Lexmexico

The TRD filters I saw in Mexico did not have the K&N oil on them.

HarrierAWD

I also had negative experience with K&N drop-in filter on my previous car. It had no appreciable difference in performance compared to cheap paper filter. It apparently let through too much dust so that the engine cylinder wall got scratched and gradually lost compression. You can actually see the holes on the K&N filter that can let dust through.

I will never use K&N again.

HarrierAWD

K&N always like to bring up the Magnuson-Moss act. It really does not apply because K&N filters are not made to OEM spec.

parula

Harrier, tks, think I will skip the K&N.
Maybe the RX would benefit from simply a 30% larger paper filter system to ensure unimpeded air flow even under aged-filter conditions with more restricted flow rate.

HarrierAWD

Maybe so. Since I moved to Colorado, my RX accelerated slower than it used to. My Lexus service advisor told me that it could lose 5 hp for every 1,000 feet. Well I am at 6,000 feet, so that's 30 less ponies under the hood.

I want to add a TRD supercharger to remedy the issue, but they don't make one for the RX300. Believe it or not, they do have one for Sienna the minivan. I guess soccer moms need to get to soccer practice fast.

Lexmexico

Harrier,

In Mexico, I have seen some modifications on several Toyota Matrixes where that clumsy air box and air intake are removed and replaced with a straight pipe from intake to throttle body, using a cone K&N or a Weapon-R Dragon Intake. This can cause an emissions test problems in some cases and a check engine light. They were at the Toyota dealers and were only used on Demonstration cars so that they did not have to go through the restrictive emissions standards in Mexico City.

I am at 7,700 feet up here and must use the K&N. The only time I use the regular Toyota OEM filter is on trips back to the states. There is sand particles galore on the trip up and the K&N will not catch them. However, the Toyota filter will choke my engine at this altitude (it is not funny and very dangerous). I used to get 12 miles per gallon using the OEM and now get about 17 with the K&N here.

Speaking of your compression problem/cylinder wall scratching, I would strongly suggest you use the product called Restore which goes where you pour in your oil. They sell it at all auto stores. This thing does wonders for an engine. I read about it on bobistheoilguy.com, which many other clublexus members are familiar with.

It will fix those cylinder walls and the first time I used it, it appeard to clean out a lot of the sludge from the previous owner's regular oil use. At least I noticed clumping coming out when I changed the oil.

HarrierAWD

Thanks. I no longer have that car, so it's a non-issue for me now. :-)

Tell me about the TRD high-flow filter. Do they use oil like K&N? I saw it on TRDusa.com for $62, but it's only for '99 and '00 RX300.

Lexmexico

I can only speak to the one's I saw in Mexico. Supposedly, the TRDs are made by K&N for Toyota. The ones I saw had no oil on them.

Pilot

I have read messages about oil samples that were taken on vehicles where K&N filters were used. The results were not good, in that dirt was gettting past the filter, and showing up in the oil. This will cause abnormal wear to your engine. I would strongly suggest that only Lexus OEM filters be used. Lexus engineers are not stupid, and know how to design a proper air filter that will have the proper flow to proivde the max horse power. I have to laugh at how folks think you can add performance by simply changing the air filter. KN is in the market to sell filters, like the diet industry is selling weight loss pills. It is big business.
Stick to always using OEM parts and you will have the best performance, quality and long vehicle life.

Pilot