Cold Air Intake Tundra

[LongArmoftheLaw]

I?m sure with the popularity of K&N products some of you have a fair bit to say about their cold air intakes. Looking to put a cold air intake on a 2020 Tundra. Checked out K&N and have had some buddies put them in their vehicles. I?ve also looked at the manufacturer S&B. Anyone have any experience with S&B or both?

[BushMasterBoy]

Cold air intakes do not really produce that much more power. You have to be careful with K&N air filters as they are oil soaked and the oil can affect the "Mass Air Flow" sensor. I'd stash the money for maintenance costs of the future. A set of headers will give more bang for the buck. If you really want to make a good investment add a 40000 btu transmission cooler like TruFlo.


https://kandn.com/dynocharts/63-9036_dyno.pdf

https://www.jegs.com/i/Flowtech/387/11146/10002/-1?gclid=CjwKCAjws--ZBhAXEiwAv-RNLyoQWfW7ewVvk2kUhm3AOm0D0rCEKYops1KRwriW_b8fHA8i VnlqExoCYRgQAvD_BwE

[battlemidget]

FWIW, I do not like wet air filters on 4 stroke motors unless it's a dirtbike. I like paper air filters, they're cheap so you can change them frequently.
I think K&N is a big marketing machine that's convinced people that they can buy an expensive filter and then 'maintain' it with product. Any vehicle built in the last 20-30 years has a well designed engine compartment that's designed to work together. Don't mess with the airbox. It's designed the way it is to keep water out and not compete with the radiator fan.
Wet air filters are for 2 stroke motors.

[TRnCO]

waste of money IMO. Your Tundra already takes in "cold air" from outside of the engine bay.

[colorider]

Cold air intake is a term that makes me giggle. Is there a refrigerator section under the hood that is storing this air? Does it only work in cooler air temps? K&n is a great product for letting more particulate into your engine.

[SouthPaw]

I like paper air filters, they're cheap so you can change them frequently.

This is why I stopped using them. Having to buy a special cleaner, oil and then waiting 24 hours for it to dry was a royal PITA. I now change my air filters on both my trucks pretty much every oil change since they are so cheap. Most air intakes from the factory are 'cold air'. Looking at a picture of you the stock airbox on your truck, it appears it pulls air from outside the fender, which would be the coldest air available.

https://i.postimg.cc/brCT3Yyr/tndra.jpg (https://postimages.org/)

The only time I've used after market air intakes was on high performance diesels. I've used both S&B and K/N and both fit great, but again. those were in high performance diesel applications. Save your money

[eddiememphis]

I put one on my FJ and it made a noticeable and demonstrable increase in acceleration.

It is a dry filter so maintenance is easy.

It is not the "cold air" that makes a difference, it is a much less obstructed path for the airflow.

https://photos.smugmug.com/Other/FJ/i-s77KWMR/0/a753bfd9/M/IMG_0747-M.jpg

Stock airbox. Inside it are baffles to quiet the intake noise but they also slow the air as it finds it's way through the labyrinth.

https://photos.smugmug.com/Other/FJ/i-NmjTtbS/0/4e956517/M/IMG_0752-M.jpg
https://photos.smugmug.com/Other/FJ/i-8JBhD83/0/1ca9c721/M/IMG_0757-M.jpg

K&N- a single tube and much straighter shot to the throttle body.

Headers work well also. Engines are air pumps. More air in, more air out= more power.

This the third personal vehicle I have done it on.

Oiled filters suck- don't use them, unless you clean them frequently like on a dirtbike. They get clogged and can collapse when the airflow is restricted.

This filter has given me almost 50k trouble free miles and I still enjoy it when I am getting on the freeway.

[ray1970]

I put one on my FJ and it made a noticeable and demonstrable increase in acceleration.


If you had ?noticeable and demonstrable? performance gains from the air filter setup I?m going to call BS unless you have time slips from Bandimere proving it.

