just installed K&N engine air filters and changed cabin filter

nikoloz · May 4, 2015

hi again all touareg owners,
today i installed K&N engine air filters on my 05 V8 AXQ and swapped cabin air filter with new OEM one. the hole job took about 2 hours.
well first of all i will say that im not expecting to see any changes in MPG or increase of the horse power, however i can feel the throttle response is a bit sharper. and thats cause the old air filter was completely full of crap, i was expecting it to be bad but not this bad

when i got my car 2 and a half years ago i ordered lots of stuff from Germany and US like@ brake pads, air filters for engine and cabin, and all the fluids. i changed the engine air filters after 10k KMs of driving in Georgia. and since than i have done only 30K KMs and oh my god look at this air filters, im so glad i bought K&N now im not gonna wait this long and will wash/re-oil the filters in every 20k KMs and be on the safe side as its very dusty in Tbilisi.
the cabin filter was not changed when i got my car and this is the first time i changed it and it is also very bad, its full of insects and dust. sorry i did not do the DIY about this as there are already very good threads and instructions about this topic. i wanted to thank few members who helped me to make my decision about K&N and finally i got them. hope i will have no trouble with reoiling them in 20k kms

here are some photos for you guys, (i know my engine is really dirty and in gonna was it i few days )

noobytoogy · May 4, 2015

Gordon Norah! I'm surprised any air actually got into the car and you haven't drifted off to sleep at the wheel suffering from hypoxia!!

nikoloz · May 4, 2015

in total inside the cabin air filter there was some American and some Georgian crap on top

fission2 · May 4, 2015

the cabin air filters are always dirty... they catch all kinds of crap. I had problems with my MAF sensors after replacing with K&N a few years ago if I recall, I had to end up cleaning them and I think removing the K&N's because there was too much oil on them, and went with the standard mann's

nikoloz · May 4, 2015

yes i have heard many things about maf sensor problems after re oiling the filters but as you said its critical how much oil you will gonna spray on the filters after washing them

in going to be very careful about it so hope i will not gonna have same problems as you had

nikoloz · May 4, 2015

also few guys said after re-oiling them they are using leaf blower to reduce the risk to a minimum so no drips of oil can enter the air intake

im gonna do something like that

nikoloz · May 6, 2015

All of this dust came off the filter when I gently tapped it on the floor

hedditch · May 6, 2015

Hi Nik, One bit of advice. K&N filters are performance items designed for use or rack tracks, which are relatively clean environments when you compare them with dusty gravel roads. The way the K&N Filter achieves its superior airflow over the stock paper filter is by having bigger "holes" supplemented with oil as a method trapping the finer particles which would otherwise enter your engine. Unless you are seeking absolute performance in a "clean" environment running a K&N may not be a wise move. My previous vehicle was an LS1 powered GM Holden sedan with an after market 9PSI Supercharger built for performance, and I did run a very big K&N filter as the stock airbox was being pushed to its limits. However in the dusty conditions I put the Treg into I would never swap the paper OEM for a K&N, as it provides more air than the stock engine will ever require, and is a much finer filtering medium.

I agree they are not as "sexy" as the K&N and don't give you that nice induction roar, but they work very well, and in my opinion, better if changed regularly.

Not wanting to rain on your parade, but think about it if you do any off road work in summer months.

Stuart....

nikoloz · May 6, 2015

hedditch said:
Hi Nik, One bit of advice. K&N filters are performance items designed for use or rack tracks, which are relatively clean environments when you compare them with dusty gravel roads. The way the K&N Filter achieves its superior airflow over the stock paper filter is by having bigger "holes" supplemented with oil as a method trapping the finer particles which would otherwise enter your engine. Unless you are seeking absolute performance in a "clean" environment running a K&N may not be a wise move. My previous vehicle was an LS1 powered GM Holden sedan with an after market 9PSI Supercharger built for performance, and I did run a very big K&N filter as the stock airbox was being pushed to its limits. However in the dusty conditions I put the Treg into I would never swap the paper OEM for a K&N, as it provides more air than the stock engine will ever require, and is a much finer filtering medium.

I agree they are not as "sexy" as the K&N and don't give you that nice induction roar, but they work very well, and in my opinion, better if changed regularly.

