K&N Advice

Discussion in '6th Generation 2002-2013' started by dbuzz77, Aug 11, 2017.

  1. dbuzz77

    dbuzz77 New Member

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    I was thinking to buy a K&N air filter when i am in the US this winter because they are cheaper and I wanted to clear up whether it is a good idea or not. I see some tidbits about K&N on here but mostly oil filters. Can it be installed with no tuner or any other mods? What are your impressions if you have one? On the vehicles i have used them on i have had good result, so this might be different. thanks
     
  2. audioneurotica

    audioneurotica New Member

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    Please know that what I state here is my opinion and I can't back it up with anything other than personal experience. I have used K&N air filters in the past on my cars and would never again use one. I feel that the stock pleated paper filter passes plenty of air for anything less than a radically modified motor and the stock pleated paper filter stops a lot more dust and dirt. I know you'll hear other opinions and I'm sure the K&N is correct in certain conditions but not for our street bound beloved VFR's. Good luck , Will ps since I have not charged anything for my opinion I feel very comfortable offering a money back guarantee !
     
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  3. Diving Pete

    Diving Pete Member

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    again just go with stock - it works perfectly & is fairly cheap.
     
  4. OOTV

    OOTV Insider

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    The main benefit with the K&N IMO is the ability clean and reuse it. Although their oil filters I wouldn't touch, their air filters so far have not produced any amount of horror stories that their oil filters have. I have and have used K&N air filters and cannot say that I suffered any engine damage, but then again, I have never had to tear down my engine(s) to see what kind of wear and tear they have suffered or anything to compare them to.
     
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  5. dbuzz77

    dbuzz77 New Member

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    I always use amsoil which has better ability to suspend the dirt so i am not worried about that. i had a truck with a k&n air filter and it didn't use oil when i sold it at 265,000 km. i am wondering about anyone who noticed performance or other benefits.
     
  6. thtanner

    thtanner New Member

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    That is one cult I could do away with, Amsoil.
     
  7. dbuzz77

    dbuzz77 New Member

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    I have tons of evidence to the contrary, don't knock it if you haven't tried it
     
  8. lone_wolf

    lone_wolf New Member

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    K&N will never get my hard earned dollars out of principle. Their air filters could be the best out there. So what. Get OEM

    VFRNut is just talking about an oil spill. Recent thread on it here.
    Not sure if it was K&N filter problem but his bike was running one.
     
  9. Hero Danny

    Hero Danny New Member

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    The oil issues involved with K&N is a result of people over-oiling the filter... This is a user-error, not K&N's fault.

    I've used K&N on 5 different motorcycles and although I've tuned a couple of them after, I didn't notice any performance decrease after fitting it... that said I did notice some minor throttle responsiveness being improved... to be fair that's probably because the filter was new vs the older stock one. I never found it necessary to tune the bike after fitting the filter...

    Now there are other brands, such as BMC race filters... those are a different story. They are for track use only and will let in lots of more air (and dirt!) which is why people say run stock on street. But K&N isn't like BMC, it's a lot more street friendly.

    Either way, I like my K&N's and will keep using them. End of the day it's your wallet. As always YMMV
     
  10. Hero Danny

    Hero Danny New Member

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    Care to explain?
     
  11. lone_wolf

    lone_wolf New Member

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    The company has to be aware of problems with their oil filters on many bike makes and cages, yet seems they don't care. They need to make design changes and show they are trying to fix issues but they aren't. That's the principle. The nut isn't needed for removal (which seems to be a major point of fail) so why not get rid of it. Unless that is the gimmick they rely on to sell their oil filters. I can easily remove OEM or other filters with no nut and have no worry.
     
  12. CandyRedRC46

    CandyRedRC46 Member

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    The K&N air filter for VFR800 applications, offers no performance gain, from what I have seen, it actually losses. For performance, you are better off with a Pipercross or OEM air filter and even then, the differences in power are negligible. If you are looking for more power, you are not going to find much in this department, especially with the K&N. Like it was said before, K&N's only benefit is being cheap and reusable.
     
  13. 34468 Randy

    34468 Randy Secret Insider

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    I used one for several years. I did not notice any performance benefits from this. I thought the idea of a reusable filter was a sound one. But I can't be bothered waiting for these to air dry before riding the bike. Instructions specifically say not to used compressed air to cry them rather to allow to air dry. Soon as I ran out of the cleaning and oil fluids I had on hand, I trashed the filter and went back to OEM.

    But I did use it for several years and there was no noticeable detriment to the bike. I have 206500 km on the bike now without any issues pointing to this filter.

    If you do decide to go to the K&N, a word of advice. You do not need the air box gasket with the K&N as it is rubber framed. DO NOT LOOSE THAT GASKET! You cannot get a new one without buying a whole pile of other stuff you do not need.
     
  14. dbuzz77

    dbuzz77 New Member

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    thanks Randy, that's the kid of feedback i was looking for. no need for a power commander because you put in a k&n.
     
  15. 34468 Randy

    34468 Randy Secret Insider

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    No. I just put mine on and ran it. Other than to remove that huge O ring, there was nothing to do.
     
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