[LongArmoftheLaw]

Cold air intakes do not really produce that much more power. You have to be careful with K&N air filters as they are oil soaked and the oil can affect the "Mass Air Flow" sensor. I'd stash the money for maintenance costs of the future. A set of headers will give more bang for the buck. If you really want to make a good investment add a 40000 btu transmission cooler like TruFlo.


https://kandn.com/dynocharts/63-9036_dyno.pdf

https://www.jegs.com/i/Flowtech/387/11146/10002/-1?gclid=CjwKCAjws--ZBhAXEiwAv-RNLyoQWfW7ewVvk2kUhm3AOm0D0rCEKYops1KRwriW_b8fHA8i VnlqExoCYRgQAvD_BwE

This was my concern about a wet filter…for the price of them and not a great performance increase, the more I’m talking myself out of installing one.

[LongArmoftheLaw]

Thank you all for your input, I do appreciate it.

[LongArmoftheLaw]

Eddiememphis, have you also installed new headers in addition to the K&N?

[kwando]

Another thing to consider is, if you live on a dirt road. I’ve heard stock a OEM filters are better at trapping dust. Don’t want to dust your motor.

[BushMasterBoy]

Might want to try tundras.com and see what the Tundra owners say there. I want to add you might want to get a Blue Driver OBDII scan tool before you buy anything else. This tool can save you thousands as many repair shops charge exorbitant fees for some very simple repairs. And yes Blue Driver will give you live readings to help you keep your engine in tip top condition.

https://us.bluedriver.com/pages/bluedriver

[eddiememphis]

If you had ?noticeable and demonstrable? performance gains from the air filter setup I?m going to call BS unless you have time slips from Bandimere proving it.

That's fine since you were not sitting there as we did 30-60 and 40-60 mph roll-on tests in third and fourth gear. I wanted to see if it made more power or just noise. About a second difference 30-60 in both and a tiny bit over 2 seconds 40-60 in third gear.

I did not do it at the drag strip because I wasn't aware that 5 years later a stranger would be calling me a liar.

Once again, it is not just the filter that makes the difference. It is removal of the obstructive and labyrinthine stock intake system.

[eddiememphis]

Eddiememphis, have you also installed new headers in addition to the K&N?

Not on the FJ.

On other vehicles, sure. It depends on how restrictive the stock manifolds are but it often can make an amazing increase in power. Of course then you need a larger downstream exhaust system...

This was much easier on non-emissions vehicles. Intake, exhaust and a cam can turn Mom's '68 Malibu into a rip snortin' Chevelle!

[ray1970]

Once again, it is not just the filter that makes the difference. It is removal of the obstructive and labyrinthine stock intake system.

You mean the baffles that the stupid Toyota engineers designed to increase your engines performance and efficiency by decreasing turbulence in the air intake?

I?ll apologize for calling BS on your earlier claim of a noticeable performance increase and I am definitely not familiar with your education or your history in the automotive industry or any experience you may have in any sort of racing environment.

There?s just so much aftermarket garbage being hyped these days and people are buying it up and throwing it on their hoopties and lying to themselves that it made a difference beyond decreasing the amount of money in their checking account.

[eddiememphis]

You mean the baffles that the stupid Toyota engineers designed to increase your engines performance and efficiency by decreasing turbulence in the air intake?

I mean the baffles that the very bright Toyota engineer designed to maintain maximum performance while being constrained within ever more restrictive parameters set forth by legislative bodies governing noise emissions.



...I am definitely not familiar with... any experience you may have in any sort of racing environment.

I live my life a quarter mile at a time.

[BushMasterBoy]

Most of the stock intakes are designed to reduce intake air noise. A smooth simple tube will make much more noise. The only real solution to get a significant horsepower boost on a Tundra is a supercharger at about $8K.

91686

[fitz19d]

cold air on any recent tundra a waste, already is one.

[LongArmoftheLaw]

Not on the FJ.

On other vehicles, sure. It depends on how restrictive the stock manifolds are but it often can make an amazing increase in power. Of course then you need a larger downstream exhaust system...

This was much easier on non-emissions vehicles. Intake, exhaust and a cam can turn Mom's '68 Malibu into a rip snortin' Chevelle!

Ah yes the exhaust system would be next on the “to do” list if I moved forward.

The days when a car was actually a car and not a computer with wheels…

[LongArmoftheLaw]

Another thing to consider is, if you live on a dirt road. I’ve heard stock a OEM filters are better at trapping dust. Don’t want to dust your motor.

