Banks vs K&N Air Intake

[jwgreen77]

I am looking at putting an new air intake into my truck. Some of my friends have K&N intakes but I have been reading a lot about Banks. Does anyone have any input on what would be better. I have a 2008 F150 Supercrew Lariat 5.4L. Maybe its better to run the whole Banks Power Pack?? Cost is not an issues. Just want to know whats better.

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[06' Ford]

Banks all the way. IMO.

[used2vtec]

IMO its really user preference. I bet they both perform very similar in real world driving conditions. If you plan on doing a programmer with it id just shell out the cash and go with the Banks. You know with that one the tune you will be getting is made for that intake. Decide what tuner you want and contact them to see if they offer a tune for the intake you want.

[GDGemmer]

I have an Air Raid because thats what 4 Wheel Parts keeps stocked. I have the nasty intake drone any guess on whether or not a different intake will make a difference???

[TruckGuy24]

The Banks is nice so I would recommend that from feedback I have seen. Also, don't get their tuner, get a custom tuned set-up so a PHP Gryphon or a Troyer/VMP XCAL 3

[avfrog]

I bought cheap ebay CAI. I have no idea how it performs compared to name brands though.

[GDGemmer]

Hmmm... I'm not all that apt to spend a couple hundred bucks just to test it either lol!

[avfrog]

$80

[4.6 Punisher]

Depending on the price, there might be better CAI's out there:
S&B
Volant
"Do It Yourself" Gotts Intake

Those are all enclosed, while the K&N isn't. Keep in mind that until you get custom tunes, you aren't gaining much at all.

[rdnk217]

I have had the banks for over a year and love it, through most of the RPMs it resonates a potent sound, but usually around 1900 its a flat out drone, displeasing when im cruising highway speeds and that's where the RPMs land, but i usually just set the cruise up or down a few MPH to silence it

[avfrog]

I kind of wish mine made some noise...

[carolinaboy32]

Originally Posted by TruckGuy24

THanks is nice so I would recommend that from feedback I have seen. ALso, don't get their tuner, get a custom tuned set-up so a PHP Gryphon or a Troyer/VMP XCAL 3

X2 my buddy bought the power pack for his 05 and the upgrades are awesome but the programmer was not that great. He went with a hypertech max energy programmer....wish I knew about the Gryphon back then would have told him to get that instead

[jwal]

search summit racing. they have a CAI that they market under their name and when i called to ask about it i was told that it's really a K&N intake it just doesn't carry the same warranty. i beleive it was around $250. i have the 2006 5.4

[timmypstyle]

with a good intake, you should gain some HP but mostly throttle response. i drive a 08 4.2L 5 speed and the intake added a lot. it is from K&N but it is for a 04 heritage 4.2L so i had to rig it a little to fit. K&N doesnt make a intake for the 4.2L from 06+. that is why i kept my 04's and put it on. on both trucks i noticed a difference in both mpgs and power. the 04 with 3.08 rear end and a 5 spd got 18.9mpg combined stock. K&N drop in went to 19.9 then intake went to 22.5mpg. on my 08 it is less aerodynamic and weighs more and all that plus has 3.55 rear end and i gained about 1.5mpg from stock with my intake. i get about 19.5 combined. both truck tho it seems i can play around all day, go to the drag strip, drive 80-100mph and still get over 17mpg. i got 17.25mpg after driving 85mph for almost 1 hr to the drag strip, then ran 2 runs and drove home 85mph floored it from a stop to 100 a few times, then filled up. 17.25mpg. and i dont have drone from the intake but it does whistle from about 2k-4500 in all gears except 1st. you will notice more gain if you have a manual tranny, auto you will notice the throttle response more than anything i would guess. i dont have a tuner but it is on my list, just want some cosmetic stuff first. K&N has been around awhile and so has banks. and air raid or volant, cant remember which, is the only one that makes an intake for the 06+ V6 but they are over $300 and it still uses the stock intake tube. its full price for half an intake. i paid $305 for my K&N 77 series intake and it works great.

[beechkid]

If you do an online search for “air filter test” there is a lot of very good information. IMHO, the CAI units are NOT WORTH THE $$! Unless you are talking about a system that was specifically designed for a specific application there are very little hp/tq gains actually achieved in a street use vehicle and there are very few docs that these mfg’s can produce that actually show an increase in hp/tq in the power-band range of a relatively stock street vehicle.

I would avoid oil impregnated filters. While they have their purpose in off-road applications, Ford/GM/Dodge all have “watch-out” bulletins where the oil has contaminated intake sensors. - they even have a training video for the tech's on this (flatratetech.com) .

If you look at the flow data, WIX HP filters flow 98+% of K&N and have a much smoother flow post filter plus excellent filtering, for a fraction of the price! The OE’s have an excellent air intake system the only possible issue that really exists is the plastic intake tube with it’s noise canceling design! An engineer from Ford wrote an article regarding the fluid dynamics design and had specific comments regarding the aftermarket "dyno test" showed on several popular TV shows- basically paralleled my opinions.

You can use a WIX OEM HP replacement filter in the OEM plastic manifold box and either remove the plastic tube and replace it with a piece of pipe/hose, etc or remove the tube completely and replace the tube by building an air ram type intake into the air box manifold (where the pipe use to attach)- make sure ti terminates above the fan shroud to avoid water intake or fan induced pulsations.