Anyone have any thoughts on which K & N to go with. I have heard the standard plastic tube would not heat the air as much as the polished 77 Series. If there is not much of a difference the 77 Series sure look nicer on my new 08' FX4 5.4. Any feedback would greatly be appreciated!

TommyRox

 

Go for the polished metal tube.

 

Yeah I am liking that one much better but have heard that they heat the air more.

 

the air is not sitting inside the intake tube long enough for the extra heat from the metal tube to make a difference. but if you want the metal rather than the plastic get the aem instead of the k&n. it has a dry filter so you dont need to worry about the oil and it filters better.

 

The polished looks better and I believe sounds better, but like you said, will get hotter. K&N posts better numbers and performance for the plastic over the metal intake.

Product Style: 57 Series FIPK
Estimated Horsepower Gain: 15.47 HP @ 3829 RPM

Product Style: 77 Series Kits
Estimated Horsepower Gain: 9.53 HP @ 3725 RPM

I don't know if you will actually notice any difference in power or performance, but you will notice the looks and sound.

I have no experience with either of these, I only have a K&N drop in. Hopefully someone who has one of these CAI will chime in.

 

I have the 57 series FIPK (plastic tube) on my 05 F150 xlt 5.4 and I love it. The sound is there and the larger power increase. I have a freind w/ the 77 series (metal tube). It has the same sound and a negligable difference in power. Youre really not going to notice 3-5 horses more or less. I like the plastic because I like that look better. If youre more of a shiny chrome guy go with the polished metal. Its all personal preference.

 

i have the polished 77 series, installed easy. but i am fighting a funny noise that is coming from it. Thought it was the egr valve but that was not it. I really like the look. noise is frustrating.

 

Thanks for the replies !!

I am looking at the Edge Evolution and I spoke to Bill from Power Hungy Performance who used to be the lead engineer for Edge Products and he tells me the Edge Evolution is geared more towards the engine without a cold air intake but they make a model that has a special tuine for that setup. He also told me that on the 2004 and up F150's they got almost the same same HP with the stock air intake or making a small mod to the tube that goes into the fender. Apparently the opening inside the fender into the air aintake is very small and you can cut it out or remove that piece and achieve almost the same results - or by using just a drop-in filer.

Renoved, is that why you are just using a drop-in?

 

I've been running a K&N 77 series with no issues at all. Looks good to!

 

same here! sounds good too! and was a bit cheaper in price than the plastic, and i still noticed a difference

 

then why does k&n give lower dyno numbers on their metal intakes vs their plastic ones?

 

I thought that too. We have two f-150's 04+ and on one I have the 57 series intake and the other I have a 77 series intake. I perfer the 77 series intake over the 57 series intake, for one the 77 series intake tube is almost twice the size of the plastic tube on the 57 series intake. And the throttle responce is way better with the 77 series intake. The 77 series is better made/put together. The 57 series had a butt load of parts to assemble it and every time I go to check on all the bolts on the 57 series intake they are all loose and I have to snug them back up again, I dont have to worry about this on my 77 series though. I would go for the 77 series intake, The web site it makes less power but in my case it was the opposite and it just looks a hell of alot nicer

 

why does the af1 intake have the best numbers and have a metal tube

 

when you put on just an intake on a big heavy truck like ours those few different numbers in horsepower between each intake really dont amount to s***

 

No way you will notice a few hp difference between the two intakes, but using a uninsulated metal tube usually leads to higher heat levels.

Some polished intakes are insulated from heat, some are not, but that could explain why the polished 77 series has a lower hp figure than the black plastic one.

I don't like the drop-in K&N filters because I don't think their seals are thick enough and lets unfiltered air into the engine, but a CAI could be different. I'm planning on the 57-Series (plastic) for my Expedition.