High Flow Air Intake an Inexpensive Way to Increase Power and Fuel Economy

Although technically a performance add-on, adding a High Flow Air Intake can be an inexpensive way to increase your horse power and increase fuel economy.  In this episode of Talk Shop, the team are installing a K&N High Flow Air Intake on this Monte Carlo.  The vehicle’s owner wanted to increase its horse power and fuel economy.  Based on the specs for this specific vehicle, the high flow intake should increase horsepower by 13.3 and the torque should increase to about 13.42 square-lbs of torque.  All for a cost of approximately $300.

K&N is the brand of filter we are using today.  When you buy a K&N filter, it is already pre-oiled and ready to go into the vehicle.  They provide all the parts you need to insulate your housing and seclude the air box.  You may want to buy a K&N Recharger Kit which comes with a cleaner and a lubricant.  It is a good idea to use this at the beginning/end of every season.

Most straight forward installs take about 1-1.5 hours.  Once the high flow intake is installed it might be a good idea to upgrade the fuel you fuel up with from from a regular unleaded to a premium, just to improve performance even more.

While doing this install, we found a regular maintenance issue with the previously installed air filter.  The air filter had obviously been left in there for a long time, with the owner knowing that we were going to install the K&N filter eventually.  It could have been removed earlier, however it certainly did its job.  The oil stain you see is because the air filter comes with an oil layer on it to “grab” the dirt before it gets through the filter.

A clogged air filter is like having a cold with a stuffy nose and not being able to breathe properly.  With a clogged air filter your engine cannot breathe properly and you will not get the best fuel economy.  Meaning you’re going to burn a lot of gas, and not enough air.  Air volume in a motor determines efficiency; the more air you get into the engine, the more efficient it is.  When you compare the size of the intake, just in the new K&N filter and the one we removed, the new filter is going to take in double the volume of the old filter.  Meaning that the more air you get into the motor, the leaner it runs.

A perfect mixture ratio for an engine is 14.7lbs of air to 1lb of fuel.  If you can maintain that, you will get exactly what your fuel economy should be.  For example, if it says you will burn 8L per 100km, than you will if you drive according to what it says and you’ve got the proper air getting into the engine.

Some guys will try to make their own intakes, sometimes it doesn’t work and it can actually restrict air intake.  On the other hand, if you’ve got too much air you can actually burn the engine out.  That’s why it’s important to always follow your manufacturer guidelines.  This vehicle and this kit are made to match.

After installation is complete, our team always double-checks all installations for anything that could cause issues further down the road.  Here, Vin is checking for wires hitting the sharp edges, and making sure everything is tight.  The rubber hose that goes on top of the unit sits tight against the hood and acts as an insulator for the cold air and also as a barrier for any debris trying to get in.

Why did we mention Cold Air?  Air from outside the engine is going to be a lot cooler than air under the hood.  When you seal off the unit with the rubber hosing, it lets you draw in the cooler air from outside and keeps the hot air from under the hood out.  The cooler air allows for more air molecules packed into a smaller area.  Remember that heat expands, meaning with hot air you get less air molecules than you would cold air molecules for the same size area.  Think of boiling water, which is expanded all over verses cold water which is contracted.

Before we start the engine, we connect the negative cable and listen for anything that may be rattling.  Once we’re confident with everything and everything feels smooth, we’ll take the car for a test-drive and feel the difference in power.

As always, we welcome your feedback.  Join the conversation on Facebook or Twitter or by leaving a comment below.  You can also email us if you have any questions or book an appointment online.  Also, check out our YouTube Channel for all of these Talk Shop videos and more from Season 1 and Season 2 of our Roger’s Original Series DRIVE!

Enjoy your ride and drive,

Vic