[DougAU]

Personally I think the nut on the filter is a gimmick, when a company resorts to gimmickry then I have to wonder about their product.
I've been changing filters on bikes/cars/trucks for damn near 50 years and if it was put on right there's no reason that you need a nut on one to get it off.

 

[BonnieBlack]

I haven't returned mine yet, it's just sitting in the garage. And since I've brought it home two of my cats have gone missing :suspicious


So, not returning it until that third damn cat is gone. Evil filter has more work to do :YellowEvil

 

[MyEvilTwin]

My story as posted elsewhere. Take it for what its worth. This event occurred this month July-2018 on new inventory coding sold by a major retail outlet and correctly installed.

For the record, I too was very skeptical about these KN leaking fears. I bought one not knowing of the past recall from new inventory at Advanced Auto. Learned of the 2016 recall, checked my filter code, and whew - all ok it was newer.

Except 500mi into that filter I see a drip on the floor. Clean the area up, put my belly pan on and monitor. Three rides later more slow drips in the belly pan, ***!. Installed it with a strap wrench never using the nut. After inspection, there was a wet bead right at the edge of the nut weld and the filter canister.

Pulled that turd off, returned the extra spare I had and went Hiflfiltro.

Never turning back.

 

[winkeldc]

My story as posted elsewhere. Take it for what its worth. This event occurred this month July-2018 on new inventory coding sold by a major retail outlet and correctly installed.

For the record, I too was very skeptical about these KN leaking fears. I bought one not knowing of the past recall from new inventory at Advanced Auto. Learned of the 2016 recall, checked my filter code, and whew - all ok it was newer.

Except 500mi into that filter I see a drip on the floor. Clean the area up, put my belly pan on and monitor. Three rides later more slow drips in the belly pan, ***!. Installed it with a strap wrench never using the nut. After inspection, there was a wet bead right at the edge of the nut weld an

Pulled that turd off, returned the extra spare I had and went Hiflfiltro.

Never turning back.

On my last oil change I didn't get the filter tight enough and there was a slow drip that ended dripping from the middle of the bottom of the filter, right where the nut would be on the wrench off variety. Tightening the filter stopped the drip. I'd be curious, if you still have the filter, to see what happens if you fill the filter with oil and let it sit for a day.

 

[mollycbr123]

So say you and the corporation. Sorry, that's not good enough. Fro
The IMPARTIAL perspective, looks very much like these filters have been showing failures for nearly a decade now. We have know way of knowing true numbers involved, reports on Web are sporadic and no way to get at real scale of the problem. Your belief vast majority are due to improper installation once again raises the spector of a bad design leading to dangerous improper use. Putting a warning label to tell users to only use nut for removal is like telling people that the zipper on their jeans is for taki.g off the pant only. Stupid. This is completely at the feet of K&N to redesign or remove these from the market.

If they are so concerned for their customers why not design them so it doesn't matter if they are wrenched on? Problem solved! Or, why not redesign so there's some kind of one way ratchet on the nut to prevent Wrenching on? Problem Solved. Or pull them off market and problem solved.
How long before we hear of a serious accident/death from these things?

I had a '17 T120 spew oil all over my right foot and the rear of the bike during a recent test ride. I'd ridden the bike about 20 miles, and thank goodness the failure apparently occured just as I'd pulled back into the dealer's lot, as the rear tire was also covered in oil. It was from a faulty oil seal on the engine, not the filter. I've read stories on the interweb about other Bonnevilles leaking oil. Although there is no way to know the true numbers, some of the reports date back years and years. Obviously a QC issue or poor design somewhere. But I don't think the sky is falling.

 

[Mlaite48]

So to the K&N company man. A few questions. Will the K&N 204 filter nut handle 10mn of torque?
What is the hole in the nut for? I am a certified aircraft mechanic. This, I understand is a safety wire hole. When you safety wire a nut you of course pull on the nut in the tightening direction. It is my understanding that in some applications this filter is safety wired, is this correct?

 

[Thruxty]

Switched to Mobil 1 filter on my most recent oil change, but no problem with the previous K&N I had installed (about 5,000 miles). Nut made removal easier but didn't want to risk it again after hearing about issues with K&N.

 

[TMF]

I'll take the word of a credible eye witness.

