okay im the k and n air filter rookie from last week so the verdict is its total bs!i noticed nothing how often does one really gun a truck anyhow and the mpg is exactly the same.on another note i waxed the truck this weekend with mothers carnuba (im sure i spelled that wrong) and thats the best wax i have ever used .blitz and mcquires (spelled wrong im sure} cant touch this wax ,im referring to the wax in the red can.also i think my fx4 will be waxed at least 10 times from the same can .

 

Just curious...did you just replace the filter, or did you install a cold air intake kit?

 

giive me the cold air intake story and wont it make my warranty void keep it simple im learning

 

As to the warranty. It has the potential to void the warranty. I've seen many Ford PCED files on the F-150s and for the diesels as well and they mention air filters as a possibility for warranty voiding.

Now this will probably generate another heated discussion, much like the two K&N threads that we just saw.

If Ford really wanted to, it would be very easy for them to void your warranty with the presence of a cold air kit or even just the filter. They have done it to the diesels quite a bit and I'm sure they've done it to the gassers as well.

It really doesn't matter who is right or wrong, it is who has the deeper pocket. You run the risk of your warranty being voided though, even with just the drop in filter that you have.

 

kand n told me it was the air filter that ford has agreed to not cancel warranty they even assure all of us they will fight that battle for us which of course could be just sales bs .now of course im certain the cold intake would void the warranty and it should too.so i assume the entire point of installing a cold intake is 20 more hp and i assume a different sounding truck?what else is the advantage to the intake and if its mpg with all do respect this rookie knows nothing is gonna help that gas guzzler what so ever new intake or not.i bought a ford truck awful mpg cant be helped i knew that going in

 

Salesmanship right there. I wouldn't believe that. Way way too many variables and too many ways for them to renig on that.

In all the PCED PDFs that I've read, there is no mention of air filters except K&N can void the warranty. There is also no mention of drop in filters versus cold air intake systems. It is the broad general term of aftermarket air filters. I would get it in writting from Ford or a Ford Dealership that they won't void the warranty at even if it was caused by the K&N. That they would treat it as if it were a stock intake.

I doubt that they would do that at all. Ford is the one that you want that from, not K&N or atleast not only from K&N.


Your best deal is the different sounding truck. I don't subscribe to their HP claims. First off, I do believe they say "in general" for their claims, so you may or may not even see that.

Different sound, looks, and maybe the advantage of being able to reuse the same filter are about the only advantages to a/m filters for an otherwise stock truck. I don't believe people when they say that their aftermarket intake was the sole reason for them picking up that extra 2-4 mpg after they installed it. There is just no way that the average driver has the ability to be able to make that determination considering all the variables that go into MPG. I'm not saying that they may not have calculated better MPG since they installed the filter, but I doubt that they can show that it was indeed because of the filter and the filter alone that they saw the raise in MPG and even then the next time they calculate their MPGs it might have gone down. Those calculations do fluctuate on occasion due to those variables.

 

If you want to investigate an aftermarket intake, ask the manufacturer for the dyno sheet.

What you'll see is the 10-12hp gain starts above 3500 RPMs (usually peak is above 4500) and below 2500 RPMs (where most of us drive most of the time), the torque and hp curves are nearly identical.

You'll also see that the manufacturers WILL NOT guarantee any MPG increase, but they will claim some of their customers do see an increase.

 

Well, I have a Flowmaster cat back and an Airaid CAI on my FX4...and I now get 45 mpg at 125 mph climbing a 45% grade...a remarkable increase from the original 38 mpg at 125 climbing that same grade...!!!

Seriously...why would I lie?

 

Not to highjack the thread but....

Alot of the voided warranty stuff can be handled by getting a good relationship going with your local Ford Service Dept. I count myself pretty lucky to have a great Ford Service Dept close by as they have never scouffed at my modded vehicles that were still under warranty. Hell they even have a division in their delaership that mods vehicles as well. They sell them with tuners, CAI, lift kits, leveling kits, exhaust you name it. On my old 2004 they would even remind me to either bring in my tuner or untune my truck just incase they would have to mess with the computer for anything. They never did but it was nice of them to think about it just incase.

 

Very very true. I've gotten a couple of things warrantied on my 6.0 while it still had one despite my level of modding. However, you have to realize that the dealership does that at their on risk. If they get caught, they foot the bill. I've known people that had ARPs put in under warranty, however, they still had to go to that one dealership to get their work done, because the one down the street may not honor that same agreement.

While that is possible to have that happen, more then likely you'll have to get all your warranty work done at that one dealership as that is not endorsed(atleast not in public) by Ford. If you travel a lot that may be an issue, if you don't, then it's worth a shot, but you are still going to want to get that from your dealership in writting from the person that you talked to. They might say one thing and then when it comes time to ante up, they don't honor it.

 

This statement couldnt be more accurate!

The other Filter I would say to check out is the Bully Dog intake. Everything they are doing now is Injection Molded, fully enclosed and tooled using OEM specs. They have yet to have one voided warranty. In terms of their filter versus K&N - in a flow test BDs filter could suck in a cat and still outperform K&N. The more research I do, the more impressed I am. Even SB outperforms K&N... nothing against K&N...have one myself but will be changing soon.

 

1. The stock filter assembly is a true cold air intake, better sealed against hot air intake from the engine compartment than the truly funky/cheap/overpriced aftermarket boxes. Really, I've never seen anything so tacky looking.

2. I used to be a K&N user. I had elevated silica levels in a few oil tests on my Dmax, never thought much about it until I saw this a few years back. I ripped it off and never looked back: ISO 5011 Duramax Air Filter Test Report

I know, there's a strong desire to upgrade and get more hp, but really, the term "cold air" term is just hooey as there's no vehicle made today that draws it's air from the hot engine compartment.

This post is bound to cheese people off who'll swear that they've used 'em for years, yada yada yada... That's ok, keep using them. The test appears genuine to me.

 

I actually love these posts. Not because the K&N did nothing to improve anything but because the truck clearly was built to be as economical as it's going to be.

If one were to spend $500 on bolt on mods to improve MPG's and HP and it actually did make a slight difference, is the money spent really worth it?

If you need more power, buy a truck better suited to handle the work that you require. If your looking for a truck that will work on occasion, then get the 4x2 truck with a 4.6L 3V and 3.15 axle. That's how the 2009 SFE trucks came.

 

Yeah, that pretty much proves the point... Tough for anyone to argue with this. But I am sure some zealot will try...

 

Now there is a grate drop in filter out there fropm Greenfilters i had one in my 08 250 with the 6.4 and my oil reports came back grate.As well it is a filter that relly did what you want from them you could feal more power in that truck from it.I may put one on my new 150 when the time comes but i do recmond checking them out.