K&N Showing Off at SEMA 2006
Leave it to K&N to prove that sometimes it's good to blow
SEMA is not just an excuse for grease-loving people to gather in the desert and drool over exotic show cars. More importantly, it's the place where companies can show off their latest and greatest products, and demonstrate why their gear outshines the competition. Case in point: K&N air filters.
It's no secret who K&N is; they're the pioneers of the cotton gauze air filter. And, everyone knows what numerous advantages come along with a K&N air filter or air intake kit: immediate power gains, hair-trigger throttle response, and definite fuel consumption improvements (when you're not leaning on the gas pedal). What some many not know, though, is exactly how K&N air filters make your vehicle run with more power and greater efficiency. The answer is simple: better airflow.
You see, when you put an old-school paper air filter into your auto, it's like stomping a boot onto your engine's neck. The thick pulp in the paper cuts the airflow down dramatically, leaving your motor gasping for breath. On the other hand, a K&N air filter allows energy-rich oxygen to rush virtually unobstructed into the lungs of your vehicle's powerplant.
Always the showmen, K&N decided to add some theatrics to their booth. They set up a long air table with an array of air filters mounted up top. Each filter was identically sized, and each one had an identical anemometer (airflow gauge) sitting on top. More importantly, the same ammount of air was flowing up against the filters, though some were letting more through than others.
As you can see, the paper air filter was only registering a paltry 11.9 on the anemometer. With this amount of air stoppage, your engine would be suffocating like an asthmatic after a marathon.
What's the alternative? Check the new Lexus GS 450h. The "h" doesn't stand for hot rod, but it could. In this case it stands for hybrid, though Lexus did justice to both meanings. Boasting a 3.5 liter V6 mated to an electric motor, the '07 Lexus 450h generates 339 hp and still pushes the 30 mpg mark. This is the closest we've come to the best of both worlds. Your green friends will stop comparing your hot-rodding ways to Imelda Marcos' shoe collection, and your hot rod buddies won't think you've traded your V-8 for an Earth-Day booth to hawk hemp fabric.
Let's break it down. The Lexus "h" pulls 0-60 in a blistering 5.2 seconds. This is pushing BMW M class territory. Compare that to the V8 equipped Lexus GS 430 that does it in 5.7 seconds. Not a big difference, but the "h" gets 7-10 more mpg and it qualifies as a "super ultra low emissions vehicle." How about the poster child of hybrid vehicles, the Prius? 110 hp and a mind numbing 10 second 0-60. That's closer to my old '72 VW Van territory. Of course, the Prius is sipping fuel at the rate of 55mpg, but we can't have it all�yet.
Mean, clean and green, the GS 450h sports rear wheel drive, performance-tuned suspension and brakes, blazing speeds, all the techno-goodies we'd expect from Lexus and nearly 30 mpg. This Lexus is every bit a high-performance, luxury-sport sedan, and it's closer to the kind of ride that a tree hugger like me could be proud to drive. Now, it's gonna take a lot of patchouli incense and "Save the Whales" t-shirt sales to come up with the $55K sticker price, but this is a Lexus after all.
Let's hope this is the trend that's going to spawn a whole new automotive segment. Cars that run clean and lean, but are still fast and fun to drive should be the wave of the future. As the technology gets better and the gas prices climb higher, manufacturers will hopefully continue to come up with ways to appease our need for speed and still pay proper respect to our Mother Earth. At this early stage in the performance hybrid game, Lexus hits the bull's eye with the GS 450h.
We hope you have found our Air Filters Research Guide Center a good guide in helping you choose the best Air Filters for your vehicle. It is AutoAnything's goal to provide the most information on the Internet and through our Auto Accessory Specialists on every product we sell. If you have any information that you think could help improve this section, please email us at researchcenter@autoanything.com.