To sum: The nut was a good idea poorly executed. I've had to pound screwdrivers through oil filters to remove them on a half dozen occasions always on used cars or bikes I've recently acquired (I put my filters on hand tight). People over tighten oil filters.

Don't get me started on mechanics and their air ratchet tightening of lug nuts.

 

[MyEvilTwin]

On my last oil change I didn't get the filter tight enough and there was a slow drip that ended dripping from the middle of the bottom of the filter, right where the nut would be on the wrench off variety.

So my friend I originally thought that was the problem. However, I run magnets on the side of the filter and a large one over the nut. When I got underneath there was no residue caught around any of the magnets not even at the nut. No trace of running from above, so I cleaned the whole area with Kerosene and watched after every ride. The second time when I found drips in the belly pan I decided to replace, and again no seepage at the gasket mount or anywhere above or on the magnets. Also the drips at the nut seam arose while i was riding, which I believe happened when the filter was under a bit of pressure and the oil viscosity loosened up when hot. I believe the slow seep leak created a drip to form at the nut seam edge then get blown off by wind while riding. I say that, as oil gathered at the tail end of my belly pan not directly below the filter itself. When I did swap it out I took a toothpick and coaxed fluid out from the nut seam prior to removing. By that time I was aware of the past recall problems but was still in disbelief that these similar circumstances actually presented themselves. I should note that my bike has only 2K miles, garage kept, fair weather driven and meticulously loved in terms of care\service

Although I chucked the filter I do not believe leaving it full of oil overnight experiment would cause it to surface the problem as there is no pressure and the oil cold would be thicker.

Again, for the benefit of this forum I have no ill will against K&N, as I have routinely used their nut based white-orange filters for my car. Personally I think it is a poor design atop varying overseas manufacturing compounded by differences in site quality control.

Since the hiflofiltro and 200miles, I have no leaks presenting. If it does I will post back as that would indicated a different cause.

 

[MyEvilTwin]

What is the hole in the nut for? It is my understanding that in some applications this filter is safety wired, is this correct?

So I am not the K&N company man you posted to, but yes the hole is for a safety catch wire in order to meet some pre track day tech inspection in the event a filter pops off on track crowded by motorbikes at high speeds.

Most street riders would never use a safety wire set-up.

 

[Mlaite48]

Interesting.

 

[jsobell]

So I am not the K&N company man you posted to, but yes the hole is for a safety catch wire in order to meet some pre track day tech inspection in the event a filter pops off on track crowded by motorbikes at high speeds.

Most street riders would never use a safety wire set-up.

LOL, if an oil filter pops off on a crowded track, I think the 3L of oil spread cross the track will be more important that the big black oil-filter easily spotted rolling across the track

I think the holes may be to release pressure under the 'bubble' of metal when welding or baking during manufacturing, as I can't imagine why you would wire an oil filter (after all, you can't do it to any other brand of oil filter!)

Sent from my SM-T825Y using Tapatalk

 

[winkeldc]

So my friend I originally thought that was the problem. However, I run magnets on the side of the filter and a large one over the nut. When I got underneath there was no residue caught around any of the magnets not even at the nut. No trace of running from above, so I cleaned the whole area with Kerosene and watched after every ride. The second time when I found drips in the belly pan I decided to replace, and again no seepage at the gasket mount or anywhere above or on the magnets. Also the drips at the nut seam arose while i was riding, which I believe happened when the filter was under a bit of pressure and the oil viscosity loosened up when hot. I believe the slow seep leak created a drip to form at the nut seam edge then get blown off by wind while riding. I say that, as oil gathered at the tail end of my belly pan not directly below the filter itself. When I did swap it out I took a toothpick and coaxed fluid out from the nut seam prior to removing. By that time I was aware of the past recall problems but was still in disbelief that these similar circumstances actually presented themselves. I should note that my bike has only 2K miles, garage kept, fair weather driven and meticulously loved in terms of care\service

Although I chucked the filter I do not believe leaving it full of oil overnight experiment would cause it to surface the problem as there is no pressure and the oil cold would be thicker.

Again, for the benefit of this forum I have no ill will against K&N, as I have routinely used their nut based white-orange filters for my car. Personally I think it is a poor design atop varying overseas manufacturing compounded by differences in site quality control.

