Hi all, I've been doing some research on improving my car's performance and appearance. I was looking at S70Driver's sticky thread on modifications, but I didn't know if it was defunct or not. I've been looking at Eurosport tuning's webpage and they have 2 different kinds of air filters. My car still has the original type of air filters and I'm looking to replace those with reusable high performance air filters. Just curious, what do you all think I should buy to do this? I'd like to buy any combination that gives my engine the best performance. Thanks!

 

The easiest way to waste money is to spend it on "high performance" mods on cars that are computer controlled.

 

You're not going to improve performance with an air filter alone. The one benefit to a reusable filter is that you never have to replace it- you just clean and re- oil. That being said, oiled- cotton and oiled- foam air filters tend to coat the MAF with a layer of sticky oil, which seriously degrades its performance unless you clean it regularly. If you start doing other mods- exhaust, tune, etc, think about a better flowing filter system- not a drop- in panel filter, something in the area of a cold- air intake or a short ram with a heat shield. Otherwise... it's just a waste of time and money.

And yes, computer- controlled cars can see a benefit from real performance mods. The problem is, most of the crap on the market is just that- crap. A well- designed short ram intake system with a heat shield- IPD's is well thought of- will lower intake air temp a noticeable amount. Cooler air= denser air, to which the computer will add more fuel. However, it's NOT going to be a very noticeable difference- we're talking 1-3 HP at most. If you want better performance, spend that money on a well- researched tune.

 

Thanks for your advice Carrots. I was looking for a not so expensive way to start off. The other parts, such as the exhaust, are much more expensive than a filter, but of course, will be done as well.

The filter I was looking at was this:
Eurosport Tuning: Ultra-Flo Air Intake System - all Turbo Models 1998

Also, I was looking at the following page on parts that could be replaced:
Eurosport Tuning: EST Stage 3+ Power Pack - S70/C70/V70 T5