10-07-2016, 12:51 AM
K&N has changed their supplier of Oil Filters so many times lately, that I'm not surprised that they are having quality issues.
They have been made in Korea, Thailand (by HiFloFiltro, a respected filter manufacturer) and now most recently China.
Seeing that many countries of origin on the packaging makes it easier for such items to be counterfeited without a lot of questions being asked by the consumer.
How many of these failures have been with counterfeit vs legitimate filters, and how would you know for sure?
I have read about seal failures going back some 4 or 5 years, but I always attributed those to improper installation (failure to lubricate the seal or clean the seating surface).
Actual canister failures at the nut connection seem to be a relatively new development. If you read the K&N literature, they make it clear that the nut is for REMOVAL ONLY, and is not intended for installation. I would suspect that some of the failures are a result of installation using a wrench on the nut, thereby breaking the weld, and this is what K&N will claim! (If they ever respond to this issue!). That said, the weld should be strong enough not to fail even if someone did install the filter in this way.
I have at least two K&N Oil filters still on the shelf, each from a different factory/country of origin. I will be looking them over closely, and likely tossing them if I am not satisfied that the nut connection looks solid.
They have been made in Korea, Thailand (by HiFloFiltro, a respected filter manufacturer) and now most recently China.
Seeing that many countries of origin on the packaging makes it easier for such items to be counterfeited without a lot of questions being asked by the consumer.
How many of these failures have been with counterfeit vs legitimate filters, and how would you know for sure?
I have read about seal failures going back some 4 or 5 years, but I always attributed those to improper installation (failure to lubricate the seal or clean the seating surface).
Actual canister failures at the nut connection seem to be a relatively new development. If you read the K&N literature, they make it clear that the nut is for REMOVAL ONLY, and is not intended for installation. I would suspect that some of the failures are a result of installation using a wrench on the nut, thereby breaking the weld, and this is what K&N will claim! (If they ever respond to this issue!). That said, the weld should be strong enough not to fail even if someone did install the filter in this way.
I have at least two K&N Oil filters still on the shelf, each from a different factory/country of origin. I will be looking them over closely, and likely tossing them if I am not satisfied that the nut connection looks solid.