Check your aftermarket panel filter

[TheSwede]

Eg Leon Cupra 2018 ea888 gen3

Mann air filter original (oem) C30005, thickness 70mm.

Some alternativs. All about half compared to the Mann paper filter in thickness:

K&N air filter 33-3005 32mm
BMC Air filter FB756/20 39mm
Green Filter europe P950413 23mm
Pipercross PP1895DRY ??mm
AFE 30-10254 25mm
Simota OA-005 ??mm

Extra volume in airbox?.....doesn't matter.

PS When I switch between Mann oem and K&N I can't hear any difference. Have used Mann mostly. K&N is on the shelf now. Very little difference regarding performance .

 

[Mo_86]

Yeh theres zero difference in performance and only a tiny bit of intake noise increase.

 

[TheSwede]

I have never detected any residuals/ debris on the clean side using K&N.

 

[Mr Pig]

View attachment 39432
Here is the difference, sound wise it hasn't changed much either.

Look at the corners of that open-cell foam. You can see daylight through it! That's going to stop big bits of debris and nothing else. No way I'd put that in my car.

 

[Mo_86]

Look at the corners of that open-cell foam. You can see daylight through it! That's going to stop big bits of debris and nothing else. No way I'd put that in my car.

This is the top with the seal, the other pic was underneath

 

[Mr Pig]

View attachment 39435
This is the top with the seal, the other pic was underneath

That still looks much worse than a stock filter. The Stock one is pleated and this is just a flat panel so the stock filter has a massively larger surface area. That's how you get a good volume of air through it but still have good filtration. The only way a flat filter like that could possibly achieve even similar airflow would be much poorer filtration. Looks like a complete waste of time to me.

 

[Mo_86]

So over a month of driving, under the filter the airbox was nice and clean, i even had the vacuum ready lol

 

[Cupra306Form]

Just for comparison to the bad experiences ...

I ran a pipercross on my Saab 9-3 TTiD 215 bhp (BSR stage 2) from brand new. I had the car 10 years, then gave it to my son in law 5 years ago. It's still going strong with no engine issues. I am quite keen on oil and filter changes, Saab had plenty of them during my ownership!

On a Skoda Octavia VRS 245 that had been chipped - superchips - it ran 298 bhp with stock and 302 bhp with a Pipercross. That would suggest a 1% power gain - almost irrelevant and makes me wonder about the massive gains normally aspirated 1.2 Corsa's etc get

 

[redone]

don’t understand any air intake mod except routing a cone into a bumper duct or such for cold air.

 

[Mr Pig]

don’t understand any air intake mod except routing a cone into a bumper duct or such for cold air.

I know a guy who did that then destroyed his engine driving through shallow flood water.

 

[Matt_anderson]

I know a guy who did that then destroyed his engine driving through shallow flood water.

did he not realise the consequence? Assuming he fitted himself or was at least aware of where his own filter was?

 

[Mr Pig]

did he not realize the consequence? Assuming he fitted himself or was at least aware of where his own filter was?

He just forgot that the air intake was now down in the bumper rather than up higher. The car was a Nissan Primera GT and the SR20 engine was converted to turbo. Engine was gubbed and he didn't have the money to fix it so he sold the car and the buyer fixed it. He didn't fit it himself, all the conversion work was done by a Nissan enthusiast I know.

 

[Matt_anderson]

He just forgot that the air intake was now down in the bumper rather than up higher. The car was a Nissan Primera GT and the SR20 engine was converted to turbo. Engine was gubbed and he didn't have the money to fix it so he sold the car and the buyer fixed it. He didn't fit it himself, all the conversion work was done by a Nissan enthusiast I know.

Must have cost a fair bit for the buyer to fix what I assume was a hydrolocked engine! Your friend must have also lost a fair chunk effectively selling a shell after all the work. Sure they won’t forget if they ever repeat that modification!

 

[Mr Pig]

Must have cost a fair bit for the buyer to fix what I assume was a hydrolocked engine!

It did but he was up for it. The car wasn't a shell. He got all the turbo conversion parts and an otherwise good car. He had the money to fix the engine and do the final stages of getting the turbo conversion right.

The car had cool number plate: P11 GTT. It was a P11 Primera GT Turbo! Just checked on MOT Check and it was on the road unto 2020 so twenty years. Not bad,