ThePowster Posted January 12, 2019 Share Posted January 12, 2019 So after reading about how good the K&N is, I blew 80 quid on one. Then I destroyed my grill and snapped my bonnet release lock. Sooo I'm probably talking about 140 quid all in after I replace the broken parts. So excited, started her up, went for a drive, and..... Barely anything, sounds cack lol... I can hear a faint and I mean, faint hiss, it's like a vacuum hiss but barely audible in the car, I'm really, really disappointed聽馃槩 Performance wise it felt eager to go and pulled in 5th from 40mph quite strong, but I wanted a bit of a sound. You can hear it outside the car no problem, just not in the cabin. Also the filter initially fit in the airbox right but then I pushed it in a bit further. This filter is a tad smaller than the one they said should fit the airbox. So now I ain't sure whats what with it. Some piccies if anyone else wants to give this a try but honestly, save ya 80 quid, take a Sheela out for a night out instead and put a normal filter in, at least you will have one smile on ya face lol. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JW1982 Posted January 12, 2019 Share Posted January 12, 2019 The problem is not the K&N air filter but the type of engine. It is a well known fact that most Diesel engines do not have a nice induction sound. Next to this the turbocharger also dampens a lot of the induction sound. Induction sound that simply is not there can not be improved by an air filter. I have the K&N聽E-9289 air filter combined with the RS air filter housing on my 1.0 ECOboost petrol engine. On my car the K&N air filter combined with the RS air filter housing resulted in a nice induction sound. However it is not extremely loud because the turbocharger dampens a lot of the noise. 聽 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WES180 Posted January 12, 2019 Share Posted January 12, 2019 Sounds great in my current 1.6 Ecoboost but sounded pants when i fitted one to my old 2.2 TDCi. The latter was promptly removed and sold on eBay! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePowster Posted January 12, 2019 Author Share Posted January 12, 2019 OK time for an update. I have taken the car for a good blast twice this evening and a few things have occurred to me. Firstly, I think I had unrealistic expectations. At end of the day it's an air filter, not a dump valve lol, it's just, in the past I had banged on a RamRaid kit on my Renault 5 GT Turbo and it had more fizzes and whizzes and pops n noises from that than I knew what to do with, sounded like a firework, all from a filter, so when I put this filter on the Focus with the end bit exposed I expected a little more than I got, that's all, and I didn't get it. That being said, I recognise it's just a filter on a low spec engine and I can hear it, it's just a bit meh. I bought this for the noise, was sick of hearing the tractor sound under the bonnet lol but what I have ended up getting is a way more spirited drive. I wouldn't say it's added power but it's allowed the engine to breathe a helluva lot better. With supermarket fuel in the car I have to be doing 50mph before I can put the car in 5th. With Optimax and Millers I can be in 5th just past 40, tonight man I was about 38mph in 5th and I was just feathering the throttle and this thing was just picking up, felt like it would have gone all way round to the red. I can tell in other gears, just rolling on the power there is a bigger surge and urgency about it, it's 100% made the car more alive than what it was, defo a performance increase because it can finally breathe a bit better. My old filter was black and had spiders in it聽馃か馃檮 So do I recommend one? .. If ya looking for a noise induction then no, if you are looking for a bit less lag and more driveability, quite a lot more actually, then I would say yes, it's a worthy investment. Not feeling as blue now as I was earlier聽馃槃 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F0CUE Posted January 13, 2019 Share Posted January 13, 2019 Mine is extra loud to the point of annoying on a long drive lol 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjt Posted January 14, 2019 Share Posted January 14, 2019 On 1/12/2019 at 8:57 PM, ThePowster said: My old filter was black and had spiders in it聽馃か馃檮 If it was that bad you'd have probably got just as much performance improvement by replacing it with an OEM one. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePowster Posted January 14, 2019 Author Share Posted January 14, 2019 Dunno why mine isn't singing then Ian, think I'm gonna have to take mine off just to check and make sure it's seated properly, but I am pretty sure it is. Yeah a stock one probably would have been just as good, still it's an upgrade as far as servicing goes and if I manage to get 200k out of it, it might have paid for itself lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePowster Posted January 19, 2019 Author Share Posted January 19, 2019 Hey guy's. I just wanted to update this post as things have changed since I last spoke about it and I didn't wanna give any newbie the wrong impression. Initially I hated this filter but as time has gone on my thoughts have changed. When first installed it, on the first drive I hardly heard it. On the second drive it sounded louder but still barely audible, maybe the ECU was compensating for the extra air, I am not sure but it defo got louder the more I drove. I have found a cool thing with it, in 5th gear at say 40mph, if