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I have just bought and installed my Pipercross induction kit. I have bought the entry level cone filter for the 206GTi, 2.0 16v.
I have always had K&N in the past, but with them costing £210+ for my car, I decided for now to go with a Pipercross and see what its like, after all it only cost £85 which is a HUGE difference in price! I knew there would be some difference in quality, but as I only wanted it for its sound I didnt mind compromising and going for the cheaper one.
Its a foam induction kit, as oppossed to the cotton like material on K & N. Installation instructions were simple to follow (fitting one is so straight forward anyway!!) and the kit comprised of all items needed for the installation and maintenance of the kit.
Once installed, I started my car and gave it some revs, and although there wasa slightly different sound, it was barely noticable. So I took it for a drive.
Wow! Once the car is moving, and there is plenty of COLD air coming up the feed pipe (sold seperately - must have one really if you want to get the best out of it) the sound is impossible to ignore! It gives the car a nice deep growl under medium to hard acceleration, clear to hear from inside the car with the windows closed. Then open the windows and you can hear even more from it. It sounds a lot different :-) A more sporty roar from the car, and it turns a few heads if you put your foot down! It tends to be heard at its best from 2500rpm to about 5000rpm.
I havent noticed there to be ANY performance increase in terms of improved acceleration etc, and I think that its a load of rubbish when people claim they have a faster 0-60 cos of there entry level induction kit. My MPG seems to be better now its on though!
There is a bracket included with this kit, and this is the only part of it I was really dissapointed with. The bracket itself attaches to the car, and bolts into place where the previous air filter mounting is located. The bracket comes up and across and sits UNDER the induction kit to support it only. There is a small piece which bolts onto the bracket, with a curved edge for the Filter itself to rest on, but thats it, its JUST to rest on. The filter does NOT attach to its bracket which I think is poor, and the filter is free to bounce around and smash itself against the underside of the bonnet, and possibly even end up being dislodged. So for this reason you ought to have a load of cable ties, and fasten it into place on the bracket, and to anything else safe you can find!
Now, Ive owned K&N numerous times before, so I can compare the 2. If I wanted the best induction kit of the 2, I'd say go and get a K&N. They are very well made, they sound a lot nicer (in my opinion), they look a bit tasty too. My car did seem to sound a lot more powerful when I had a K&N on. The sound you get is very different depending on whether you get Pipercross or K & N, with them being made from different material!
The bracket with a K&N is also better, and more useful (at least on the ones Ive owned)
If you just want a sports sound and your on a budget, go for the Pipercross.
If you want to spend the money on the best kit for your car, then look through the range of K&Ns.
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UPDATE FEB 2009
Im now running a K & N Typhoon kit on my 206 GTi. The kit cost me £230, and is a full induction kit and not just an air filter. The sound from my new kit is fairly disappointing compared to the Pipercross Ive just taken off - Im really suprised by this!!! The Piper gave the car a very throaty and deep grunt when the car was under acceleration, and turned heads when I gave the throttle a bit of poke, and was very easily noticable. The new K & N is not as noisy, has a completely different tone to it, and isnt noticable so much (maybe because it is located in my front bumper?). My performance is a bit better with the new full kit on it, but I really miss the noise my Pipercross made.
So there you have it, if you are driving a smaller/slower car and what people to notice the sound of the car, the Pipercross wins it hands down (in my opinion). My car sounded a lot bigger than a 2 litre with the piper fitted! Its hard to desribe the sound, but the piper was definatly better for the noise it made!
I have always had K&N in the past, but with them costing £210+ for my car, I decided for now to go with a Pipercross and see what its like, after all it only cost £85 which is a HUGE difference in price! I knew there would be some difference in quality, but as I only wanted it for its sound I didnt mind compromising and going for the cheaper one.
Its a foam induction kit, as oppossed to the cotton like material on K & N. Installation instructions were simple to follow (fitting one is so straight forward anyway!!) and the kit comprised of all items needed for the installation and maintenance of the kit.
Once installed, I started my car and gave it some revs, and although there wasa slightly different sound, it was barely noticable. So I took it for a drive.
Wow! Once the car is moving, and there is plenty of COLD air coming up the feed pipe (sold seperately - must have one really if you want to get the best out of it) the sound is impossible to ignore! It gives the car a nice deep growl under medium to hard acceleration, clear to hear from inside the car with the windows closed. Then open the windows and you can hear even more from it. It sounds a lot different :-) A more sporty roar from the car, and it turns a few heads if you put your foot down! It tends to be heard at its best from 2500rpm to about 5000rpm.
I havent noticed there to be ANY performance increase in terms of improved acceleration etc, and I think that its a load of rubbish when people claim they have a faster 0-60 cos of there entry level induction kit. My MPG seems to be better now its on though!
There is a bracket included with this kit, and this is the only part of it I was really dissapointed with. The bracket itself attaches to the car, and bolts into place where the previous air filter mounting is located. The bracket comes up and across and sits UNDER the induction kit to support it only. There is a small piece which bolts onto the bracket, with a curved edge for the Filter itself to rest on, but thats it, its JUST to rest on. The filter does NOT attach to its bracket which I think is poor, and the filter is free to bounce around and smash itself against the underside of the bonnet, and possibly even end up being dislodged. So for this reason you ought to have a load of cable ties, and fasten it into place on the bracket, and to anything else safe you can find!
Now, Ive owned K&N numerous times before, so I can compare the 2. If I wanted the best induction kit of the 2, I'd say go and get a K&N. They are very well made, they sound a lot nicer (in my opinion), they look a bit tasty too. My car did seem to sound a lot more powerful when I had a K&N on. The sound you get is very different depending on whether you get Pipercross or K & N, with them being made from different material!
The bracket with a K&N is also better, and more useful (at least on the ones Ive owned)
If you just want a sports sound and your on a budget, go for the Pipercross.
If you want to spend the money on the best kit for your car, then look through the range of K&Ns.
_________________________________________
UPDATE FEB 2009
Im now running a K & N Typhoon kit on my 206 GTi. The kit cost me £230, and is a full induction kit and not just an air filter. The sound from my new kit is fairly disappointing compared to the Pipercross Ive just taken off - Im really suprised by this!!! The Piper gave the car a very throaty and deep grunt when the car was under acceleration, and turned heads when I gave the throttle a bit of poke, and was very easily noticable. The new K & N is not as noisy, has a completely different tone to it, and isnt noticable so much (maybe because it is located in my front bumper?). My performance is a bit better with the new full kit on it, but I really miss the noise my Pipercross made.
So there you have it, if you are driving a smaller/slower car and what people to notice the sound of the car, the Pipercross wins it hands down (in my opinion). My car sounded a lot bigger than a 2 litre with the piper fitted! Its hard to desribe the sound, but the piper was definatly better for the noise it made!
Guide created: 12/04/08 (updated 16/10/09)
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