Hi,
I was changing out my air filter to a K&N and I noticed there is a gap between the two halves of the air filter box on the left side when facing the car head on. Is this normal? I'm pretty sure I put it back together correctly. I tried several times to make the gap go away by reinserting the tabs into the groove, but it doesnt seem to close.

 

AH...Someone finally recognized this.

I used to wrap duct tape around the airbox (when I had it about 3 years ago), to keep away the heat. I also thought this was abnormal, then I took a look at another RX300 at the dealer in San Antonio and saw the same thing in another used 2000 RX.

 

thats what happened to me when i first dropped my K&n to my stock filter box. you just have to wiggle the filter around until its a snug fit. it might take a couple of tries, but there isn't supposed to be any gap.

 

there is a gap in the air filter box but not between the filter and the box. does wiggling the air filter itself close the gap? is it blocking the box from closing tightly?

thanks lexmex. i got duct tape on there too. i was worried that dirt might get through into the engine.

 

I haven't used an air filter in over 2 years, can't say I notice anything negative.

I had a K&N in there once, but same issue. I am wondering if the engine heat warps the plastic after a while.

 

I have that gap too but it looks like the top portion of the air filter box clamps/sits right on the edge of the drop-in K&N...creating a seal I guess you could say...I do not trust my thinking really...but so far everything is running fine...have been running the K&N for about 10-15k miles already...checked the MAF about 1k miles ago and it was spotless...and I recently hit 100,000 miles.

 

9 years later in the forum, I stumble across this thread...

I just put a K&N in my 1999 and noticed the exact same thing. My mileage dropped from 18.1 to 15.9 in two days of around town driving.

I do no like the open gap... and I am sure that Gorilla duct tape will work like a champ.. but it should not happen in the first place. I am going to spin the filter 180degrees to see if that wouldnt make a difference.

This gap would ultimately defeat the purpose of the better and more expensive filter.

My fingers are crossed that the spin will make it fit like the old one.. perfectly. Cheers, Brian