[Mosstradamus]

I know there has been a lot of questions surrounding this topic so lets clear the air.

- Does drop in K&N air filter void warranty?
- Do you gain HP?
- Does it filter as well as stock filter?
- Over time does the filter oil plug up the engine?

Im considering buying a K&N for my M235i, if not for anything but to get a little better sound from the turbo.

Please chime in especially if you have first hand experience with drop in filters and BMW's.

Thanks

[Nahlem]

I have the AFE power stage 2 filter mounted on my car, Warranty it depends on the dealer some care other couldn't care less, but if you have some form of engine failure with aftermarket parts installed even if it dint cause the problem some dealer can then be pricks about it claiming that its your fault for replacing parts. Others find the issue deals with it and don't blame you for it. So its really down to the dealer you have. If they are good they won't care if its a bad one then your in bad luck i guess.

If the engine will take a beating from this type of air filter only time will tell i don't think it will cause any major issues tbh but who knows.

HP Gain? Well i haven't noticed anything tbh the biggest difference is if you change some hardware that directly effects engine performance then yes. But the air filter no you don't gain anything special tbh not when your running pretty much stock on the car. Then your better of adding a JB tune or something like that for real change or swap out the turbo for another and go full exhaust change that's where you will see more difference.

Regarding the sound yes it sounds pretty awesome when you can hear everything so clearly especially when outside of the car. Inside the car you can clearly hear the air passing thru the filter if it gets annoying well probably not when driving normally but if you do a lot of acceleration and braking then it can get a bit annoying so sound wise there is a big difference.

Picture bellow on how it looks with mine mounted.

[jmwilson125]

Originally Posted by Alden_88M

I have the AFE power stage 2 filter mounted on my car, Warranty it depends on the dealer some care other couldn't care less, but if you have some form of engine failure with aftermarket parts installed even if it dint cause the problem some dealer can then be pricks about it claiming that its your fault for replacing parts. Others find the issue deals with it and don't blame you for it. So its really down to the dealer you have. If they are good they won't care if its a bad one then your in bad luck i guess.

If the engine will take a beating from this type of air filter only time will tell i don't think it will cause any major issues tbh but who knows.

HP Gain? Well i haven't noticed anything tbh the biggest difference is if you change some hardware that directly effects engine performance then yes. But the air filter no you don't gain anything special tbh not when your running pretty much stock on the car. Then your better of adding a JB tune or something like that for real change or swap out the turbo for another and go full exhaust change that's where you will see more difference.

Regarding the sound yes it sounds pretty awesome when you can hear everything so clearly especially when outside of the car. Inside the car you can clearly hear the air passing thru the filter if it gets annoying well probably not when driving normally but if you do a lot of acceleration and braking then it can get a bit annoying so sound wise there is a big difference.

Picture bellow on how it looks with mine mounted.

I believe he is talking about the drop in filter only.

I did the K&n filter. I did not notice any difference in power and the difference in sound was minimal.

My car ran fine and I did not throw a CEL. I had this on my car for a few months and never had any issues.

However I did want more intake /turbo sound so I ended up getting the injen intake. I love the sound now, it is much louder and more aggressive. I did throw a CEL, but I removed the MAF sensor and cleaned it and reinstalled it. I have not gotten a CEL since.

I do not believe you will get any lower from a filter or intake by itself. With a tune it may play a small contribution.

[Michall]

^^ He was asking about a drop in filter, though.

OP, check out this link.

http://www.2addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1153569

[Michall]

and one more

http://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sho....php?t=1138828

[Mosstradamus]

Thanks Michall, very helpful

[copperman05]

1. Anything aftermarket can void your warranty,
2. No, the N55 is not restricted by its intake.
3. It should.
4. Had one before with no problems, trick is not to over oil after cleaning.

I now use stock filter and still get same numbers, as said the breathing of the n55 is not a bottleneck, better spend money on high glow exhaust imo.

[NVHoo]

If an increase in static air intake orifice would boost HP, BMW (or any manufacturer) would have done it. They spend $millions on engine development and air intake would be low hanging fruit indeed.

[aerostar]

Originally Posted by copperman05

1. Anything aftermarket can void your warranty,
2. No, the N55 is not restricted by its intake.
3. It should.
4. Had one before with no problems, trick is not to over oil after cleaning.

I now use stock filter and still get same numbers, as said the breathing of the n55 is not a bottleneck, better spend money on high glow exhaust imo.

Aftermarket parts cannot void your warranty unless it is proven that the part caused the failure being brought in for warranty.

As in, a drop-in filter can't cause your transmission to no longer be covered.

Of course I have heard of Subaru saying that an intake caused higher amounts of HP/torque so the transmission couldn't handle it and failed.

[Viffermike]

Originally Posted by NVHoo

If an increase in static air intake orifice would boost HP, BMW (or any manufacturer) would have done it. They spend $millions on engine development and air intake would be low hanging fruit indeed.

Not true. Manufacturers routinely de-tune engines for specific models for a variety of reasons, from increasing reliability to making sure models using the same engine don't cannibalize the others' sales. Limiting airflow capacity is one trick to doing this.

One great example of this is the VW 1.8T. In the Mark V and VI GTI, it was detuned by 45-60 HP so as not to eat into Audi TT sales. Those cars had drastically different intake designs. Another example: the first-gen MINI Cooper. Adding a Stage 1 intake added several HP without any other mods.

By contrast, adding an intake to either an N20 or N55 in a 2-series adds almost nothing, even with other mods. Not worth the expense.

[olehead]

I installed a AFE magnum no issues - and it does provide better air flow than stock (according to my BMW service tech) as to improved performance and gain in HP who knows anything that allows the car to have better air flow is a good thing - as to warranty I guess there is a AH out there who would give you problems but I have never had any problem and I have gone way past just a CAI

[mike@x-ph.com]

Never heard of a single instance when a drop in filter voided the warranty
Don't expect any power increase

[chihao]

Has anyone tried the Apollo by K&N?
It's a universal fit closed cold air intake.

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