K&N oil filter spill

max

max

Road warrior
Thread starter
You may already know that there is a fault with a batch of oil filters that have a nut on the front of the filter designed to unscrew the used cartridge.

There are several instances where the nut has given way and caused oil to flow out of the filter.

I understand k&n have acknowledged this but it may be of benefit to the riders to be aware of this defect.

there are at least 6 youtube video's about this happening with various results here are two links to get you started;


and

be safe. max
 
This is a slightly different take on this. Two years ago I was building a Cobra replica and my engine builder said that the warranty was null and void if I used a K&N filter on the engine. He said he had seen too many failures with these filters. Being a highly respected engine builder I did not see any reason to doubt him. I have therefore never have and never will use another K&N on anything.
 
Recall was for issues Mar-Jul 2016 (hex "nut" spot welds out of spec)

https://www.knfilters.com/recallkn204

K&N Engineering, Inc. (K&N) has determined that certain K&N oil filters, Part Nos. KN-204 (black) and KN-204C (chrome), manufactured between March 1, 2016 and September 30, 2016 contain a defect related to motor vehicle safety. K&N is conducting a voluntary recall program to replace those parts.
ITEMS COVERED BY THIS RECALL

The KN-204 (black) and KN-204C (chrome) oil filters covered by this recall have manufacturing date codes imprinted on the ends of the filters that contain as the second and third characters of the code the number/letter combinations of 3H, 4H, 5H, 6H, 7H, 8H or 9H, with the number corresponding to the month of the year (i.e., 3 for the month of March, 4 for the month of April, etc.) and the letter “H” representing the year 2016. KN-204 and KN-204C oil filters manufactured outside of that date range and which bear different manufacturing date codes are not covered by this recall. K&N oil filters with a different part number are also not covered by or involved in this recall.

If you purchased a KN-204 and/or KN-204C oil filter since March 1, 2016, or if you believe you may have such a filter installed on your vehicle, please check to see if it has a manufacturing date code within that range. The date code can be found as shown in the photograph below. In this photo, the relevant character combination is “7H”, which indicates the oil filter was manufactured in July 2016.
I can purchase a Honda 15410-MFJ-D01 for less than the KN-204.
 
The KN-143 for Yamaha TW200 had issues with holes being blocked by glue.
I bought 4 at my local O'Reillys, aware of the issue.
One of the filters had one of the four holes blocked and I returned it.

Not stating that I would not use K&N, just that there have been other issues.
 
I used the K&N on a previous HD with no issue.... The little nut made it super easy to get on and off since the filter was mounted sideways in front.

For the CB though, it's a Honda filter all the way. Get a good 65mm oil filter cap wrench and it's a piece of cake!
 
Flytech99_imp said:
I used the K&N on a previous HD with no issue.... The little nut made it super easy to get on and off since the filter was mounted sideways in front.

For the CB though, it's a Honda filter all the way. Get a good 65mm oil filter cap wrench and it's a piece of cake!
Click to expand...
A Honda cap wrench can be purchased with one filter in this package:

Honda 15410-MCE-H51

I ordered it from my dealer for the first oil change.
 
paulw_imp said:
This is a slightly different take on this. Two years ago I was building a Cobra replica and my engine builder said that the warranty was null and void if I used a K&N filter on the engine. He said he had seen too many failures with these filters. Being a highly respected engine builder I did not see any reason to doubt him. I have therefore never have and never will use another K&N on anything.
Click to expand...
How does Honda manage engine mods and warranty. For example, will an aftermarket exhaust system void the factory warranty?
 
Having seen a K&N filer that failed on Pterodactyl's CB1100, I will never have another one.

Flytech99_imp said:
I used the K&N on a previous HD with no issue.... The little nut made it super easy to get on and off since the filter was mounted sideways in front.

For the CB though, it's a Honda filter all the way. Get a good 65mm oil filter cap wrench and it's a piece of cake!
Click to expand...
Flytech, I have a recollection that K&N says you must not tighten the filter with the nut; it is there for removal only.
 
Removing the stock exhaust and installing an aftermarket unit will not void the warranty, unless you damage it or any related parts during the removal or installation process and then try to claim it was defective.
 
Cormanus_imp said:
Having seen a K&N filer that failed on Pterodactyl's CB1100, I will never have another one.

Flytech99_imp said:
I used the K&N on a previous HD with no issue.... The little nut made it super easy to get on and off since the filter was mounted sideways in front.

