Product review

Funnelweb Proline Air Filter

By Louis

Hello there! My name is Louis and I have been addicted to motorized off-road sports since I was a child. After a long break, I have been ambitiously riding my bike again for 4 years now and use my free time as a student to sit on the bike as much as possible.

Regular service activities can be really annoying. The installation of a freshly oiled and clean air filter before every ride is a matter of course in my opinion, even if not everyone may take this so precisely. How amazing would it be if there was an air filter that you could use two or maybe even three times in a row without having to change? FunnelWeb has taken up to this challenge with their Proline air filter. Whether the air filter keeps what it promises or not, you will find out in my review.

The installed Funnelweb Proline air filter

What FunnelWeb promises:

optimum air flow for longer use

better protection of the engine

extended air filter change intervals

easy handling, cleaning and oiling

original fit

This is what Maciag Offroad’s test found out:

Every use of an air filter begins before the installation into the bike. In fact, it starts when it gets oiled. There is nothing different to be observed with the FunnelWeb Proline than with all other conventional air filters when it comes to oiling. Therefore, I used - as I usually would - the Twin Air Bio Liquid Power air filter oil to lubricate the Funnelweb air filter. Since it has a larger total surface area due to its pyramid shape, I had to use almost twice as much oil to distribute the liquid evenly over the entire filter.

Left: Funnelweb Proline airfilter Right: TwinAir airfilter

The first use of the air filter took place at the MSC Kröbeln. My active riding time on the hard-sand-ground was just under 2 hours with a distance of 39km. Since the track was not watered that day but there was still a lot going on, a corresponding amount of dust developed. These are tough conditions for any air filter. The previously brand new and clean air filter looked pretty dirty after my training session (I intentionally decided against the dust cover). You obviously must be aware, that the filter is not a miracle weapon, as you can see in the pictures.

To get an even better picture of the air filter and its functions, I decided to go for another test round. I went to visit another trail: the MSC Luckau. This time the track was watered and therefore the conditions ideal. As it was 35 degrees on that day in August, I limited my training to the morning with an active riding time of 1.5 hours and a total distance of 40.5 km. This included three 20-minute sets of moto and one half an hour set of section training. At the end of the training my proline filter still looked used but unlike after the first training it didn’t seemed that clogged. I was even more positively surprised, when I compared my filter to the conventional filters of my riding buddies. If I were to clean off the coarse sand on the surface, I could easily ride it for another hour under the same conditions.

In summary I can say that FunnelWeb is keeping their promises. The filter definitely has a longer service interval due to its special surface. Therefore, the Proline filter must probably also have a longer life span, as you don’t need to wash it that often. Especially when you spend your whole day at the motocross track, the filter starts to show its amazing benefits above all. With the Proline in my bike, I don’t need to bring along another filter for change. The filter achieved full engine power until the end of each training session, and I did not notice any loss of power on the bike (only on the rider). Unfortunately, I was not able to test the filter on enduro terrain, due to the fact that forests in Brandenburg are too dry and you have to pay attention to the forest fire warning levels. Furthermore, I was not able to run a test on the filter at a racing competition, due to the current corona situation.

I think that the filter is especially made for long term use, where a filter change is simply not possible or not desired. By this I think about all the typical 3-hour enduro races or the classic enduro races (not everyone has a backpack), where you often have to sit on your bike all day long. The reliability of the technology is in this case even more important and constantly changing the air filter is one less thing to worry about. This way you can better prepare yourself mentally for upcoming challenges. I can imagine that the proline air filter is especially tempting and a convenient alternative for weekend riders.

An additional pretty detail for KTM and Husqvarna riders with machines from the years of construction 2016 (or 2017 for enduro machines) is, that the proline filter contains a rubber in the middle. The air filter holder often rubs at this point. This could again increase the lifespan of the filter. Due to the rubber, you can notice as well that the air filter is centred and does not clamp anywhere. Nice feature!