This needs to be a sticky. It's a bit of an angry post at K&N but with very good reason.

This story began quite some time ago when I purchased a K&N filter which I ended up returning. As anyone who has tried to fit one of these will know, they don't fit. The filter is in a flexible rubbery mount rather than the rigid metal. It is also quite a bit too large, as you can see from the photo labeled "comparison size" In the gallery I link to here...

https://postimg.org/gallery/3icpf2axy/

...in another image labeled "doesn't fit" you can see what happens if you try and jam it in, because it's too large and rubbery it gets pushed away from the seal, thus letting dirt into your engine. Compare the OEM filter in the image labeled 'OEM fit'.

Now the reason why I think this is a very big deal is because we have two bikes a GS500 and the Savage, they are both ridden in the same conditions which are generally good roads. The filter on my GS gets grubby but it never has any sand (or small birds) caught in it, I do get some sand around the bottom near the chain but none anywhere near the filter.

The reason I mention this is because after removing the Savage filter it has a lot of sand and bits of other stuff caught in it as you can see from photo labeled "IMG 1169", this is AFTER a lot of more sand had already been removed. Now inside the air box where the filter lives it is spotlessly clean, so there is not leaking anywhere, all this sand must be coming straight down the snorkel or somewhere. It's a good thing the OEM filter fits properly because this much sand would be a bit problem eventually.

Because both bikes are ridden in the same conditions and only the Savage has sand and other debris in the filter I can only conclude that due to the design it is more prone for sand to be whipped up from the road and channeled into the air box.

So a badly fitting filter in your savage air box, is a VERY BIG DEAL, in my opinion.

Why have K&N made a filter that doesn't seal and worse done it on a bike that requires a very good seal. I don't know and they won't tell me because I've written many emails to them, and they have proven themselves to be complete and total ASSHATS, they kept asking me for more details, and when I supplied them, they stopped responding.

So I wrote again to a different person, same thing, they just frikken ignored me. I tried a third time with no response. They just don't give a f*&%.

I bought a new Hi Flo filter which has three times the pleats of the OEM, so I could rebuild the old one like Old Feller did in the tech section, however I'm going to use proper filter foam and the proper oil. I managed to get a big square of the correct filter urethane foam for free, it's a bit thick but the local bike shop told me that is good because if you squash it down to half the thickness then it actually passes more air, it's what they do for the filters they use.

I bought some stainless steel mesh from eBay but as you can see in one of the images, it was supposed to be 30 x 30 cm but it came folded! I asked for a refund because it's now useless. So I'm going to try and make some sort of a cover and have it welded with a hinge of some sort so that I can replace the oiled filter easily when the time comes.

So if you're thinking of using the K&N filter do be aware that it won't seal and even if you try and build up the plastic with epoxy resin as some have tried to do, how confident are you that it is sealing properly because if it isn't it's going go suck sand in.

Below is some email correspondence.


This is the first email I sent them...

Just got your SU 6595 for my Suzuki S40, I was trying to install it the wrong way at first as I assumed the cutaway part was for the metal retaining plate. However once I realised my error and oriented it the correct way, I could not get it to seal properly because the shell is bendy and as you can see from the photo it is way too big and it presses against the bottom of the airbox and also the top of the airbox what that does is make the filter bend backwards because the top of the airbox is angled and it makes it pull away from where it is supposed to seal!

Why? WTF etc.


They did not answer I asked for a reply and they again did not answer so I sent them this...

Hi, I have already inquired about this issue but I have received no reply yet.

I bought the correct air filter for the suzuki savage however it does not fit. The instructions say to put some k&n sealing grease on the rubber lip because it’s important to get a good seal or damage can result.

OK, so why is the filter so big that it hit the top and the bottom of the airbox which slops backwards and thus pushes the top and bottom of the filter away from the sealing lip?

I have seen that some people on forums have taken to building up the airbox with epoxy resin so that it contacts the seal better.

WTF K&N?

See photo enclosed.

They eventually wrote to me and asked for more information which they then ignored so I wrote to them yet again....

I’ve written twice now, you guys asked for more information which I sent but still no response. Is this as far as it goes.

I bought a k and n filter for my S40 and there’s no way it fits, it’s obviously too large. Do you want to make any sort of comment or will I just take it that you don’t give a crappity smack?

Thanks.

They asked me to call them and I wrote  back...

I’m in Australia so there’s no point calling. I’ve sent you the photos, it’s pretty obvious that the drop in filter you have for the Suzuki S40 is too large for the airbox, it’s too large by a long way. It has caused me considerable inconvenience as well as losing the cost of the return postage of $20. I’m looking for an explanation as to how you can be selling this filter that is so obviously too large. See my previous emails for the photos.

