Panel filters
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You will get a slightly increased air flow, but you are not increasing the surface area of the filter media so therefore the upgrade will mean the car breathes a little easier (feels a touch more urgent to accelerate), but it will be marginal. I'd save the money for the CAI if I were you.
I've got a Carbonia intake / dry panel filter sat in my garage as we speak collecting dust from thinking exactly that. As a result I'm nearly £200 poorer!
I've got a Carbonia intake / dry panel filter sat in my garage as we speak collecting dust from thinking exactly that. As a result I'm nearly £200 poorer!
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For the cost they are a worth while mod but you won't notice any major difference.
Damian @ DPM Performance
Damian @ DPM Performance
afcjay
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As already stated,you wont notice much if any difference at all.
Standard paper filters will be fine for 300bhp+
If you do get a panel filter id go for a Green filter as they are alot dryer than the likes of K&N etc which can cause problems due to the amount of oil used on them
Standard paper filters will be fine for 300bhp+
If you do get a panel filter id go for a Green filter as they are alot dryer than the likes of K&N etc which can cause problems due to the amount of oil used on them
danb986
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Agree with this ^
I've known of loads of problems with oiling up of the Mass Air Flow meters on VW's and Porsches because of oiled aftermarket filters.
HIGGINS
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I totally disagree the paper filter would be fine at MAX 300BHP then i would upgrade it if you are going 300bhp+. Saying that i would upgrade it after 250bhp.
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I heard a rumour that the oiled MAF issue was fabricated to reduce K&N dominance in the market by competitors, and whilst I've never fancied I have a challenge to throw into the fix that may prove it's an urban myth. My ITG is bathed in Silkolene oil before it leave the factory as it's the oil that captures the dirt particles within the sponge media. Without it, the filter would not be effective (as paper) in high dust environments, and dust particles would make their way through the media and eventually get fired at very high velocity into the MAF / turbo impeller blades. Yes you could over oil ANY filter, but why are K&N any worse than any other oil coated filter? I hear the words but never see substantiated evidence.
If you're sticking with the paper filter or even switching to a higher performance filter, be sure to replace it or give it a shake out fairly regularly, you'd be amazed at how much crap these things pick up.
OK Tricky subject but this has been my take on it over the years.
firstly, oiled filter will not coat your MAF...unless you have over oiled them. the question is, are they any better than a dry filter ie: is there any point ?
Well it really depends what you are doing. Oiled filters date from the days when fuel injection was something you didn't really find in engines working in harsh environments so the MAF was not an issue anyway. Their capacity to flow almost unrestricted volumes of air, catch sand, dust and small furry animals without clogging made then the choice on building sites, desert racers and lawn mowers and dirt bikes etc. what most people dont realise or credit K&N with is times have moved on and so have oiled filters but the principle is the same , flow air, catch crap and dont clog. By making the filters thicker, finer and with ever improving shapes, designs and oils they have increased surface areas and their ability to trap even finer particles...............But so have dry panel filters.
In my opinion the only real advantage of a oiled filter is the ability to wash, dry and re-oil it but that said, Even K&N say you shouldn't need to do that more than once every 40k miles. Given the expense of motoring in general today anyway, would buying a new air filter ever 40k miles be a problem ??. Also given the likelihood of over oiling it which then restricts the airflow and totally defeats the object anyway..I would chuck it and buy a new one. Now if you are a dirt bike rider, dumper truck driver or Paris Dakar racer, then the advantages of a easily washable oiled filter become huge... almost essential, but on the road ??
I think a far more important question is WHERE in your intake track is the biggest restriction ? and that is most probably not the filter anyway...which is why people spend more on induction systems than the filter on the end of them.
I do know that for-instance, drilling holes in a air box will lose you power !! taking hot air from the engine bay is worse than taking cold air from a restricted std airbox . I have also seen test results that actually show vacuum's in corners of inlet tracks where you want high pressure much like back pressures in a exhaust.
