K&N

[HSKR R/T]

Well if that's the mindset we're going into this with, then you could apply that to a LOT of things. Why use the oil spec'd in the manual? Heck I'm sure the new 0W8 oil would reduce pumping losses and free up 4 horsepower. You could run no air filter at all, 0W8 oil, 85 octane fuel and I'm sure you'd make it through the warranty period on the engine and you'd save costs during that time. Why not?

To me, Ray Charles could see that the purpose of a filter is to block contaminates from the engine. So the idea of using a filter that's proven to not filter seems like a really stupid idea. It's sort of like how some guys tint their tail lights and render them useless and then complain when somebody rear-ends them at a turn. There are some parts on a vehicle that are better left alone and filters are one of them. I really don't understand the point. K&N filters are expensive, hard to maintain correctly due to needing oil, known to kill MAF sensors, don't filter worth a damn, and rarely add any significant power to an engine at all. I just don't get it.

Fair point. But we aren't talking just making it through warranty period. Unless you are constantly driving in extremely dusty/dirty conditions, I doubt you'd see any significant issues with the K&N air filter. And most of these filter tests are done with that type of material. Oil is a little different animal in that it's subjective to harsh environment everytime you drive the vehicle.

 

[azzx]

Well if you're talking about two cycle motors in our 1/5th scale trophy trucks, yeah we've lost engines running K&N filters in sandy conditions, you really have to run foam and oil or pure paper filters in that kind of environment.

In most street conditions, I don't think its an issue, I've never had any issues with them on my street bikes.

The biggest issue are the K&N oem drop ins, that it actually fits in the stock airbox correctly, there are a lot of OEM drop-ins that don't fit snug and air gets past the filter gaskets, I had that happen on my old Grand Cherokee, and 4.6 F150.

If you use a K&N in a street application in a good fitting tight seal air box, you should be fine. You're not getting the best filtration possible in terms of engine longevity, only paper does that, but the performance and reusability may be worth the trade-off for you.

You are 100% correct, I only used K&N on dual-sport bikes that saw limited dirt use. On pure dirt bikes, I used the oiled factory or oiled Unifilter.
On my X3 I use S&B particle separator, my filter is always 90% clean even after 500 plus miles of pure dirt/silt rides.
S&B makes the separator for Wrangler, landrover and other vehicles that see more dirt action.

 

[SD Rebel]

You are 100% correct, I only used K&N on dual-sport bikes that saw limited dirt use. On pure dirt bikes, I used the oiled factory or oiled Unifilter.
On my X3 I use S&B particle separator, my filter is always 90% clean even after 500 plus miles of pure dirt/silt rides.
S&B makes the separator for Wrangler, landrover and other vehicles that see more dirt action.

View attachment 187308

That's awesome, didn't know that existed, I want to look into that for other applications I may have in the future. Wow they are pricey though

 

[azzx]

They make them for all SxSs, offroad / race trucks and a few trucks / Wranglers.
The price was worth it to me since without it I had to replace the air filter every 200 miles or so at $60 a pop.
BTW this started as a military application for choppers back in the 80s. Many choppers that were deployed in the Middle East failed due to ingestion of sand.

 

[Brutal_HO]

They make them for all SxSs, offroad / race trucks and a few trucks / Wranglers.
The price was worth it to me since without it I had to replace the air filter every 200 miles or so at $60 a pop.
BTW this started as a military application for choppers back in the 80s. Many choppers that were deployed in the Middle East failed due to ingestion of sand.

Wait, whut? You mean an engine actually failed ingesting dirt?

I mean, as long as it made it through warranty it's all good right?

LOL.


(P.S. Do not assume I find any humor in loss of life, especially for my fellow military brothers. I keenly remember the failed Iranian hostages rescue attempt...)

 

[ferraiolo1]

No, they failed Because there was no filter. They worked with k&n to develop inlet barrier filters back in the day to filter the sand in turbine helicopters. A few of my aircraft have them.


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[HSKR R/T]

No, they failed Because there was no filter. They worked with k&n to develop inlet barrier filters back in the day to filter the sand in turbine helicopters. A few of my aircraft have them.


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Not K&N, surely they still had issues using K&N filters.