I recently looked at drop in panel filters.
I couldn't be bothered with oiled ones. I would throw it away and buy another before cleaning and re-oiling it.
That left the main 2:
Pipercross make a dry filter for circa £35
ITG make one for around £63 that doesn't need oiling and only the occasional wipe when soiled.
Then I looked into paper vs aftermarket discussions.
It is widely argued no filter is going to better a paper air filter for filtration, although aftermarket may last longer, flow better.
In short More flow = requires bigger holes.
Bigger holes ultimately means less filtration.
The surface area of pleated paper is massive compared to foam. One owner unfolded a pleated paper filter on ASN and it was 28ft long.
I decided to stick with OEM paper filter and change more often.
Audi Don't change them until 38,000 miles.
My cars done less than 7.5k in 3 years. Now while it didn't visually need it, I've done it anyway.
Paper for me:
Cheap to replace
No cleaning or oiling required
Arguably better filtration if changed regularly
Won't upset Audi
No need to inform insurance.
Edited by Paul, 06 May 2015 - 06:59 PM.