Thanks

Is your bike frame/fenders stock....or have you made the bike a bobber?  I can't envision how sand it getting up to the air filter snorkel on a bike that is stock?


Springman and I are both working on using the stock filter frame and a foam insert.....neither of us have gotten it done yet.

Getting the paper out is easy - but the glue they used to mount the paper to the metal frame is really tough stuff.  I have tried paint stripper and solvents - it didn't budge.  I tried cutting it out with a sharp chisel - it puts up a good fight.

The next thing I am going to try is putting it in the powder coating oven and see if heat will soften it up.

airbox? we don't need no stinkin' airbox! This K&N fits tight and works great:
https://www.knfilters.com/search/product.aspx?Prod=RC-1250
Cheers!

Dave wrote on 08/31/17 at 06:06:51:

Is your bike frame/fenders stock....or have you made the bike a bobber?  I can't envision how sand it getting up to the air filter snorkel on a bike that is stock?

Apart from the fat 150//80 tyre (which has plenty of room and clears the inside fender bolts) and Dyna, this is stock. I just took the seat off for another look and the snorkel and everything else is flexible and well fitted. I take your point that it's difficult to see how sand can get to the filter and a fair bit of it too, but it is there and I cannot argue with that. As Groucho Marx said when he was caught in a compromising position with another man's wife "who are you going to believe, me or your own eyes?"

So sand CAN make its way to the filter with the entire filter assembly in factory pristine condition. This was the reason for this post the K&N filter is demonstrably too big, there cannot be an argument there you can see them side by side and you can see it squash against the top of the airbox and get pushed backwards. I'd hate to think where the sand would have gone with the K&N and a gap.

There should definitely be a warning sticky somewhere on this site simply pointing out that the K&N filter doesn't fit and not to use it. This is not a matter of opinion, it's an objective empirical fact, and you can see it in the photo jamming against the top of the airbox. Prolly in the "Things every savage newb should know..."

antmanbee wrote on 08/31/17 at 15:32:13:

I don't need no stinkin air box either. I use a UNI with the oem rubber intake tract wit a bit of a PVC elbow that I modified a bit.

Eventually in a few years the time will come when we customise this bike a bit more and we'll prolly go down that route.

SALB wrote on 09/01/17 at 12:46:03:


This is not a matter of opinion, it's a matter of empirical fact. It CANNOT fit fine. Please examine the images below. It is rubbery and squashes against the top which slopes backwards and thus pushes the filter backwards. Good luck though, you're going to need it.

@Kris

Well K&N had no response at all, it's the part that's listed on their site and the people I bought it off said the same plus K&N even asked me for the VIN number of my bike but when I gave it to them they did not answer hence my moderately p155ed off emails. I didn't start out annoyed I started out very polite but it gradually dawned on me that they were not going to answer and hoped that I just go away. Which I did, but now i'm warning others, because sand getting into the cylinders is a pretty serious issue.

I told K&N the part number on the box and they did not say it was wrong.

I do note that some people said on earlier threads that they built up their airbox  with epoxy so they'd only do that if it did not fit.

Maybe SALB can open his filter side cover and take a photo.

I see where you're coming from, and I agree that it's a bit hard to believe, it's such a strange design because the OEM has an angled end that has to slide into the sloping inner part of the airbox.

SALB if you are reading this is there any chance you can take a photo of the filter in the airbox, side on? thx. If it's not jammed up against the top and bottom of the airbox then I'll need to investigate further, but it's hard to see how everyone can supply the wrong filter!

Here's the one I bought and the people I bought it from...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SUZUKI-LS650-SAVAGE-86-04-K-N-HIGH-FLOW-AIR-FILTER-...


It's not like it won't fit in the airbox it will, but it will also jam against the top and get pushed away from where it is supposed to seal. It doesn't have foam like the OEM it has a soft rubber lip so it relies on seating correctly. In fact it comes with instructions to apply a bit of special K&N filter sealing oil (ROFL) on the lip of the filter so make sure it's a good seal otherwise you can damage your bike! Which is kinda funny considering.  It's easy to not notice that it has pulled away because it's dark in the airbox and everything is black.

Stick your finger in a tub of axle grease and smear a light coat of grease around the seal of the air filter. Any oil will work, but with the axle grease, it will be easier to see if the seal has been breached when you take the filter off.

This post made me curious, so I just took mine off and lubed it up with axle grease. I usually just use the K&N red oil. Now...test ride time FOR SCIENCE!  

If someone gave me a gift card for a restaurant and I got a bukkitt o chikkin to go and I got home and realized it was stuffed with creamed dog poo, I wouldn't eat it. Free crap is still crap.
I had to do some work to get mine to seal, but it did seal.
After it was time to clean it I decided I wished I had not bought it, and would have gone to stock or done the O.F. mod if i hadn't sold it.