vs
Cabin filter Wix or K&N
I have been using k&n for over 30 years, engine and cab air. I currently have a 4dr civic with 225,000 miles and a silverado v6 with 315,000 miles, both bought new. Both have had k&n filters since the first week of ownership. All have been cleaned and reoiled at least once a year, cabin usually twice. They all look great, and engines do not consume any more oil than when they were new. The savings in waste and money are ridiculous if you buy things and keep them. If you prefer to change vehicles frequently, probably not for you...
Pros: long lasting, cost savings
Vehicle:
Chevrolet Silverado
RockAuto even as a Canadian. 2025 Crosstrek cabin filters are $62 at the dealership. NAPA sells WIX filters for $40. RockAuto sells them for $13 CAD. Only issue is having to order a fair amount of stuff to offset shipping. But worth it.
Pros: cheap price
Cons: shipping cost
Vehicle:
Subaru
A fix is buying the k&n cleanable filter. It’s less restrictive but filters good enough.
Pros: less restrictive
Vehicle:
Mazda
I use wix from oreillys in all my hyundais....never had any isssues
Pros: never had issues
Vehicle:
Hyundai
For cabin filter, I personally recommend using a filter with a carbon layer to reduce smells. Fram, TYC, Hengst, Mann, and Wix all are good options.
Pros: reduces smells
Buy a K&N engine air filter and cabin air filter and replace them. They’re good for like 100k miles, you just have to take them out and bang them off in the trash every so often.
Pros: lasts 100k miles
Cons: more expensive
Mileage: 100000 km
However I actually use washable K&N cabin filters. You buy once and of course it is more expensive than disposable but it pays for itself and you can easily clean whenever you want.
Pros: washable, easy to clean
Cons: more expensive
Been using it for the past 10 years on my Toyota. You must wash it only one way. Cannot have the water flow through it both ways. Also there is a k&n spray (pink/hot red) that you spray on the filter again every time you wash it. To me it's worth it
Pros: worth it, long lasting
Cons: one way water flow
Vehicle:
Toyota
I have one. I clean it when it starts to smell. I just use simple green to clean it. Now, does it let more particles in that I breathe in? Probably, but no worse than breathing in the air outside. The worst cabin filter I used was the Bosch HEPA. Too restrictive and as soon as 12,000 miles hit, it was clogged and I was miserable for a few days in the summer heat
Pros: easy to clean
Cons: lets in more particles
Mileage: 12000 km
I've used them in past vehicles - in my opinion, not worth it. No amount of cleaning will truly remove fine particles that the filter captures. I'm more comfortable using cheaper disposable filters.
Cons: not worth it, removes few particles
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