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Triumph TR6 - My K&N's are Shrinking...

After some carb tweaking today it became apparent that the K&N filters have shrunk about 1/4". These are the 6" filters - now there's a 1/8" gap when mounted in the housing. These things are about 8 yrs. old. Anyone else seen this? It's not chem attack, as that would be swelling, so it's likely loss of plasticiser. Guess it's time to see what K&N has to say.

BB
Brent B


Brent? Your air filters are 8 years old?

What's K&N going say about 8 yr. old filters. Unless they're supposed to last that long. Are they washable?

Just curious.

Henry
HP Henry Patterson

Brent,
I have never heard of shrinkage either.
Would you mind posting the response from K&N ?
I also am very curious.

Cheers , Pete.
Peter Thomas

Shrinkage?

I'm getting Seinfeld flashbacks...
Don from Jersey

Brent,
They are advertised as the "Million Mile" air filter....That should be enough to make them send you a new set, right???? I'm guessin' your TR6 hasn't turned a million yet!!! Keep us posted.
Rod
Rod Nichols

Brent,

From what I understand, K&N's must be air-dried only after cleaning as they are made with cotton fibers and will shrink if heat is used. Mine have 1500 miles on them so am interested in what you find out!

Mike
'73
Mike Calhoun

So far no response from K&N. They probably have me anyway - I don't have the receipt from VB for the things . Looked up the actual age in my book - 13 yrs old.

The maintenance of the filters was always by the book using official K&N cleaner & oil. The shrinkage is in the "rubber" surround. They still filter fine - just have to be centered in the holder by hand now.
Brent B

How much of your time will be spent trying to get K&N to send free replacements? Don't know what value you place on your time, but I'd spring for a new set of filters instead of chasing K&N for freebies. After all, you've had them in for 13 years . . . amortize your purchase price over 13 years and the result is meaningless. After all, the million mile warranty is simply a marketing gimmick to distance themselves from others.
Rick Orthen

I'd buy new ones and ship the old ones back to K&N in the new box with a letter of disappointment, quoting their marketing schpeil, promises etc, suggesting that they may benefit from researching your problem. If nothing happens, ce la vie. If you get a new pair back from them, stick em on Ebay!
Roger H

I looked in an old VB catalog I have at work and read the guarantee was "10 years or 1 million miles". Guess that seals it. If they start to crack JEGS has close replacements for $26.99.
Brent B

Brent
10 years or 1,000,000 miles is 100,000 miles/year. That is a LOT of miles/yr.
Consider yourself on borrowed time.
Rick

PS $30.00/13= $2.30/year....yup buy them.
Rick Crawford

K&N's eh. Do they really make a performance difference for the 6 Brent or just look cool? Maybe both! I've thought of switching over for my 6L diesel (Ford Pick-up) but have just hummed & hawed to this point.
Ken Shaddock

Ken,
If you are looking for performance enhancements you might want to check out David Vizard's books.
This guy basically calls a spsde a shovel and discusses only what actually works.
The info is a little dated in some respects due to the age of the books but still relevant especially to "old school" engines like TR6's.

Some good titles:
How to build Horsepower Volumes 1 & 2 and his books on the A and B series BMC engines. These deal with stuff related to MGB's , Minis (pre BMW) and other BMC era engines but again the basic information is sound and can be transfered over to your application.

Finally: If any modification is working there will be evidence somewhere else. If the air filters are more efficient then there will need to be a change to the mixture though the carbs or fuel injectors to match.

Just a thought to end on: If it were my car and AFTER the run in has been done I would book time on a reputable rolling road type dynomometer and get the thing fully set up. It is a fairly high cost up front but well worth the dollars spent at least in my opinion.

I am sure some one living closer to where you are can suggest a competent place.

Cheers , Pete.
Peter Thomas

This thread was discussed between 09/10/2006 and 14/10/2006

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