Just got a K&N air filter to put into my new P5, and I'm just wondering if there's any reason to wait on putting it in as there is (arguably) with oil filters and synthetics.

Since I'm not quite up to the 300 mile mark yet, if there's a reason to hold off for a while I'll just toss it into the trunk.

 

Not at all! Go ahead and install it right away! Out of curiousity, what made you think an air filter would hurt the engine during break in? If anything, it'll make it better!

 

I couldn't think of any possible reason why it would hurt (no, I want less air and maybe slightly more dust for the first few thousand miles!), but I also figured it couldn't hurt to ask.

It's not like it's an urgent replacement - I'm not pushing the engine during the breakin period, and possible slightly better gas mileage doesn't really have an impact when you're only talking about 30-40 miles.

[edit]I put the WeatherFlectors on first instead, and now it's raining....[/edit]

Thanks!

 

Go ahead and install the filter. This way, you can keep your stock one as clean as possible should you ever decide to re-use it in the future. The K&N is re-useable provided you have the recharge kit, so dirtiness should not be an issue.

You said you put on the WeatherFlectors... Are these like VentVisors, or something else? I've never heard of "WeatherFlector" before...

 

Like if you just washed the K&N and waiting for it to dry. Then something comes up and you need to drive the car.

 

http://www.weathertech.com

They're similar to VentVisors, but (mostly) don't use adhesive - they have a milled edge that goes into the window channel instead. The ones for the rear windows go in the same way, but also have a thin adhesive to help keep them in place.

 

Is it a drop in filter or conical?

 

It's a drop-in replacement for the stock flat filter.

I've read the other articles that it's not likely to have much impact because the airbox is the real limiter, but I'm not up for switching to a CAI yet.

 

Well then the drop-in shouldn't be harm at all. I put my CAI in at bout 1000 miles. Let us know if it makes any difference for you.

 

Is there any way you could post pictures of what the weather flectors look on your P5? I've seen the "generic" pictures on their web site, but would really like to see them actually on a P5 (with closeups if possible).

 

Sure, but it may be a couple of days - I only have the front ones on right now. Since the rear ones actually do use a thin strip of adhesive, I wanted to wait until it warmed up a bit before putting them on.

I'm pretty sure I saw pictures of them on a P5 someplace, but I'm not sure where - I didn't find them in a search on this board, so Mitch (at Protege5Online) may have posted them on one of the other sites.

The driver's-side one catches the window a little bit at the back, but that may disappear once I've had them on for 24 hours or more. It may also disappear once the bottom edge wears slightly smoother as the window goes past it.