[jaero]

I spent a bit of time over the weekend cleaning up under the hood. I decided to go ahead and clean my K&N panel air filter. It had been in the car for about 20K miles. It didn't seem terribly dirty, though when I did the water rinse a lot of filth came out of it. I took my time with the drying and oiling steps in the cleaning procedure and let it sit for a day. This morning, after putting the filter back in, I drove the car to work.

The car perform significantly better. The engine ran smoother and seemed to have more power, though it was a pretty sedate drive. Also I noticed that I got about 3-4 mpg better mileage than I typically get on my morning drive. Granted it was just a single trip, so it doesn't mean much, but it seemed to confirm the feeling that my car was performing better.

Does anyone else notice a performance change after cleaning your K&N filter?

K&N recommends pretty high mileage between cleanings (up to 50k miles, I think). How long do you drive between cleanings?

 

[Nenad]

When I had KN I used to clean each 12 000 miles, I'm using same system with new one CAI from BMC. And yes, it makse diff after cleaning. Do not forget that what KN or others are recommending is only recommendation, it depends a lot on local polution situation.

 

[pdxa4]

The K&N panel filter I had before ended up killing my MAF...and it was not over-oiled, I fitted it just as it came in the box when new...after that expensive outing I'm sticking with stock filters...
I did not feel any performance gain from the K&N...

 

[ycharlies]

where can i purchase the filter oil for the kn filter? i am ready to clean mine. so i wash and oil, wait dry for 24 hours and i am set?

 

[jaero]

An auto parts store that sells the K&N filters will sell the cleaning kit. It consists of a cleaner and filter oil.

You lightly brush off any big debris, then spray the cleaner on the filter and let it soak in for 10 minutes. Next do a low pressure water rinse. Set the filter in the sun to dry for a few hours, then apply a light amount of oil to the inlet side of the filter and let the oil soak in. I then set the filter, inlet side down, on a few paper towels overnight to let them absorb any excess oil. Reinstall and go.

If you need the car during this process it help to have a stock filter why the K&N is drying.

 

[Rusty]

Every oil change (5K miles) I take the K&N out and tap it lightly with my hands over the garbage can. All kinds of wonderful stuff falls out. About once a year or two, I do the full cleaning as described above.

It's no surprise that you would experience a burst of improved gas mileage after a cleaning. Especially at the very first - if your filter was clogged, then with a clean filter you will be running a bit lean until the ECU adjusts.