Will a K & N filter be beneficial for my 88 TBI?

Also, how about an open Air Cleaner system? It's 14" right?

 

The K&N filters do flow a little better than a stock type filter, but the price you pay is more dirt gets thru. If I'm racing I'll use a K&N filter, but for a daily driver or street car I'll go with a good quality stock type filter element, I like the Wix ones. The amount of HP increase you will get with a K&N filter versus a stock type filter is pretty small.

However increasing the surface area of your intake filter system (for example by going to a bigger filter) is a win, just use a quality stock type element for a street car.

Keep in mind that when they show tests of a "racing" filter versus a stock filter they show the flow increase when the only restriction is the air filter itself, and you can see a big difference then. However if you do the test with the entire intake system, ie air filter, tbi or carb unit, intake manifold and cylinder head, the flow increase you will see with a racing filter is very minor, to the point of being hard to measure the difference.

If you go to a fully open element system you get less restriction, but you are putting hotter air in the engine. If you go open its best to increase the paths that cool air have to make it into the engine compartment, for example by taking out anything in the cowling area that restricts air flow.

If you search thru these forums you'll hit lots of discussions on both cool air and open TBI intake systems. On many stock TBI engines the air intake system is pretty bad, so its worth it to improve it, and you'll get a bigger gain from that than from just switching to a K&N type filter.

Paul T.

 

I have a k&n filter and i like it. Mostly b/c i can buy a recharge kit and clean instead of buying a new one. I thought it helped and did not feel i was loosing any filtering b/c of it.

 

thanks for the info