you accelerate while its just labouring and picking up speed and come straight off the gas it will give a nice chirp from the turbo 馃檪 It doesn't work in any other gear so far, just 5th at 40. So I have been looking on the internet about RS and ST focuses because they are the daddies and I take a lot of inspiration from the performance versions, well a lot of those guys just remove the airbox lid. So I have just been out and taken the airbox lid off and crikey! I can hear it now聽馃槀 I've left the bottom part of the airbox on so the top is exposed and it's quiet loud and you can hear it sucking all that cold air in with each gear change. Finally I have the sound I was looking for, albeit with an exposed filter, but way I see it is, if it's good enough for RS guys to risk, it's good enough for me. So now it's doin' it's thang, my mods have been: Snorkel Delete Bonnet Sound Proofing Removal K&N 9289 Top airbox removal Feels quicker, sounds better, happy now with the induction noise, if anything it's a bit too loud lol. I am considering some bonnet vents now just to allow the hot air to escape from the engine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomsFocus Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 Just so you know, if you've got a fussy MOT tester, the airbox lid off is a fail since the new regs came out. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePowster Posted January 20, 2019 Author Share Posted January 20, 2019 Oh wow I didn't know that, cheers Tom for the heads up. I'll make sure I put that away somewhere safe then for MOT time :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon_K Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 There鈥檚 a chap selling RS style air box vents on eBay. RS, ST or plain. Have fitted one聽to my 1.6 TDCI and I quite like the sound, even with the standard paper filter. Haven鈥檛 noticed any problem with heat soak, but then I pretty much only commute.聽 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wilto Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 How much is he selling them for Simon,and do you have a link mate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F0CUE Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 27 minutes ago, wilto said: How much is he selling them for Simon,and do you have a link mate. If聽This is what he means 拢25 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePowster Posted January 20, 2019 Author Share Posted January 20, 2019 Aye I've seen those and they look good, add a bit more protection than no lid at all. Might have to treat mesen, gonna see how I get on with lid removed for a few days and reassess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon_K Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 This is the one I bought. Slightly different, same price 聽 聽 https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F142803916167 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePowster Posted January 29, 2019 Author Share Posted January 29, 2019 Hey chaps and chapesses. I just wanted to revisit this post now I have had time to get this sorted. So when I initially installed the K&N I was unhappy, but as time has gone on the car has only got better and better with this in. I now have removed the airbox lid and the car sounds great, 40mph in 4th, come off the gas and you get a lovely chirp from the turbo, it sounds just like a dump valve going off, it's a shame it doesn't do this all the time. This has been one of my better mods I would say to the car, you can really hear it sucking in all that cold air and the car does feel more lively for it. MPG also seems up a couple of MPG too. Highly recommended this mod, but leave the airbox lid off, you'll be glad you did 馃檪 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WES180 Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 You will have to see how it runs with the lid off in the spring/summer when the days are warmer. At the minute the engine bay heat will be offset with the freezing cold air temps but come spring/summer it will be sucking in warm air along with hot engine bay air so it might well hamper performance. The ST air box has a dual air feed so that would be a worthwhile swap along with the RS lid. The RS lid has a seal on the top of it which I can only assume is to seal against the underside of the bonnet so you get the amplified sound but then its not sucking the hot engine bay temps in. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePowster Posted January 29, 2019 Author Share Posted January 29, 2019 Yes I agree mate that will be the way to go come summertime, at the mo though it's loving the cold air lol. Maybe intercooler might be a worthy upgrade too and shouldn't cost the earth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon_K Posted January 30, 2019 Share Posted January 30, 2019 Tbh I haven鈥檛 noticed a great deal of difference during the summer. I watched a few interesting YouTube videos where they compared cold air feeds against no air box lid. They determined there isn鈥檛 much benefit as once you are rolling there should be cooler air flowing through the engine bay anyway. Maybe on a performance car on a track, but on my diesel estate, I鈥檝e been ok. YMMV.聽 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePowster Posted January 30, 2019 Author Share Posted January 30, 2019 That's great to know Simon, Cheers :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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