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New Air Filter Upgrade?? K&N, Fram??

6007 Views 11 Replies 4 Participants Last post by  mySaab900, 
mySaab900
Hey guys, a lot of you have been telling me that a good performance upgrade for my c900 NA is a new air filter. I'm gonna take a look at the old one tomorrow and I'll post a picture of it and ask you if i should replace it. I just cracked the cover a bit today and saw a lot of leaves in there. How much is a new air filter going to run me and can I get the right size at autozone or napa?
Thanks!!
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c900
mySaab900 said:
Hey guys, a lot of you have been telling me that a good performance upgrade for my c900 NA is a new air filter. I'm gonna take a look at the old one tomorrow and I'll post a picture of it and ask you if i should replace it. I just cracked the cover a bit today and saw a lot of leaves in there. How much is a new air filter going to run me and can I get the right size at autozone or napa?
Thanks!!
Click to expand...
I have a K&N filter in my 1989 900i and also in my 1990 9k carlsson, and an ITG filter in my 81 turbo 8V sedan. The 16V air filter for a classic 900 is longer than the 8V version so check that you get the correct size.

The main thing with any non-paper filter is that they need maintenance, so once a year they need checking and if they're dirty, a complete clean and re-oil.

The K&N filters are different construction to the ITG ones, though I haven't noticed any appreciable difference between the two.

Craig.
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mySaab900
c900 said:
I have a K&N filter in my 1989 900i and also in my 1990 9k carlsson, and an ITG filter in my 81 turbo 8V sedan. The 16V air filter for a classic 900 is longer than the 8V version so check that you get the correct size.

The main thing with any non-paper filter is that they need maintenance, so once a year they need checking and if they're dirty, a complete clean and re-oil.

The K&N filters are different construction to the ITG ones, though I haven't noticed any appreciable difference between the two.

Craig.
Click to expand...
ok, I think I'll need to clean it and re oil it. I've never done anything to it for the 8 years my parents had it, and then when I got interested in cars/Saabs, I never even thought about the air filter. So how do I go about cleaning out the compartment and re-oiling this one? And doing a complete clean. How much would it cost to get an entirely new filter? What can I expect to see performance wise change on the car? Fuel economy? Power? thanks
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Talladega900
Sean, not all air filters are K&N. What I mean by that is that most do NOT do well when oiling. K&N is designed to be oiled, whereas most others are meant to be replaced.

So, before you oil that filter, be sure you know what brand it is.
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mySaab900
i'll take it off and take a picture and post it on here. tell me what I should do. I checked my Bently manual and it said that if I can't see light through it then I should clean it, but how?
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BurnsSide42
5
mySaab900 said:
i'll take it off and take a picture and post it on here. tell me what I should do. I checked my Bently manual and it said that if I can't see light through it then I should clean it, but how?
Click to expand...
If it's paper and you can not see light through it - then you replace it. Do not waste time trying to clean an old cheap paper filter.

If you do infact have a quality filter (not paper) then based on what it is, rinsing it with warm water and allowing it to dry prior to oiling it could be in order.

16V Performance Air Filter;
http://www.partsforsaabs.com/product_info.php?cPath=28_178_293&products_id=1179

US $42.18 + Shipping

8V Performance Air Filter;
http://www.partsforsaabs.com/product_info.php?cPath=28_178_293&products_id=1178

US $36.97 + Shipping

K&N Filter;
http://www.airintakeandfilter.com/product.php?productid=202112

$45.67 + Shipping

OEM 16V n/a Filter;
http://www.eeuroparts.com/Main/PartDetail.aspx?id=7514722A

Price: $15.90 + Shipping

OEM 8V n/a Filter;
http://www.eeuroparts.com/Main/PartDetail.aspx?id=9318502A

Price: $6.90 + Shipping
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mySaab900
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this is what my air filter looks like. So what should I do to it?

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BurnsSide42
mySaab900 said:
this is what my air filter looks like. So what should I do to it?
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Cheap fix - toss it out and buy a new paper filter.

Possible performance gain - buy an aftermarket performance filter shown above... Be sure to get the 16V varient since that is what you have.
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mySaab900
but my engine is a 16v 2.1 liter
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BurnsSide42
opps - thought you had an 8V
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mySaab900
it's all good, I ordered one it'll be here this afternoon. It's just an aftermarket NAPA brand for $20. Not bad.
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mySaab900
2
here's the new filter I got. It's a NAPA Gold aftermarket replacement filter. I ordered it this morning at 10:30 AM, and it was in at the store at 1:30 PM. Once again, great service from NAPA. Only $25 bucks too.

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