Will a new air intake really make ?

Question

I have a 1999 dodge durango with a 5.9L 4x4. Right now, it is pretty much stock as far as the drive train is concerned. I am looking to increase my gas mileage a little, Get some more power, and dress it up under the hood a little... About the gas.. will I actually SEE a difference? The horsepower would surely be different if I put it on a dyno or something but will I actually be able to notice a difference if I put say a K&N intake on it? I have already seen how they look and I like it but I don't want to spend 200 bucks or more on something that will just look good.. especially if you only see it when I open the hood. Does anyone have any suggestions on a certain brand from experience? ALSO.. Other than physically installing the intake tubing, will I have to do anything else before I use it, i.e. reset some kind of sensor or computer so it will detect the increase in air and therefore supply the appropriate amount of fuel?

Answer 1

Nope.

You will see basically no difference, mileage or dyno.

Let's assume you manage to get 10% increase in your mpg. Seeing as your stock mpg is somewhere around 11, that will bump you up to 12.'

So, 100 miles now takes you 8.33 gallons, instead of 9.1. Sounds like a bit of a gain. Saves you about 2.80$ per 100 miles.

Which means, to pay off the $200 you just spent....you have to drive 7,100 miles, before you've paid off the intake. Before you actually start to save any money.

And since the actual difference will be around 5%, you're really looking at around 15,000 miles.

So, nope, not worth it on that side.

For the dyno....you might gain about 5-6 wheel horsepower, at peak. For your overall powerband, the average will be around 2-3.  Which, unfortunately, is not enough to actually notice. Most people, get an intake, then drive harder, to try it out. So, it seems like they have more performance. But it's really just them driving harder than before.

I could answer the rest of the questions, but there's really no point.