For the CB though, it's a Honda filter all the way. Get a good 65mm oil filter cap wrench and it's a piece of cake!
Click to expand...
Flytech, I have a recollection that K&N says you must not tighten the filter with the nut; it is there for removal only.
Click to expand...
I no longer use the K&N filter... but you bring up an interesting point, Cormanus.

If the nut isn't supposed to be used to torque the filter on (presumably to avoid risk of damaging the filter due to torquing/over-torquing ), then that renders anything other than a strap wrench useless for tightening it. I would imagine a regular cap style wrench wouldn't fit??? If indeed that's the case, it completely negates the convenience of the nut and really makes me question the structural integrity of the filter in the first place. Hmm....
 
Flytech99_imp said:
Cormanus_imp said:
Having seen a K&N filer that failed on Pterodactyl's CB1100, I will never have another one.

Flytech99_imp said:
I used the K&N on a previous HD with no issue.... The little nut made it super easy to get on and off since the filter was mounted sideways in front.

For the CB though, it's a Honda filter all the way. Get a good 65mm oil filter cap wrench and it's a piece of cake!
Click to expand...
Flytech, I have a recollection that K&N says you must not tighten the filter with the nut; it is there for removal only.
Click to expand...
I no longer use the K&N filter... but you bring up an interesting point, Cormanus.

If the nut isn't supposed to be used to torque the filter on (presumably to avoid risk of damaging the filter due to torquing/over-torquing ), then that renders anything other than a strap wrench useless for tightening it. I would imagine a regular cap style wrench wouldn't fit??? If indeed that's the case, it completely negates the convenience of the nut and really makes me question the structural integrity of the filter in the first place. Hmm....
Click to expand...
I no longer use the K&N filter... but you bring up an interesting point, Cormanus.

If the nut isn't supposed to be used to torque the filter on (presumably to avoid risk of damaging the filter due to torquing/over-torquing ), then that renders anything other than a strap wrench useless for tightening it. I would imagine a regular cap style wrench wouldn't fit??? If indeed that's the case, it completely negates the convenience of the nut and really makes me question the structural integrity of the filter in the first place. Hmm....
Hand tight is enough. The seal comes from the o-ring, not from the thread, so it doesn't need much torque.

The friction will keep it in place, so it won't come loose easily.
 
From the Iron Butt Association Newsletter:

“As many in the long-distance community have heard, some K&N oil filters have been have been leaking oil and recently, some race tracks have issued notices that riders would be responsible for any track damage caused by running a K&N oil filter (effectively banning them as no one could afford those costs).

K&N has finally issued a SAFETY RECALL and identified which filters are subject to the defect. Here are clips from the recall letter sent to dealers:

K&N has discovered that certain KN-204/204C oil filters manufactured between March 1 and September 30, 2016, can leak oil at the area where a nut (intended for use to remove the oil filter during routine oil changes) is welded to the end of the filter. If there is such a leak, oil could come into contact with the rear tire or rear brake of the motorcycle on which the filter is installed. If this were to occur, it could lead to a loss of control or a crash. Therefore, K&N is conducting a recall under which it is offering to replace the covered oil filters at no charge, including the cost of return shipping.

A copy of the letter sent out to dealers with many more details and how to identify a recall filter is located at:

http://www.ironbutt.org/KandN/RCMN-17E044-1798.pdf

if you use K&N filters you should invest the time to make sure you are not using one of this filters or have one in your personal stock to use.

Mike “
 
Never have and never will use them:exclamation:
....where a nut (intended for use to remove the oil filter during routine oil changes) is welded to the end of the filter = :rofl:..


pb
 
Actually, peterbaron, it isn't funny at all when there's a fault and there's oil trickling out of the filter when you're on the bike. A couple of our members had very lucky escapes from something that could easily have been tragic.

I guess the problem here is that, one would reasonably assume that doing anything to an oil filter, which operates under some pressure, is likely to increase the risk of failure and therefore not a good idea. However, in K&N's defence, the company has been making oil filters for years and, so far as I know, has not had significant problems. People could be forgiven for trusting them. Personally, I've used them only twice when put on by other people. I removed the second the minute I got it home.
 
Whether it's K&N, Fram, Uni, Brand X, whatever, I don't understand the rationale of intentionally seeking out and using a non-factory filter. Is it due to price? Marketing hype? Availability? To me, the second-guessing of using a non-OE filter seems to be completely unnecessary.
 
If there were a huge price differential and some evidence that the OEM product was no better, I think I'd consider it. Otherwise, I'm generally for OEM things.
 
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