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This one doesn't have the cover on one side like the OEM and some over aftermarket ones. I installed it, made sure it was seated all the way (it was), but the filter box cover sits out quite as if the aFe filter is too tall.
I went ahead and was able to tighten down the bolts, but it still bows out a little from the middle.
See pics below of both instances.
Is this normal? I can speculate that without the cover on the filter itself, it's necessary to get a great seal with the filter box cover to ensure no dirt/debris seeps by. But I also don't want the cover to crack or anything like that.
Not near to being flush Bows out between the bolts
They use the compression to seal tightly inside the box with this filter design revision (which allows for much more filter surface media than the original design). The AttackBlue requires similar pressure on the factory air box lid.
I had the same issue with the aFe filter and did not use it for 2 reasons - 1. the ridiculous cover bowing that you had and 2. there was no center divider web that the GM version has as well as some other aftermarket filters. So, I bit the bullet and installed the Halltech filter assembly that has roughly twice the filter surface area and also some thought given to joining the left and right air inlet streams. The Halltech along with the AR headers and Soler ported TB really improves the throttle response as well as a significant performance increase in aggressive around town driving with no CEL.
Help with aFe Filter Installation
