Hey all, second post here at HT and its just a simple question. I did do some searching but i have not come up with the answer im looking for. I have a 93 SI w/ approx 215,000 miles. i was noticing bad gas mileage and then suddenly my O2 sensor decided it didnt wanna be in the pipe anymore and jumped out so i got a new (used, 110k miles) sensor and pipe but havnt driven the car since then as its at home and im at school.

i heard that the air filter may affect gas mileage and im not really too sure when or if my air filter was changed last but would it be beneficial to me to purchase a K&N air filter, an OEM one, or just clean the existing one (provided its not too old, if its never been changed, im gonna buy a new one anyway)? Im mostly concerned w/gas mileage (if applicable) but a few HP gain wouldnt hurt!

thanks all,
Adam

 

if your old air filter was paper, you can't clean it.

A new filter will always give you better gas mileage, I don't know whether k&n or any other air filter will effect gas mileage any differently.

 

I've heard good about K&N, would probably increase gas mileage and maybe add a couple HP???? can anyone confirm this? or maybe recommend another one or tell me that OEM will do the same? thanks again all


Adam

 

What are the disadvantages? If any.

 

depends on what car you have. I have a 97 Prelude SH and a regular Canadian Tire air filter is $50-$60! A K&N filter is $70. I would go with a regular drop-in K&N filter as a regular air filter might cost roughly the same. That and as Chase said, you can just keep re-cleaning the K&N filter which will last you so much longer compared to a regular paper filter. As far as gas mileage, I didn't really notice any changes, but it is winter here so its a lot of tire spinning around here.

 

How much gas mileage and power would just a simple drop in K&N produce? for $70 or however much, i would just hope that it would make up for itself in gas eventually.... im not as concerned with the repeated cleaning novelty because, to be honest, my car has 215000 miles and im not sure how much longer i will keep it. However, that is a nice advantage. thanks for any further info!

 

Get the K&N filter. It should cost you just over $50 (less than two stock paper filters, I think). And you'll never have to replace it again, so you'll be producing less landfill .
I noticed my gas mileage increase just slightly with the K&N. If I noticed a power increase, I was probably imagining it. I have a 93 S.
If you're about to get a tune-up, get the filter beforehand so they don't charge you for a new landfill one!

Dan

 

Cool. thanks, i dont think im bout to get a tune-up but i think im gonna get a K&N filter. i found one near my girlfriends house for $42.88 so i think im gonna pick it up when i go home for break. hopefully with the new O2 sensor and air filter i'll get much better gas mileage!

Thanks all!

-adam

 

Get the K&N filter, its well worth the money. i have bought and chosen K&N on my Civic Si, Nissan Sentra, and VW GTI.

Improved gas mileage and better throttle response when compared to paper filters. Dont know about more HP but you will probably see 1-2 HP at most.

Dont do it for the gains, do it for better filtration

 

You would probably get your usual gas mileage back if your old O2 sensor was not working because you replaced it. The K&N filter will not have a very significant effecton your gas mileage compared to changing your O2 sensor

 

Thanks for the info. i would not be getting one for the gains (1-2 HP is not really worth $42.88 to me being poor) but i do believe my car needs a new filter and i did get the new(er) O2 sensor so hopefully i will be seeing better gas mileage. If the filter gives better throttle response as teknoracing stated, would be a plus as well. Hopefully since i've switched over to synthetic oil i will not be burning so much of that either! any more comments/suggestions/experiences with K&N filter or anything discussed are welcome, thanks!

Adam

 

How many miles does your engine have? It may not be a good idea to switch to synthetic if you have high mileage. The idea is that your seals are worn out and won't hold synthetic in as well. You might lose more. This is why people tend to switch to heavier oil on high-mileage engines. Synthetic is for the first or second oil change on a new car. Running it its whole life, the seals will be better maintained in the first place.

That's what I've heard.

Dan

 

I was told by the mechanic who did the compression check that putting synthetic oil in there would cause the seals to expand and it would eventually stop burning oil. he said he had a truck that was burning oil and he switched to synthetic and about 2 months later, it quit.... so i dont know, we'll just have to see i guess.... i think its a bit thicker... anyone have any experience w/this?

adam

 

That's cool - good news if it's true. Someone let us know if it works. My car could use the help too!

Dan