K&N filters
Are the K&N air filters worth it? Tanks
Forum Discussion
I've used K&N filters on my off-road motorcycles and ATVs for 40 years. They are, without equal, (when properly maintained/cleaned/oiled) the best there is in the desert. Period. And there is no worse conditions that that. I used to race desert, in dust/silt conditions that were so bad that you could not see 10 feet in front of you. Never a single problem with anything getting through the filter into the intake tract over the course of decades of use. Additionally, I could run a full 6 hour race on a single filter because of the 10X more surface area than a standard foam type filter. Any other filter would clog half way through the race. I also ran one on my Toyota 4x4 van, used as a daily commuter AND often off-road for 15 years. Almost 400,000 miles with no issues (tranny finally gave out, not engine). BTW, I never had an issue with the MAF sensor either, but I've known for years the proper way to "recharge" K&Ns.
I still use them on my ATVs and M/C's. On a street vehicle, there are most likely overkill without a full intake system (if you are looking for performance/mpg gains), but if you are running offroad, there is nothing that compares. And of course, over the long term they DO save money as opposed to replacing paper filters every 6-12 months; that's simple math.
There is a reason that 90% of the top desert racers use K&N (and have for for decades). There is a reason that 90% of the $100K+ buggies in the sand dunes run K&N. And it certainly isn't because they let large particles through (they don't; in order to finish first, a desert racer must first finish), or that they clog quickly (in fact, in real use they last much longer before clogging than oiled foam filters because of their increased surface area)! I can go a full season (3-5 trips) at Glamis without cleaning my K&N; the one bike I have that still runs a foam filter needs cleaning every single trip (and it actually gets less use than my others). The "pre-filter" cover commonly used on K&N filters are not to increase the filtering ability, but rather to increase the time frame even more between needed cleaning (which is already longer than a typical oiled foam filter) by keeping the larger particles off the oiled gauze surface.
I don't put alot of faith in those supposed "studies" because I have 40 years of experience actually using the product. Instead, ask the people who have 10s of thousands of dollars into their high performance engines and can't afford filter related engine damage, and you'll get the real scoop.
I still use them on my ATVs and M/C's. On a street vehicle, there are most likely overkill without a full intake system (if you are looking for performance/mpg gains), but if you are running offroad, there is nothing that compares. And of course, over the long term they DO save money as opposed to replacing paper filters every 6-12 months; that's simple math.
There is a reason that 90% of the top desert racers use K&N (and have for for decades). There is a reason that 90% of the $100K+ buggies in the sand dunes run K&N. And it certainly isn't because they let large particles through (they don't; in order to finish first, a desert racer must first finish), or that they clog quickly (in fact, in real use they last much longer before clogging than oiled foam filters because of their increased surface area)! I can go a full season (3-5 trips) at Glamis without cleaning my K&N; the one bike I have that still runs a foam filter needs cleaning every single trip (and it actually gets less use than my others). The "pre-filter" cover commonly used on K&N filters are not to increase the filtering ability, but rather to increase the time frame even more between needed cleaning (which is already longer than a typical oiled foam filter) by keeping the larger particles off the oiled gauze surface.
I don't put alot of faith in those supposed "studies" because I have 40 years of experience actually using the product. Instead, ask the people who have 10s of thousands of dollars into their high performance engines and can't afford filter related engine damage, and you'll get the real scoop.