Since the hiflofiltro and 200miles, I have no leaks presenting. If it does I will post back as that would indicated a different cause.

Thanks for the follow up, like I said, was just curious. I haven't used one of these filters, but it would seem that the nut is simply welded onto a filter assembly so the only failure point if the nut is not used for installation, would be the weld being too hot for the metal?

 

[BonnieBlack]

as I can't imagine why you would wire an oil filter (after all, you can't do it to any other brand of oil filter!)

So they don't spin off.

 

[jsobell]

But how would you wire a K&N like that? You need to tether it on the edge, not on the top, otherwise it will still spin loose

Sent from my SM-G955F using Tapatalk

 

[BonnieBlack]

But how would you wire a K&N like that? You need to tether it on the edge, not on the top, otherwise it will still spin loose

I don't have any first hand knowledge here, just googling around ...

 

[MyEvilTwin]

LOL, if an oil filter pops off on a crowded track, I think the 3L of oil spread cross the track will be more important that the big black oil-filter easily spotted rolling across the track

I think the holes may be to release pressure under the 'bubble' of metal when welding or baking during manufacturing, as I can't imagine why you would wire an oil filter (after all, you can't do it to any other brand of oil filter!)

Sent from my SM-T825Y using Tapatalk

Straight from K&N site - last sentence...

K&N powersports oil filters contain a modern synthetic filter media, designed for ultimate flow with less pressure drop, yet engineered for outstanding filtration. K&N powersports 'spin-on' oil filters feature a heavy-duty metal can. Most of these have a 17 mm nut affixed onto the end that allows for easy removal. The 17 mm nut is crossed-drilled so racers can safety wire the filter to their bike.

https://www.knfilters.com/search/pr...MI8p7Cx-LO3AIVHrnACh1O4gCaEAAYAiAAEgLb1fD_BwE

Bonnie showed you the rest, But heck, maybe in the southern-hemi it is for pressure release.....what do I know.

 

[Tornado99]

My story as posted elsewhere. Take it for what its worth. This event occurred this month July-2018 on new inventory coding sold by a major retail outlet and correctly installed.

For the record, I too was very skeptical about these KN leaking fears. I bought one not knowing of the past recall from new inventory at Advanced Auto. Learned of the 2016 recall, checked my filter code, and whew - all ok it was newer.

Except 500mi into that filter I see a drip on the floor. Clean the area up, put my belly pan on and monitor. Three rides later more slow drips in the belly pan, ***!. Installed it with a strap wrench never using the nut. After inspection, there was a wet bead right at the edge of the nut weld and the filter canister.

Pulled that turd off, returned the extra spare I had and went Hiflfiltro.

Never turning back.

Careful now, some folks may accuse you of not telling the truth about how you tightened that failed filter. Others might claim it couldn't of happened b/c it was not in the affected production batch range.

Just sayin'.... okeit

 

[winkeldc]

Careful now, some folks may accuse you of not telling the truth about how you tightened that failed filter. Others might claim it couldn't of happened b/c it was not in the affected production batch range.

Just sayin'.... okeit

And others may just keep beating that horse . . . :wink2:

 

[jsobell]

Straight from K&N site - last sentence...

K&N powersports oil filters contain a modern synthetic filter media, designed for ultimate flow with less pressure drop, yet engineered for outstanding filtration. K&N powersports 'spin-on' oil filters feature a heavy-duty metal can. Most of these have a 17 mm nut affixed onto the end that allows for easy removal. The 17 mm nut is crossed-drilled so racers can safety wire the filter to their bike.

https://www.knfilters.com/search/pr...MI8p7Cx-LO3AIVHrnACh1O4gCaEAAYAiAAEgLb1fD_BwE

Bonnie showed you the rest, But heck, maybe in the southern-hemi it is for pressure release.....what do I know.

Er, yeah, that will prevent the filter loosening. Not
I reckon that has to be a K&N "what can we do to add pretend value" move. You don't wire a component like that to prevent it falling off, you do it to prevent it loosening. My point was that you can't wire the nut on the top to prevent it loosening so I figure there has to be an alternative reason for the holes existence.
Still, if it convinces people to choose this brand... perhaps it distracts attention from the weeping spot-welds

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