http://www.stillen.com/product.asp?i...K01&c=PE&b=K&N

I got my K&N series 77 from here for $270 delivered.

 

My buddie is the manager at a truck performance shop and i can get the k&n for 230. But like he says you pay for the name not the CAI. So why not save 80 bucks and get something cheaper that is still going to do the same thing.

 

Honestly, I couldn't find anything cheaper. I looked at Volant, Banks, AFE. All in that 300 beanrange. The K&N was at 320 for the best price I could find. When I saw the 270 Ijumped on it.

 

Have you ever read their warranty...it has so many stipulations for them not to cover it. Take a look on their site. I personally don't know of anyone that has been able to get one replaced. PLUS you would have to take the filter out, send it to them at your expense, wait for them to figure out a way not to cover it, and then by some act of God they might send you a new one after 2 weeks. In the mean time you have to go and buy a replacement filter so you can drive your truck and if your running a CAI you will need a cone filter that will probably be hard to find unless you buy another K&N. So where is the savings? I don't mean to go off on K&N here, but that is just the false sense of security that alot of leading manufacturers are providing that noone ever does anything about. I would love to hear some opinions here!

 

2002 CHEVROLET Silverado 1500 HD 6.0L V8 F/I - AllTruckFIPK57-3023-1

15.17 HP @ 5018 RPM
That was taken right from the K&N site - 15 HP at 5000 RPM. First off I am sure that is VERY generous, secondly how often is your truck at 5000 RPM? They don't have a dyno graph, but lets assume a 5 HP gain in the normal driving RPM range which is probably what you will see if you replace a dirty filter with a new stock replacement for $12 anyway, but that comes out somewhere around $50 per HP <----Not a good investment.

 

That is a good way of looking at it Shamrock! I guess unless you are pulling all the time in the mountains where your gas truck is up in those RPM ranges then it would pay off then. (It still would take a while to get your investment back in fuel savings)

I would rather people spend there money on maintenance versus those expensive CAI's. Maintenance will always pay off in the long run. Esspecitally when you don't have to fix so many problems when you get a little bit of mileage on your vehicle.
I have a K&N direct replacement filter and I am still thinking of cutting up my air box. (I don't drive my truck down the highway that much, so I think I would be pulling hotter air most of the time)

 

By the way I bought the cheaper one. The Spectre. Very satisfied for something i spent 100 bucks on. Definately wouldnt of spent 300 for a K&N.

 

You pay for the engineering and quality. Its all about the flow.

better flow = higher velocity of air = more air = more power + better mpg!

 

I agree to a point and I am sure that K&N put alot into the research, but all the R&D in the world doesn't justify $50 per horsepower when it is only realized in the 5000 RPM range. There are certain vehicles that benefit better from CAI and others that are have good airflow from the factory. I used to be big into 5.0 mustangs and that motor benefits greatly from larger mass air flow sensors and throttle bodies with a good flowing filter. The GM trucks just don't seem to benefit that much. Now I am sure alot will disagree here, but if we are honest with ourselves we will admit there isn't much of a difference between a 5.3 with a CAI and a 5.3 with a good clean Fram in it (for example). Save your $300 we are in a recession for God's sake <---Just kidding I am just as guilty as most of you of spending WAY to much on my vehicles. What it boils down to is we are still living in a free country (I think) so buy what makes you feel good and gives you something to talk/argue about while having a cold one with friends!!!!!

 

The thing is I am very satisfied with spending 100 bucks on a CAI that I honestly think gives me just as much power as a k&n or any other leading brand. Money is not a problem but spending 300 dollars for something or spending 100 dollars and getting the same thing out of it I'll stick with the 100 bucks and go from there and be satisfied with saving 200 dollars.