Custom Bay: Fine Filtration

Up until recently, aftermarket companies typically have touted the performance benefits of their products. With fuel prices up and the economy down, though, the emphasis has shifted virtually industrywide to performance efficiency. That is, how an aftermarket product can reduce fuel consumption.

For the service pro, that's a key sales point to make to potential customers who might question whether they need to make any modifications to their gas-guzzlers. After all, in the long run, that upgrade (or combination of upgrades) might be a financially smarter move than trying to switch from a big V8 to a hybrid or other economy car.

As one example, we checked out Airaid, which makes performance intakes for a wide range of trucks and cars. The company's filters are composed of multiple layers of cotton gauze, plus one layer of a synthetic fiber material called SynthaFlow, sandwiched between either stainless steel or aluminum mesh (depending upon the application).

Focusing on the truck market in particular (since OE sales of new pickups have plummeted), Chris Thomson, Airaid's national sales manager, says there hasn't been a significant turndown in business for filters in this segment, partly because of the fuel economy benefits. Using the Dodge Ram as an example, which typically gets about 14 mpg, he says improving mileage by 1 mpg works out to a savings of $145 for every 10,000 miles of driving. Because the typical owner drives about double that mileage, an Airaid filter can improve fuel economy by 1 to 2 mpg, Thomson claims. That's several hundred dollars saved in fuel, plus an increase in power to boot.

How much more? On average, a gasoline V8 gains 18 to 24 hp and 30 foot-pounds of torque.

A diesel might see a 16 hp increase, and a whopping 28 foot-pounds more torque.

For diesels in particular, such as the Dodge Ram shown here, there's another benefit to keep in mind: protecting the turbo from debris. In a dirty environment, you need a really good filter. Otherwise grit can rip up the compressor and sandblast it. Ingesting even small particles of debris can "sawtooth" the blades and change the harmonics of the turbine. When a turbo becomes unbalanced or out of alignment, it machines itself down. (Imagine a hyper-speed lathe grinding itself to pieces and you get the idea.)

To keep out damaging dust, the Airaid system includes a layer that filters down to two microns. So the potential benefits of a performance intake for your customers include not merely increased output, but also savings in fuel and repairs.