Hey everyone, I just bought a used 08 isf and noticed it has an afe cone filter with a different tube. The cone is too big so the side of the backing on the cover is open to the engine air. The car still have the other half of the stock air box with the vacuum line for the flap and it's expensive just to get any part of the box. So my question is, can I remove the cone and just put a drop in filter instead then seal the side opening with some heat deflector to help with air intake temps and debris? Here's a pic of the opening to make room for the cone. As you can see when it's in place, that part is exposed to hot engine air

 

I heavily recommend the oem air box. Aftermarket intakes are not better on an ISF, but they filter worse. I’ve ran an aftermarket intake, and I went back to OEM when my car was no faster than stock, but it did headsoak way faster than stock. The oem box with an OEM paper filter is safe, filters the vest, and makes just as much power while driving down the road.