Manufacturers of after market filters spend a small fortune on design and approach be it dry, foam, cotton oiled etc. i think they are all much of a muchness. Each has advantages but whether they will make any noticeable difference, like for like, over each other is doubtful until you get into F1 type territory. Their filtration properties are probably far more important than their minutely differing airflow properties.
One last point...i have seen Ducati M/C engines with stock paper filters and oiled after market filters do 100k miles and still run fine. I have seen many of the same engines do 10k miles on velocity stacks and be totally shot with pistons rattling in the bore,s. Air filters and oil and oil filters are the two main life savers of any engine, dont skimp on either.
firstly, oiled filter will not coat your MAF...unless you have over oiled them. the question is, are they any better than a dry filter ie: is there any point ?
Well it really depends what you are doing. Oiled filters date from the days when fuel injection was something you didn't really find in engines working in harsh environments so the MAF was not an issue anyway. Their capacity to flow almost unrestricted volumes of air, catch sand, dust and small furry animals without clogging made then the choice on building sites, desert racers and lawn mowers and dirt bikes etc. what most people dont realise or credit K&N with is times have moved on and so have oiled filters but the principle is the same , flow air, catch crap and dont clog. By making the filters thicker, finer and with ever improving shapes, designs and oils they have increased surface areas and their ability to trap even finer particles...............But so have dry panel filters.
In my opinion the only real advantage of a oiled filter is the ability to wash, dry and re-oil it but that said, Even K&N say you shouldn't need to do that more than once every 40k miles. Given the expense of motoring in general today anyway, would buying a new air filter ever 40k miles be a problem ??. Also given the likelihood of over oiling it which then restricts the airflow and totally defeats the object anyway..I would chuck it and buy a new one. Now if you are a dirt bike rider, dumper truck driver or Paris Dakar racer, then the advantages of a easily washable oiled filter become huge... almost essential, but on the road ??
I think a far more important question is WHERE in your intake track is the biggest restriction ? and that is most probably not the filter anyway...which is why people spend more on induction systems than the filter on the end of them.
I do know that for-instance, drilling holes in a air box will lose you power !! taking hot air from the engine bay is worse than taking cold air from a restricted std airbox . I have also seen test results that actually show vacuum's in corners of inlet tracks where you want high pressure much like back pressures in a exhaust.
Manufacturers of after market filters spend a small fortune on design and approach be it dry, foam, cotton oiled etc. i think they are all much of a muchness. Each has advantages but whether they will make any noticeable difference, like for like, over each other is doubtful until you get into F1 type territory. Their filtration properties are probably far more important than their minutely differing airflow properties.
One last point...i have seen Ducati M/C engines with stock paper filters and oiled after market filters do 100k miles and still run fine. I have seen many of the same engines do 10k miles on velocity stacks and be totally shot with pistons rattling in the bore,s. Air filters and oil and oil filters are the two main life savers of any engine, dont skimp on either.
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Here's my 5p's worth...
The panel filters are OK up to Stg 1 or around 310bhp,with a stock intake system,and above that,the whole thing will strangle airflow,and lose you top end power.
We know this from my own car,and it's succession of upgrades and a few misfires which eventually came down to the stock intake system and panel filter strangling the airflow when the car was remapped to Stg2.
If you don't intend to go beyond Stg1,then the panel filter and stock intake will work,but above that,you will need a proper CAI,and I would recommend the ITG,which is quiet,efficient,and will last you until a big turbo and beyond.
The stock exhaust also would need to be changed once you get to Stg2 or above,as it also strangles gas flow when you get to 330bhp and above.
The panel filters are OK up to Stg 1 or around 310bhp,with a stock intake system,and above that,the whole thing will strangle airflow,and lose you top end power.
We know this from my own car,and it's succession of upgrades and a few misfires which eventually came down to the stock intake system and panel filter strangling the airflow when the car was remapped to Stg2.
If you don't intend to go beyond Stg1,then the panel filter and stock intake will work,but above that,you will need a proper CAI,and I would recommend the ITG,which is quiet,efficient,and will last you until a big turbo and beyond.
The stock exhaust also would need to be changed once you get to Stg2 or above,as it also strangles gas flow when you get to 330bhp and above.
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