K&N Engine Air Filter: Reusable, 2001-2014 Toyota/Lexus

Bought for 2006 Lexus RX330. I found the item number on K&N website and then bought it here since it would be cheaper with prime. Both sites confirm that it fits my car, but once I got it, as others have mentioned, it was too think on the edges. After fumbling around with it for 15 minutes, I decided to take a closer look and realized I wasn’t doing it properly (the 90 degree edge needs to be on the bottom right). I put it in this way, and it still didn’t fit properly, but it was better than my other attempts. I closed it best I could and screwed it down, it shouldn’t be going anywhere.

Great product, love the way my car sounds now, it is fantastic. Acceleration is great, and mpg (when cruising) has increased as well, although it may be an overall negative in the mpg since accelerating is the most fun part.

(may also have something to do with changing the oil at the same time)

Great product overall, get it!

KN filters have been a leader for many years. I’ve used them on all my vehicles over the years.

Great Filter Great Price !!

Good Filter more power.

This was installed September 2020 and I’ve finally dug into the compartment to remove, wash, condition with red fluid and install again. Upon opening the top of the filter – where cleaned air draws through into the engine – was still clean and unsoiled. The bottom was blackened with soot and debris, beginning to cover the wire mesh that holds the cloth filtration fibers.

NOTE: This is my own method of cleaning & conditioning these filters, I make no suggestion regarding how you maintain yours. That said, reading through the K&N suggestions they insist that the proper oil used to condition and fill gaps between the cloth fibers must be applied to their dry oil-based filter. The price of the reconditioning kit made me find other options. I used a 1:1 mix of Simple Green which wound up being one quart total mixed with 130° F. water but tried dishwashing liquid first. That didn’t work (I didn’t have Dawn but an off brand). So I plugged the drain, set the filter in the utility sink dirt side down and poured the quart of mix over the clean top side. Within MINUTES a great portion of soil fell away. Agitated making sure that the dirt wouldn’t go into the top part and let it soak for about 10min. You’ll need to agitate more but that thing looked terrific after several minutes of effort.

Rested the wet filter at an angle for a couple hours to drain and dry in the moon sun. I then set the dry filter in a paper box and applied ATF Auto Transmission Fluid by using a small spray bottle which came out shooting like a jet (the viscosity was a little too thick for the spray nozzle). That was the most time to take. Not to all what NOT to use: NO vegetable oils, motors oil or WD-40! Turned the filter over and sprayed any white spots again to properly saturate then allowed any oil to drain onto the box for about an hour.

The engine light did glow for one round of driving of 12 miles because I unhooked a charged air line that released pressure. But after starting again the light was gone.

As for price: Simple Green at $7, ATF at $6 we’re far less than the cleaning kit.

The K&N filter is now $55. If I had continued using a one use filter ($10 for the cheapest) with changing every 15K miles (recommended) the price would equal the K&N filter. But I haven’t needed to replace five times and, at 200K+ miles this Highlander engine still runs like new, and with regular maintenance I see driving at least another 100K miles more, and this filter can be maintained for another 975,000 MILES before needing replacement. So, even if you have a new vehicle, I recommend getting the reusable filters HANDS DOWN. You’ll save lots of cash and time in the process.

One other thing: use the provided sticker that announces to any mechanic to not remove your reusable filter. They WILL be liable if they destroy or remove without your authorization.

I have been using K&N products for many years with great results. This air filter is another example of a well-made product that outperforms. The ‎33-2260 model fits my 2003 Highlander airbox perfectly and will probably last the life of the vehicle.