I need a new air filter, and was wondering if there's a downside to generic brand filters/eBay/amazon filters? Aside from how long they last, I couldn't find a clear answer on whether or not generic brand air filters are bad or have negatives to them. Could someone shed some light on this subject?

They probably won't filter very well or won't last long. Why not go with a KN filter? You can find just about any size.

IMO don't muck around with cheap generics, if they break apart you suck particles into your turbo, get a K&N and the cleaner/oil kit and be done with it.

IMO

Thanks for the input guys. But I still have no answer lol. You're saying "if" and "probably", which doesn't help me too much.

I personaly don't play with cleaning and oiling.they all start at around $30 like blox for example. I replace them once a year or two.

i learned the hard way years ago on another vehicle with using ebay brand filters and cheap o's , it completely ruined my MAF sensor because the filter element breaks down very easy with the cheap ones and got stuck in the sensor and caused the vehicle to run like crap. Just as above said I usually buy k&n and just replace it every year for the 30-40 that It is to buy its a cheap investment. (personally right now I run the HKS 2 layer and will be purchasing the 3 layer next oil change - changed every 5K) but that's just my setup

If I had to replace my cone filter, I'd go with one of these two:
https://www.amsoil.com/shop/by-produ...ction-filters/
http://www.greenfilterusa.com/find-f...e-cylinder.php

Good idea I might replace my K&N that came with car

You get what you pay for.

The thing is, you use only one filter in a car at a time. So, how are you to compare? You need a bunch of filters and some sort of test apparatus and test how much dirt each passes. How well the filter media works is also going to depend on the particle size.

I'm not going to look it up for you but a test like this was conducted some years ago and the results were reported here. But then a good filter one year can be junk the next if the maker decides to save money.

Filters that claim to make horsepower can only do that by causing less pressure drop across the filter and that means less filtering.

I actually ran into that post a few days ago, they dynod the same Evo with like 10 different filters. Perrin was the highest power output and k&n was lowest, roughly 10 HP lower than perrin. The Evo was at around 400 HP, was an interesting read. But they didn't test any generic brands, I haven't found anyone that has lol. I guess since no one has really done it then I won't do it myself with the risk of screwing something up.

So I narrowed down my list to 2 brands, vibrant or green. Any input? Both are very similar in price, I know for a fact that vibrant is better than k&n, and I've heard that green compares or even exceeds amsoil filters. Just wondering which to get.

Go with vibrant. I've seen them sold by STM and other well known stores. Not sure if you are talking about the same style as STM sells but it has a warning. If the MAF is in place I see no worries.

http://www.streettunedmotorsports.co...ir_filters.htm

Warning: The caps on the open funnel are capable of coming loose and being sucked to your turbo. Vibrant does not recommended these for turbo applications. It is a rare occurance, but know it can happen.