the air induction on these cars are different than the later ones.My question is since it pulls the air through the middle and out do i need a special KN Filter or will the normal ones work in reverse.

 

I not totally positive about what you are asking here. K&N does make an air filter that fits this specific car. I am unsure of the part number but have used them before. The air induction on an 87 should be on the passengers side front of the engine bay. SLP makes a nice cold air induction system that uses the same air filter and location, but bolts a new box up to that hole in the fender wall so that it draws cold air from underneath the car or you could always make your own. But again, K&N does make a filter for this car. Good luck.

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87 GTA 350 L98
K&N filters, beefed up TH-700r4, Accel Manifold, Ported Plenum and Runners, Fuel Press. Regulator 49.5psi, air foil, modified MAF, SLP cold air box, Hypertech Thermomaster chip w/160 thermostat, MSD 6AL and Blaster 3, B&M shift kit & megashifter, Moser Ford 9in Rear with Richmond 3.50 and locker, Edlebrock TES headers and Cat Back,Hotchkis setup in rear, Poly suspension and Koni in the front, relocated MAT, bypassed IAC,

Fastest ET's
Stock-0-60 6.8, 1/4 15.0 @ 94
Best-0-60 4.7, 1/4 12.8 @ 112
Norm-0-60 5.2, 1/4 13.2 @ 108

 

What he's talking about is the fact that the air cleaner is designed in such a way as that it draws air from the outside into the center of the filter element and draws the filtered air from the perimeter of the filter, and yes, the K&N or any filter designed for that setup will work.

That design was changed in either 88 or 89 so that the dirty air was drawn around the filter and the clean air was taken from the center, allowing owners to cut "windows" in the sides of the canister.

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Kevin Irving
85 Trans Am WS-6, 305 TPI, custom burned '86 PROM with '87 "165"ECM, Accel Supercoil & 8.8 Wires, MSD 6AL, Aluminum Driveshaft, Wonderbar, TB Coolant Bypass, Ported Plenum, Modified MAF, Syclone Fuel Pump, JET Airfoil

15.556 @ 86.65mph, Nov 10, 2000.... I know it sucks.. but it will get better!

http://www.geocities.com/transam85tpi/

Member - The Tidewater Trans Am Club, Norfolk VA http://www.geocities.com/ttacva/


[This message has been edited by Kevin Irving (edited March 31, 2001).]

 

If you are talking about putting a K&N cone one the end of the MAF this will also work. Just make sure that the air if filtered. The '87 airbox is pathetic!

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87 Formula 350 13.94@96.67
98 Z28 1LE 13.15@107.59
1LE Owners Association

 

I just took mine off and put a TPI filter on my MAF, works grat and now WINDOWS needed.

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FOR SALE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
86 Trans Am 355 TPI Rebuilt 700R4 with Corvette servo, modified valve body, and a B&M Torque Converter (2000 rpm stall w/ lock up), 87 350 block bored .30 with new crank. Reworked 305 heads with 3-angle valve job. Added in the rebuild was an SLP TPI cam, BBK 58mm Throttle Body,MSD 6A, Hypertech Power Coil,MSD Wires, 1.5 Crane roller tipped rocker arms, SLP Intake Runners and Port matching in upper intake including fully ported plenum, TPIS adjustable fuel pressure regulator @ 46psi, Hooker shorty style headers w/ Thermotech heat wrapping, Custom 3” exhaust with Flowmaster muffler and chrome quad tips, Hypertech Thermomaster Computer chip, K&N open element cone filter on modified MAF per TPIS specs, removal of A/C hardware and added a 1LE firewall cover installed. Also there has been a PST front suspension kit with Hotchkis strut tower brace added.
Stereo has 2 Clairion Pro Audio dash plates, 2 Sony 6X9s, 2 Kicker 12's in a custom Carpeted box with a custom amp rack Holding 3 MTX 280 Amps, and a MTX electronic Crossover all wired with EFX cable.
Asking $4200 with all extra Parts that are needed to fix most apearance flaws. ie Complete hatch and wing from a 91 GTA
http://geocities.com/feltsb/kyle.html
Kills:
95 Talon TSI, 96 Probe GT, 91 T/A L98, 89 RS, 86 Mustang GT, 88 Mustang LX 5.0, 92 Thunderbird V8. couple or ricers that I think were Civics or Preludes not sure what year, 95 Celica GT-S, 94 Chevy 1/2 ton 350, one of those NASCAR F150's

The Third Gen Will Never be Forgotten

 

I obviously own an 87 GTA and, yes, any filter designed for a stock air intake system equipped, pontiac third gen f-body, will work in that airbox even if it is for one of the ones that flow the other way. But!!......I highly recommend getting an air intake system off of an 88-92 car and putting a cone filter on the end of it because, as a few others have stated, the box style 85-87 air intake system blows huge numbers of goats. SLP also sells all of the hoses and brackets needed to convert your old system into the newer one and it includes a "cold air induction box" that pulls fresh, cold air in a round-about way off of the air dam. It's expensive but you can also buy the box seperate and get the other parts at the bone yard and be done with the whole thing for pretty cheap. Check out the SLP website and read up on the way the fender design feeds fresh air into the box. Hope that helps ...........