Unfortunately after moving back to this state, I have no dirt roads around. Hooray suburbia…

[Hummer]

Interesting discussion. So do all you fellas have a Tundra, except maybe eddiememphis? I know SouthPaw has a gen 1 Tundra like mine.

[fitz19d]

I had a 2015, did LTH and other stuff, so yes had done some research and that was the consensus among many owners on modding the airbox. many still guided with it just for sound anyways.

[BushMasterBoy]

I got 5 trucks. One truck I want to tubocharge, has a 454 CI GM motor. I have the turbocharger kit, just have to build a low compression ratio motor. It would only run on high octane fuel or E85. It should make 450 HP without too much effort or expense. My latest acquisition is 1995 GMC Sierra 3/4 ton with a 350 ci small block, it needs a differential rebuild. It was Kansas county maintenance truck. The beauty of the old GM trucks is the availability of aftermarket high power addons. Or just drop in a LSX engine.

https://www.chevrolet.com/performance-parts/crate-engines/lsx/lsx-454

[eddiememphis]

I got 5 trucks. One truck I want to tubocharge, has a 454 CI GM motor. I have the turbocharger kit, just have to build a low compression ratio motor. It would only run on high octane fuel or E85. It should make 450 HP without too much effort or expense. My latest acquisition is 1995 GMC Sierra 3/4 ton with a 350 ci small block, it needs a differential rebuild. It was Kansas county maintenance truck. The beauty of the old GM trucks is the availability of aftermarket high power addons. Or just drop in a LSX engine.

https://www.chevrolet.com/performance-parts/crate-engines/lsx/lsx-454

A turbo and E85 will get you a lot more than 450 depending on the cam.

450 at the flywheel is pretty easy with a roller cam, decent intake and exhaust, depending on where in the powerband you are looking to make the power.

An engine that makes 500 lb.ft of torque at 3000 rpm will have less horsepower than one that makes it at 8000 rpm.

[eddiememphis]

Interesting discussion. So do all you fellas have a Tundra, except maybe eddiememphis? I know SouthPaw has a gen 1 Tundra like mine.

Which engine?

Nevermind...

I need to stop looking at this thread.

I am flashing back to my 20's, standing around in a cold shop late at night, killing cases of beer, arguing about cam lobe profiles and other esoteric aspects of engine building.

[fitz19d]

Which engine?

Nevermind...

I need to stop looking at this thread.

I am flashing back to my 20's, standing around in a cold shop late at night, killing cases of beer, arguing about cam lobe profiles and other esoteric aspects of engine building.

By long chance know any performance shops in Oklahoma or possibly Colorado? Starting to flirt with what to do to my gen 3 coyote.

[eddiememphis]

By long chance know any performance shops in Oklahoma or possibly Colorado? Starting to flirt with what to do to my gen 3 coyote.

No, I have always done the work and tuning myself.

Much of the work these days is done with a laptop. As a professional, I set my tools down about 15 years ago.

I am more of a carb and cams kind of guy than a turbo and injection nerd.

My favorite are two-strokes. Expansion chambers are an incredible blend of art and science.

[Doc45]

Sooo my 2010 Nissan Titan came from the prior owner with the K&N system installed (bought it 4 years ago. also has a freeflow muffler on it). I got the original intake with the truck, currently just over 83k miles. Is the recommendation to switchback to the original intake? If so can anyone recommend someone to handle this for me?

[fitz19d]

Sooo my 2010 Nissan Titan came from the prior owner with the K&N system installed (bought it 4 years ago. also has a freeflow muffler on it). I got the original intake with the truck, currently just over 83k miles. Is the recommendation to switchback to the original intake? If so can anyone recommend someone to handle this for me?

Most were talking about tundras that has a good stock air box. I have no idea about a Titan. More concern that an airbox swap, is if it's an aftermarket filter itself, you need to maintain and clean many of the oiled filter types, if it can still take stock paper filter that's the best for longevity if you arn't trying to obtain "sick gains" of 2 hp via a high flow race filter that means it lets more shit thru.

[Doc45]

Thanks fitz, I almost started a separate thread but wanted to tag on to here on the off chance someone knew. I've run K&N filters on all my motorcycles pretty much since they came on the market-mostly just as one part of a performance package with re-jetting a carb or using a tuner on a fuel injected built up motor along with more open exhaust.

Apologies if I muddied the waters here.