Just Installed A K&N Panel Air Filter In My tC. It's A Really Inexpensive Mod That Does A Lot. You Can Really Feel The Difference In Acceleration From The Line And On The Freeway. And Yes, They Do Not Make A K&N Panel Filter For A Scion tC Yet.... So What I Did Was I Measured The Ugly Stock Filter, Then Went To The k&n Website, And Looked At What Toyota Engines Matched That Same Size Filter. The Size Was An Exact Match To A Toyota Corolla. I Am Very Pleased. Cost Was Approx $60 From AutoZone. Here's Some Pics:





The K&N Part # Is: 33-2252

 

good job man

 

I am impressed that you paid $60 for a panel filter. I am a Process Engineer for a filter manufacturing company and the cost to produce a panel filter is around $1, add up that the K&N may have a wire screen and lets say $4 of total cost, then market price should be $10 to $15. No wonder K&N is getting rich.

By the way, a little piece of advice from the filtration area: The reason why filters like the K&N have lower air restriction is because their filtering media has bigger pores, what means that they let fine contaminants to go trough. Stock filters probably don't provide a "High Performance" flow, but the engine air is cleaner. I am not saying that to use those filters is completely wrong. They are fine for the track, where you are sure you are not going to find too much dust... but for every day driving a stock filter will make your engine happier and last longer.

Sorry for being long ;)

 

I've used K&N on all my cars and so has the rest of my family. The reason they are making so much money is that they are very dependable and the filters can be cleaned and reused. Anyhow, the typical price on a K&N panel filter goes for around $30 - $40... I was actually surprised when the price came out to around $60 especially for a Corolla filter.

And about the "fine contaminates"... I never heard of any engine problems or an engine not lasting as long from using a K&N filter. . . .

Anyways, if anyone is looking for a lil tad of performance without spending much this is a nice mod to do. I'm enjoying it very much.

 

If you never heard about it does not mean that it does not exist. Fine contaminants is a term commonly used by lab technicians. At our company we have specialized test benches to evaluate air flow, initial restriction, efficiency and dirt holding capacity. I have done myself many tests on oil filters following the SAE test procedures. If your K&N filter is properly maintained then is fine, just don't take your car trough dusty roads. I cannot provide actual data from filters test since is company private information and I could get fired if I share it, but you can research trough the internet. Look for those persons that don't like K&N filter and why. Also, do some deep investigation regarding how the filters work (surface filtration, deep filtration, types of media, surfactancts) and then you will be able to make a fully informed decision.

I have been working with filters last 8 years and I know what I am talking about, nevertheless I am not going to mention my employer because I am not doing any advertising here.

 

Also to calculate the efficiency of the filter you feed the contaminants (previously weighted) in the air stream and. After a certain time you will end up with the weight of contaminants remaining in the system, the weight of contaminants trapped by the filter (dirt holding capacity) and the fines or contaminants that went past the filter... yes, past the filter unless your filter is 100.0000% efficient. Those fines must be filtered trough a "millipore absolute membrane" and weighted. The total weight less the weight of the membrane tells you how much fines went past the filter. Compare that number with the trapped dirt and then calculate the efficiency... (Trapped dirt + fines) / trapped dirt = Efficiency. Fines contaminants are always present, that is the reason filters have different efficiencies, all of them different from 100%.

Nevertheless, less air restriction not always means less efficiency, it depends on the type of media used. Some of them are: Cellulose Phenolic media with fiberglass, regular cellulose phenolic media, Cellulose with melaminic resin media, cotton, foam, etc. The best medias according to lab tests are those with fiberglass because they provide high efficiencies with low air restriction.

 

zZzzzzZz

 

I wish I was the owner of K&N... we need more people like you!!!

 

ohhh yea... and what kind of people are you referring to? *takes a sip of coffee*

 

lol this is funny keep its going although i think niguels has a stronger argument then 05 does but has this is fun to watch.

 

see the thing is... there is no argument. i dont give a crap bout wut niguels types. i agree that he makes some nice suggestions but other than that its nothing.

 

If anyone's really worried about this, go buy the TRD air filter.

Can't be more than 60 bucks, and if it messes up the engine, it's Toyota's fault, not yours.

 

Hey 05_scion_tc, I was just trying to give the point of view of somebody that really knows about filters because I produce them EVERYDAY.

If you want to play deaf it is OK, you will remember me when you grow up.

Hey, after all is a free country... I can speak my mind freely and you can do whatever you want to your car.

By the way, did you look at the warranty in their web page, there are two things that are important to mention:

1. Their filters are warranted against defects for one million miles. Do they mention what kind of warranty you can enforce if one of their filters mess up your engine... noooo! at most they will give you a new filter. Other manufacturers do pay if their product damages your engine.

2. You remember what I told you about dust and fines. Well look again at their warranty. The filter is warranted for 1 million miles as long you don't drive on dusty roads or "Off-Road" use, in which case the filter is only warranted for one year. Can you see a trend here with what I told you about dust fines.

At least K&N knows what I am talking about.

I agree with Somnambulated

 

I meant the K&N Warranty

http://www.knengineering.com/
;)

 

thanks niguels.... i appreciate your input .... i have read the warrenty, but i still dont believe that an everyday filter will make my engine happier and last longer. but you seem to know more than me. who cares, i'm happy with the effect the K&N is giving me.

 

ok, closed topic on this side ;)