I was thinking about ripping out my air box and throwing in a K&N air intake and also installing a new exhaust. I was wondering, does it make a difference in hp and fuel economy and if i install the intake will it void my engine warranty if i make this modification to it. Oh and as for the exhaust I dont really know of any good brands out there. Anyone have any suggestions, oh and i dont want my car to sound like those rice burners. Thanks.

well we have tuned down some ppl for CAI on warrenty work. but were i work it all depends on what tech gets your car because some know what will affect things and some just dont care and if they see and mods they will report it and deny warrenty.

So is it better just to wait till the warranty expires? and just swap the air filter out for a k&n or performance filter?

well we have tuned down some ppl for CAI on warrenty work. but were i work it all depends on what tech gets your car because some know what will affect things and some just dont care and if they see and mods they will report it and deny warrenty.


or just keep the stock airbox and replace it when you have to bring it back in for repairs lol :buttrock

You won't gain any performance from fiddling with the air box (the OE part is about as good as it gets) and you do run the risk of water ingestion or contamination of the MAF. A quality free-flow exhaust is a worthwhile mod and may result in somewhere around a 4-5hp gain.

Yeah, I was going to install a K&N air filter into mine, because I've heard such good stuff about them. Not ever needing replaced though, I don't know about that one!

Be careful with K&N air filters they cost me a maf on both my 97 M3 and 4 Runner. The oil coats the maf and can not be cleaned off. I talked to Bav motors and purchased an Afe they use a different oil that will not kill maf. K&N cost me $435 in mafs in the last month.

if you oil it correctly it will be fine. Its just that usually people dont oil them properly or put to much oil on it and then they can whipe out the maf

I wouldn't recommend a K&N. They use oil which can foul your MAF and have larger holes allowing more dirt through.

If you have a hot wire mass air flow it can be cleaned with electrical spray cleaner. It get dirty and you just spray it off. 99% of the time it works just fine, I even know tech that just use plain old brake clean.

People that can't think outside the box drive me crazy. Especialy lazy techs.

If you have a hot wire mass air flow it can be cleaned with electrical spray cleaner. It get dirty and you just spray it off. 99% of the time it works just fine, I even know tech that just use plain old brake clean.

People that can't think outside the box drive me crazy. Especialy lazy techs.

I have seen people do that same thing to a e39, e46 and had to replace it after because it went bad. here at the dealer we dont clean it just replace it. yes i know it can just be cleaned but it isnt going to work all the time

Cleaning may not work all of the time but it may make it last longer so why not try it. I don't agree with the brake cleaner though. It's too harsh. At least use a contact cleaner meant for electronics. Brake cleaner can eat plastics.

I'm new to the forum fellas ..can you break down what a MAF is ?

I'm new to the forum fellas ..can you break down what a MAF is ?

Mass Air Flow sensor....

So it seems like its not worth bolting in a K&N intake or any CAI. So should i just keep the box and switch out the filter then. How bout the exhaust, are there any decent ones out on the market for an e46.

Afe also makes a dry high flow filter. Also I was told the oil they use will not harm MAF.The statement about over oiling is not true K&N killed my MAF and the filter was factory new never recleaned and oiled. At 8,000 miles Check engine light came on I cleaned Maf with CRC MAf cleaner and light came back on after 300 miles. New Maf at $300.

Afe also makes a dry high flow filter. Also I was told the oil they use will not harm MAF.The statement about over oiling is not true K&N killed my MAF and the filter was factory new never recleaned and oiled. At 8,000 miles Check engine light came on I cleaned Maf with CRC MAf cleaner and light came back on after 300 miles. New Maf at $300.

Agreed. It doesn't have to be over oiled to kill a MAF.

they do make a MAF cleaner spay ... hmmmm

does anyone recomend one model of a k&n filter more then the other ?