But this notion of dismissing it because Porsche couldn't have possibly overlooked it is nonsense. Porsche may have put on a restrictive air filter and intake for a reason, and it more than like was as a result of regulation and liability.

I "think" your reasoning might be flawed. Notice that I said "think." Imagine this. Go get a 6" diameter pipe and try to breath through it. See how it doesn't make that much difference? Now, go get a 6.5" pipe and try to breath through it. As with many things on the P-car (e.g., brakes), bigger is not always better. Also, there is the possibility that the car is tuned for a specific size, such that a bigger whatever will be better, but ONLY if other tuning characteristics are also changed. So, the answer is not necessarily simplistic, and I will not pretend to know with 100% certainty the true benefits of any particular mod. I do know that many have been shocked when they actually run dynos before and after installing mods. Auditory improvements have been known to fool the ole butt -dyno.

This is much better reasoning...there also may be more air flow, but it may also be more turbulent which is not better (I have no idea on this system). The problem of course is with the claim..."23hp+". Is this a guarantee...I think not. But as others have said, spending $300 bucks is pretty easy these days, and not that big of a deal. Perhaps some of us are just tired of hearing all the BS about hp.

That severe bend in the intake tube of the K&N would concern me. The EVO has a relatively straight shot into the motor.

TD, good points indeed, especially apropos the 6" vs. 6.5" pipe. At some point, you're likely right that it just wouldn't matter. I guess I might hope that the Porsche is uncessarily restrictive as a result of regulations and accordingly that the K&N would help 'open' it up somewhat. But, for your part, it very well could just be overkill at some point. Interesting point. But, the stock airbox and snorkel do have a similar bend if you think about it.....as do the headers and the mufflers on the exhaust end. My limited knowledge of airflow suggests that going around sharp corners is bad; smoothed transitions is better. But, at the end of the day, we'll need some sort of aerodynamic engineer to pipe up here.

Even if it only gives 10 hp and a really cool sound, wouldn't that be good enough for 300 bucks? I read the add but do not understand the 'black powder coated baffles that reduce heat'...I don't see them in the picture. Thank God it has a carbon fiber top on it though...that should be good for 2 hp at least!

K&N has been a proponent of tuned intakes to take advantage of pulses and resonance in intake flow. I have no idea if that plays into the reported gain in this case, but Porsche certainly believes in it for their manifolds, so why not for the intake tract? As other's pointed out the diameters and free flow of the filter are the primary factors in making power with these compoents, but maybe K&N has moved on the secondary factors... Edit: It was actually AEM that discussed this, not K&N. My mistake on the reference.

NYCEBO As to your concerns regarding short vs long radius turns in the air inlet piping, it's a matter of pressure drop. Pressure drop is directly proportional to pipe size, mass air flow/velocity and total pipe length. There are some other conditions as well but these are the biggies. A bend in a pipe can be representated by an equivalent length of straight pipe and it's associated pressure drop. What you find is the shorter tight bend pipe is higher in pressure drop as a result of the tighter bend but has less pressure drop as a result of the shorter distance around compared to the long radius bend. The long radius curve has less inherant pressure drop but gains additional pressure drop as a result of the longer length. So what you find is the trade offs are normally a wash. The bottom line is the pressure drops between the two are about the same short vs. long radius, given the same conditions. The key is to keep the flow smooth as possible without any abnormal changes in flow direction, right angle impingements etc.. Hope this helped, any questions please ask, I'd be happy to answer if I can.

Ray makes a good point. Now go back to that straw thing and instead get a 10 ft. length of 1/2" tube. Cut off 6" and breath through it. Now take the balance and do the same, oops!

One thing I should mention, is the MAF makes some assumptions when calculating the mass flow. One is that the flow is laminar, meaning the flow through the pipe is the same in all cross sectional parts of that pipe. It samples the air in one small spot and assumes the rest is the same. If in some way you disturb the flow by lets say, changing the inlet filter configuration, so the flow is no longer laminar, you run the chance of getting an inaccurate reading from the MAF. Which, as you could guess, would cause any number of strange problems. Just something you should consider. Are these reported HP gains a result in leaning or ritchening the engine as a result of an inacurate MAF reading not because of better breathing? You be the judge.

Orignally posted by Alan C. 23 hp gain solved. They hooked up sptschoice as a blower How did I get involved in this...can somebody tell me Please!

You know, sptschoice, you are right. That could not be true. Who would hook up a hot-air blower to gain HP?

Thanks a lot Ray; very insightful.

TD, you too much, man *_*

It's interesting that after installing an EVOM filter system and putting maybe 400 street miles and one track weekend on the car I lost both cats. The car has about 30,000 miles on it.

RE: EVOM and K&N, isn't the EVOm the one with the red tube? Adds color to the plain black plastic upper engine if nothing else. Seriously, though, I too have been toying with installing one of them but the MAF issue has me a bit concerned. I'd like feedback from someone who has installed one or the other in his 996 or boxster, to hear if the MAF is "cool" with this particular bolt-on.

That's interesting. It might be coincidence . . . but you never know. I have a totally stock setup, and I lost both cats at about 18K miles. My understanding is that fouled plugs caused unburnt fuel to enter the cats, where it ignited and blew out the ceramic baffles. Perhaps the MAF sent an overly rich mixture, which resulted in unburnt fuel entering the cats?? Who knows . . .