Not wanting to rain on your parade, but think about it if you do any off road work in summer months.

Stuart....

Hi Stuart, thank you for the advice mate

I absolutely agree with you that the OEM filter does its job really good and there is no doubt about it, as I said im not expecting to have any mpg or performance increase with K&N, Only thing i want is i will be able to wash and reuse these filters as many times as i like and i dont have to spend more money on filters, Also unfortunately the filters here in Tbilisi OEM are a bit more costly then in US and ordering them online is not very comfortable if we will take to consideration that i need to pay shipping on top of the filter value, so my filters will gonna be washed and reused in every 20k kms, hope that will keep my beast happy and healthy

kind regards Stuart, Nikoloz

hedditch · May 6, 2015

Makes perfectly good sense, its a pity Touareg's don't come with snorkels then we could have the best of both worlds. Looks like we have something in common between Georgia and Australia, the price VW wants us to pay for spares above what they expect in the US.

:-(

Stuart..

nikoloz · May 7, 2015

Ohhh the snorkel would even make me more brave about crossing very deep puddles.
And about parts sometimes it's ridiculous what price tags they have on most common things like filters, spark plugs, coils, brake rotors/pads. So basically all most wanted items, and i just asked the price of spark plug OEM here and 1 spark plug costs 42gel which comes to 20$

)))) and if ill order form us its 115$ set of 8

)))))

warrenza · Jun 11, 2015

Does anyone know the part no for the cabin filter? are the same on all T2's.

nikoloz · Jun 11, 2015

as far as i know yes, it is all the same, T1 and T2 have same cabin air filters #7H0819631A

nickm · Jun 11, 2015

I'm very anti- K&N style filters, but if you're oiling them the advice I would give is using a lot less oil than one expects to use is the right amount.

You also need to regularly (ie: every other month) clean, inspect and re-oil the filter. The oil is what is trapping the dust particles, the paper portion is very porous so its not stopping any dust particles, its just stopping the big stuff from getting through. Since there is such a thin layer of oil, it'll clog up quite quickly. if you keep running it, eventually the oil and the trapped dust particle get through and act to goop up your MAF (the oil) and sandpaper your cylinder walls (the dust particle).

IMO K&N or foam type air filters are best used in vehicles that see regular offroad use and also have their air filter cleaned after every 4-8 hours of offroad time. Read up on any dirt bike or dune buggy forum for some great advice on how often to clean these type of filters.

IMO the 30K+ miles that the oem ones last, and for the $30 bucks they cost, there's no way I'd buy anything other than maintenance free, biodegradable, long lasting OEM filters. If you don't like your dealer just look up the ones made my MANN and MAHLE, they are the OEM suppliers for air filters.

Doudodat · Jun 13, 2015

K&N

For 50 bucks, put a new one. they last a good 40K

Singh · Jun 13, 2015

My experience- been using k&n on the v10 for about 40,000kms, of which half have been in offroad dusty conditions, rest were on road getting there

After each trip i have pulled these out to check condition and the engine side. Comparing to original there hasnt been a discernible difference.
My latest oil sample shows engine is quite healthy
Also besides dust i think the oil lining does a better job restricting water and moisture

nikoloz · Jun 13, 2015

Singh said:
My experience- been using k&n on the v10 for about 40,000kms, of which half have been in offroad dusty conditions, rest were on road getting there
After each trip i have pulled these out to check condition and the engine side. Comparing to original there hasnt been a discernible difference.
My latest oil sample shows engine is quite healthy
Also besides dust i think the oil lining does a better job restricting water and moisture

thank you mate for sharing your opinion, driving in Tbilisi is very dusty and you can imagine it like off roading all the time so i think its better to have washable filters and never buy them again

Singh · Jun 13, 2015

Heres the kind of environment my filters have dealt with

Singh · Jun 13, 2015

And more.... So much dust that you have pullover and wait for it to clear up!

nikoloz · Jun 14, 2015

Wow, That's a lot of dust,
In few month im gonna take out the filters and insect them how they are filtering the air, and im gonna see if there is any dust after filtering and in air intake tubes. I think if i will bew extra careful with re-oiling them everything will be good

just installed K&N engine air filters and changed cabin filter

nikoloz

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