Are Performance Air Filters Worth the Extra Cost?

Performance air filters claim to increase horsepower and improve acceleration, but do they actually work better?

The idea behind performance air filters is that a less restrictive air filter means the engine doesn’t have to work as hard to bring in air. That means it’s more efficient and makes more power.

It could also mean the engine pulls in more air, and with more air, the engine can inject more fuel to make more power.

Four air filters included in this test:

1. Dirty OE filter
2. Clean OE filter
3. Low-cost aftermarket filter (CarQuest Premium)
4. Expensive performance filter (K&N)

To measure differences in horsepower and torque, each filter was put on a Mustang dynamometer, with multiple runs. A VBOX was used to measure real world acceleration differences…