Air filter

Bike is due for a filter change and I was just wondering to upgrade to an K&N to allow greater airflow over the standard style?

Just wondering what everyones experience is with this change?

I am currently running scorpion cans debaffeled, if I got that style air filter the bike still wouldnt need to be mapped?

Thanks

This my friend is a can of worm you are opening!

Some swear by them, some think they are a waste of money.

It has been documented that they pass a lot more dirt than an OEM replacement.

Personally i wouldn't use one if i was paid to do so. IMO they are a marketing gimmick. They offer little to no gain in power, let in more crap into your engine, and the money you save over OEM over the life of the bike is really negligible.

K&N Air Filter Review - Debunking the Myths (and why OEM is better)

I would say google "K&N vs"OEM" read for a few hours and make up your own mind.
Personally i stayed with OEM equivalent and bought a HifloFiltro, half the price as a Yamaha filter, looks just as good.

Can you HEAR the difference like you can in cars?

I haven't had one in a car for years, and never had one on my bike!
Some people have said they could hear a little more noise coming from the airbox.
How much is real, and how much is psychological i can't say.

You should really do a search, there are hundreds of threads on the subject.

Google is your friend:

http://bit.ly/1fqEGrs

You won't hear any different noise in a car unless you run a cold/ram air setup. K&N makes a great supporting mod. That's in my opinion. That's all I'm going to say, use the search here to find the rants one side versus the other

I got one just because someone on the forum was selling it for the same price as an OEM would have cost me. Since I plan on keeping my bike for a while, the fact that I don't have to buy a new filter (rather just clean and oil the K&N one) will save me money. I noticed no difference in sound or performance. Also, I believe that because the K&N is oiled before installation, it won't let in more particles than the OEM filter. I could be wrong, but it seems to me that the oil would trap particles quite well.

And no, the ECU would not need to be mapped if you changed the air filter.

Ok thanks ill have a closer look at some aftermarket filters
And yes about then car I was on about upgrading to a cold air feed cone setup

Since you have an 04 there is no O2 sensor for the ECU to look at. There is a very complex science to airflow and just off the top of your head you might see increased airflow at wide open throttle (WOT) When I had my FZ6 I'd done the whole deal. K&N with snorkle mod. 2 Brother Racing exhaust, Power Commander fuel management and had the bike professionally dyno'd.($$$$) We did stay modest to keep the air to fuel ratio in the healthy range. I got about 4 more horsepower at the rear wheel....
If I were going to do the same thing to my SV I would probably go with a K&N but I'm doing the paper filter for now.

Mikeyc22 said:

Ok thanks ill have a closer look at some aftermarket filters
And yes about then car I was on about upgrading to a cold air feed cone setup

Click to expand...

Good luck doing a cold air... Shave the air box.

Mikeyc22 said:

Bike is due for a filter change and I was just wondering to upgrade to an K&N to allow greater airflow over the standard style?

Just wondering what everyones experience is with this change?

I am currently running scorpion cans debaffeled, if I got that style air filter the bike still wouldnt need to be mapped?

Thanks

Click to expand...

Ah I remember the day I asked this question ...

Yah can of worms have been opened, a good follow up is anything to do with oil ...

Hobbesca said:

Ah I remember the day I asked this question ...

Yah can of worms have been opened, a good follow up is anything to do with oil ...

Click to expand...

And then wade through the spark plug thread as well

Just bought a K&N style air filter, anyone have experience wih this?


& Im guessing it doesnt come with oil so considering buying this (408ml aerosol)

I bought (and have used) a K&N airfilter about 4 years ago.

Personal experience:

* I bought the filter mainly because I got a nice discount and after some years (4 years later) I can actually save a bit of money every year.

* Also bought the filter because a bunch of people in here (probably in one of those endless airfilter threads) mentioned that it altered the sound a bit during idle => Yes this is also what I experience. I had some kind of wheezy intake sound during idle, mostly noticable when standing besides the bike. I got rid of that after I installed the K&N filter ending up with a slightly deeper and more for me more satisfactory idle tone (and the standard filter looked fine and quite clean).

* I seriously doubt that there is any noticable performance upgrade/downgrade with this product.

This is the only "upgrade" I have made to the engine/exhaust system.

I have K&N filters in both my Yukon and Jeep. I can hear a difference. I've used them in many vehicles over the years (including bikes) and have never had any type of engine failure because of it.

That said, not sure if they offer any advantage over stock in the HP department. Not even sure why I like using them other than I hate throwing things away that can be cleaned and reused.

I will add that recently I noticed a change in how my Jeep was running/sounding and when I looked under the hood, the K&N attached to the cold air intake had fallen completely off. I would say that it was absolutely allowing more dirt into the motor!

I do not run one in my bike currently. Just haven't got around to changing it. Next time I pull the tank I will most likely switch the stock one out for a K&N.