CAI may be coming off!

[Keywasted]

Thank you all for your input. It is appreciated and very useful in helping me decide what to do.

KeyWasted

[thumbster]

It's totally safe to clean the MAF sensor with the non-flammable formulated brake cleaner (red can). CRC also makes a specially formulated MAF sensor cleaner that will work. I've cleaned dozens of these sensors this way and have never had a bad result - even on my newer vehicles. I believe it's routine maintenance to clean a vehicle's MAF sensor and do so with every air filter change, regardless whether or not your running an oiled filter. Blowby gases from the engine can contaminate the sensor just as much.

Oiled air filters such as the K&N will to some degree always contaminate the MAF sensor - It's no urban myth! Despite this fact I still run this style of filter on most of my vehicles. The smart thing to do with these filters is to let them sit on a paper towel overnight to bleed of some of the excess oil. Even with a properly oiled filter you will still get some oil aerosol on the MAF sensor - you just have to routinely clean it. BTW, the TRD drop in filter is an oiled cotton gauze filter made by AFE.

[rovin]

I have been waiting for someone to mention TRD. To me, this type of issue is just another reason to get it. Dealer can raise no objections with it. No warranty issues. No Smog issues. No fit problems. At least as good as any other CAI on the market IMO.
I had a problem smogging my T-bird once. Dealer said the MAF sensor was bad and sold me a new one. It was reading "'out of range"
The smog guy told me that just indicated that it was dirty and cleaning would fix it. Long story short the dealer refused to give the old part back and refunded the $300 they had charged me for the new sensor ( I kept the sensor).
I agree with the poster that (many) dealers are fos, and will say/do anything to milk your wallet.

[63 shelby]

I agree with Rovin, I went with the TRD cai and even had Toyota install it, not because I couldnt, just because I wanted NO warranty issues to come up. The performance #'s are almost exactally the same as any other, it looks and sounds ausome! and if anything ever goes wrong they sold it to me, they put it on, I'm covered.

[rxbike]

I can agree with the above about the TRD. The dipping the MAF sensor in oil is not the issue but rather the oil coating the sensor attracts dirt to stick on to it is the problem. I remember when I had a ford 7.3 turbo diesel with the AFE filter, the setup I had was an H2 turbo, and a custom 3 stage chip with 4" exhaust that would put out close to 560 rwhp and close to 790 lbs of torque, I routinely found a thin film of dirt/oil coating the intake pipe between the filter and the turbo. Luckily the pipe contained most of it and my turbo never chunked. I can see how the strait pipe set up of these CAI can allow dirt/oil to coat the MAF sensor especially when the filter could have been overoiled.

[Only Toyota for me]

Originally Posted by Keywasted

It must have come over oiled from K&N?

You may be correct.

KeyWasted

They do.

I've been using k&n for years without issues (now using AFE). But i always cleaned the filter before putting it in the truck when new. I think they soak the filter in a bucket of oil before they ship it out or something.

I'm with you on the intake. I say send it back & get a TRD replacement filter and use the stock airbox.
And then you can put the extra $200 in your pocket.

[bilztrd]

I have used a K&N drop in on toyotas in the past. I did fid a little performance imrpovement but it the vehicle a mildly rough idle((1 toyota P/U and a 03 sequoia).
I talked with a K&N rep at the county fair and she said she had heard of this with toyotas. Offered to return/replace the filter(on the 91).I kept it because there weren't many options for this truck and I felt the gains were there.

[robsatx]

I race quads (for fun, not that good :-) ), my latest project is a raptor 700 SE. I am in the process of testing out fuel maps with a new exhaust system and intake options. Most seasoned racers (I consider myself a newb) will tell you that K&N does allow more air flow but at the expense of more particles entering your engine. This is a huge concern on this quad because it is fuel injected . . .
So needless to say, I will probably NOT go K&N on my Raptor, but do have them on my Son's Honda 250EX with and aftermarket exhaust and My wifes Honda 250ex without an aftermarket exhaust.

If K&N makes a pre-filter (sock) for their system then how well does the K&N perform (protectionwise) without the sock?

Hmmm. . . .

before someone says that is for water protection . . . might want to read the fine print.

BTW, I get tired of 450 (honda, yammy sukzuki does not matter) folks calling it a craptor, funny how they shut up when I kill them in the drags and smoke their asses on the trails.

[djb383]

Wouldn't it make sense that any filter that flows more air also flows more dirt? Isn't the dirt in the air?

[guntech]

Originally Posted by 63 shelby

I agree with Rovin, I went with the TRD cai and even had Toyota install it, not because I couldnt, just because I wanted NO warranty issues to come up. The performance #'s are almost exactally the same as any other, it looks and sounds ausome! and if anything ever goes wrong they sold it to me, they put it on, I'm covered.

If you can afford a CAI, I feel this is the best way to go also. Since I can't, I used an AFE drop in. So far, I have 4,000 miles on it and no issues (knock on wood). If I do ever have an issue, I think I will have the dealer pu in a TRD drop in.

[wballen.79]

The main reason I want to go with all TRD performance upgrades. Not in no way, knocking any of the other ones, I just want to have a true TRD Tundra. My only issue is that the TRD exhause doesn't have a dual rear exit system (at least I haven't seen it and the dealer doesn't know about one).

[User Name:]

Originally Posted by djb383

Wouldn't it make sense that any filter that flows more air also flows more dirt? Isn't the dirt in the air?

With good filters this isn't true. The filter actually catches very fine particles. They decrease the size of particles that are allowed to pass by forcing the air to flow around a tight mesh that is oiled. Dirt particles are trapped by the oil. The air flow is increased by a larger surface area on the filter.

[djb383]

Do what?............................now we're going to defy the laws of physics.

[Burger Steak & Eggs]

Originally Posted by robsatx

my latest project is a raptor 700

Excellent taste in ATVs.

An outerwear is absolutely mandatory with a K&N offroad.

[Negra]

Face it folks there are some that are just so mesmerized by Vendor(s) they'll never snap out of it.
Its more important to be Label Trendy then applying minimal common sense logic.