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New air filter causing engine sound change? OBW

I changed the air filter on my 2000 Outback wagon and it seems to have caused a change in the in-cab sound of the engine. Now when I give it a lot of gas I hear a low frequency sound -- not really "throaty", but the kind of sound I associate with, say, a souped-up Honda or Toyota.

The filter I changed was pretty dirty, so it could just be that it used to make this sound when clean, but I don't think so. And there are no other symptoms (mileage is same, no smells, etc.) I double-checked to be sure the filter is properly installed and tightly sealed.

Does this sound normal? Abnormal?

Thanks!

Reply to
Ryk
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I think it would be abnormal. Did you check all the Air intake ducts that connect to the filter housing?

Good luck!

Ryk wrote:

Reply to
TM

Make sure that the air filter cover is snap correctly on the casing. I had the same problem a few years back and the cover was not snap correctly on the air filter casing.

The best thing is to open it again and make sure that the plastic pegs of the cover are getting in the openings of the casing.

Keep us informed

Charles

2000 Impreza Wagon
Reply to
Charlie

I had this same problem about two years ago, when I changed the air filter in my 2000 OBW. It seems like the service people installed the filter in wrong and left a small gap down the side of the filter and filter housing which allowed unfiltered air to go through the engine. It actually resulted in lower power.

Yousuf Khan

Reply to
Yousuf Khan

Thanks you all!! Since three people thought my issue was abnormal, I pursued it. A closer look at the air filter casing showed that I didn't have a good seal along the bottom. It's pretty hard to see some of it, but I found that one side of the casing basically attaches to the other by a hinging motion along the bottom edge. I didn't have that tight and that was the problem. Reseating it stopped the engine noise and definitelyl boosted my acceleration.

Thanks again, guys -- I can always count on the smart newsgroup masses!

Reply to
Ryk

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