Alternate to K&N X-Stream

[spdbrake]

I'd been looking for an Alternate to the K&N 9" X-Stream air cleaner as it only comes with a 2 3/4" filter $155.00us. https://www.knfilters.com/66-3150-x-stream-top-assembly. I probably could have pieced together a 2" version using a E-3527 $50.00us, and a X-Stream lid $67.00us, and scrounged a 9" base from somewhere.

I came across Aeroflow located in AU that makes a great filter in Black.
https://www.aeroflowperformance.com/...blies-elements
I pieced together a X-Stream lid, Element and base for $108us shipped.
Took 10 days to arrive which is excellent especially in these times.

[MKS427]

https://www.knfilters.com/66-3050-x-stream-top-assembly

[AdamIsAdam]

VERY interesting! I've been considering an open flow lid after watching (100 times) the Engine Masters air cleaner shootout (SPOILER: SALAD BOWL RULES!). I love the look of my oval Cobra air cleaner assembly, but I have to imagine that a 1.75" filter must be choking the motor. I plan to take it to a chassis dyno some post-covid day to find out for sure, but in the interim, I was measuring to see what would even under my hood. Answer: 9" round max will allow about a 3" element.

The x-treme style lid did very well in their dyno testing, but that's without a hood above it. I wonder if our hood scoops actually scoop air. Anyone have yarn and tape? ;-)

I wanted black, so this is a nice find for sure. THANKS FOR SHARING.

Here's how it looks now:



Here's a pic of a 9" frozen pizza cardboard sitting on the carb



And a pic of the car with the scoop removed during PPF installation. (The engine sits nearly an 1" off-center.)

[AdamIsAdam]

I brought my car to the dyno today. I did three pulls each 10 minutes apart from each other. Engine temp was the same in them all but I think it ran better the warmer it got.

First run was air cleaner on, hood open. Second run was air cleaner off, hood open. Third run was hood closed & air cleaner on.

Want to guess which one is best? Air cleaner on with hood closed was best. It was 5 HP more than air cleaner off with hood open.

So even if the car started running better with each run as it got fully heat soaked, it's safe to say that using the air cleaner did not hurt performance at all. It actually helped.

Oh, and look how sweet the curves are!

[MKS427]

Did you test with the pictured Cobra air cleaner, or the X-Stream?

[mrmustang]

You need a K&N 66-3040 unit. I've used this on several of my FE powered Cobra replicas (2-ERA's, 1 Contemporary, 1 Unique). If the air filter clearance is still a bit too close for your comfort, you can replace the 14X3" air filter with a 14X2.5" to 14X2.75" filter (there are four or five height incremental K&N filters available).
At $131.00 (free shipping with Amazon Prime ) no need to recreate the wheel for a less than $20 cost savings, sorry.
Now, with that said, before you spend any money, you need to see exactly what CFM worth of filter assembly you need to properly feed your engine.

Using the simple formula

A= effective filter area
CID=engine displacement
RPM=maximum RPM expected


Using the CFM formula of height X diameter x 6 x 3.14

Also keep in mind that the 14" extreme top flows 500cfm by itself.


Hope you find this helpful.

Sincerely,

Bill S.

[AdamIsAdam]

These tests were done with the Cobra air cleaner in post #3. It's a 1.75" tall K&N. I cannot fit even another 1/4" taller with that oval filter because it's under the cowl and there is barely 1/4" clearance there. If I wanted taller I'd have to go 9" round and have it poke up into the hood scoop. But even then, as you can see, my engine is not centered in the car so it's very close to the edge of the scoop cutout.

But as I said, I saw NO decrease in HP with that filter in place (it actually went up, but I think that was just because it was the 3rd pull). And since I like the look of the oval vs round, I'll stick with what I have.

I guess it's large enough that it's allowing for enough CFM.

[Gaz64]

I would be starting with a racing drop base like this:

High Flo Air Cleaner - Stef's Fabrication Specialties And B&B Performance

Even a 3 inch filter would be ample.

[KDubU]

I went with the drop base and the filter Bill recommends. It worked great with my 351w and air-gap manifold.