What I mean by "cheap filters" is the ones you can buy in an autoparts store, usually made of paper.I'm not talking aboat foamies or clothies. I like to think that a good Purolator paper-style filter, as in one that would come as an OEM part(maybe not on a Contique, but a production vehicle nonetheless)filters out contaminants to the auto manufacturer in questions' standards, which tend to be set high enough to prevent damage to their engines. To put it bluntly, I trust Purolator over K&N as far as sediment filtration goes. A paper filter doesn't flow as much air as an oil/cloth type, but it catches more crap. Yeah, you have to pay for a new one every time you replace it, it can't get wet, and it doesn't flow quite as well, but I like the idea of my engine being protected to a higher degree over a 1 hp handicap to the K&N. It really comes down to the question: What do you value more, your car as an investment or your car as a performance machine(which my '97 Zetec happens to not be in the classical sense...)?
A short ram intake with a paper filter still offers a noticeable increase in performance over stock, just not quite to the degree as the K&N.
