Is anyone using kick-### or k+n air filters on their trail sled. Are they worth the $$$ in performance?

No there not.

Auggie

I was reading that some some sleds with motor mods,are gutting their air boxes or modifing them in some way.To give the motor more air wouldn't it be beneficial to run filters? K+N and KICK-### both claim to deliver higher volumes of air.These with more fuel should mean more power, no?

Last weekend I was down in CT with my new 440 rev at www.easterncycleperf.com

I was on an inertia dyno which makes the engine accelerate a 1200 lb drum from from idle to peak.

During the day, I performed a few dozen dyno runs changing many details of the engine and did not use the kicka$s filters.

At the end of the day for the last two runs we installed the kicka$s filters and lost a total of 1.2 hp at 8200 rpm. We did two runs with the filters on for "repeatability" hp reading to make sure it was not a fluke.

Freddie has done a lot of dyno tests with the filters and loses about 1% per 100 HP.
Like SUPERTUNER says, "these filters truly Kicka$s".
But he further says if you are going to use them on the trail, don't count on them doing a better job than the airbox. Generally a filter does a better job of cleaning air when you Lose HP. You can gage filter brand for filter brand by HP loss.
One recommendation is to use K&N "Pre-Filters" which are pink/purple colored bags that wrap over the filter and are tied with a string. This will eliminate at least the water/moisture that is in the air but possibly not finer materials.

Airbox's do pretty good job on newer sleds. The effects seen on most sleds on the dyno will actually make more "Average" trailable hp letting the engine offer more torque thru the midrange rpms. You might lose a hp or two at peak, but will gain 2 to 4 hp in the lower rpms.

...I will be doing a write up of my dyno time at ECP in the next coming week and posting it on the forum :hallo1:

Interesting post Dynamo,some good points.I'm assuming your new rev is stock,but if you ported it and added bigger carbs might the stock air box be to restrictive in that case?, being the air box is designed around a stock motor.

Yep...rev is bone stock.

I would think that the air box is only designed for a window of cfm that a stock engine can move, the proper float bowl pressure it needs in relation to outside and underhood air pressure and pressure wave tract length for the rpms the engine runs at.

I choose not to say anything regarding porting/carb size in reference to stock air box.


I don't know, im not an engine guy nor will even pretend to know anything.

SWRules

Well, I have checked every sled that I have owened to see if the air box is addaquate and here's how I do it. I drill a small hole in the air box and install a fitting that will hook up to my vacuum gauge. I remove the handle bar pad (ZR800) and mount the gauge to the crossbar. Head out across the lake, usually about 1 to 2 miles at WOT and observe the gauge. The gauge never moved on my 01 ZR800. If the air box is too small you will start to draw a vacuum. I use this same meathod on car air cleaners.

Auggie

Very good idea Auggie.I didn't realize there was an easy way to check air-box flow.Thanks for the tip. My sled is a 98 Ski-doo triple, and some local speed shops told me these were a restrictive box even in stock form.Maybe their trying to sell me parts I don't need.

MORTOR'N they are restrictive in stock form. There is a shelf in side your air box with three holes in it. If you remove it, it is not restrictive. Save your money i would not buy them for a stock sled.

No there not.

Auggie[/b]


Are smoking crack again Auggie? They are the best investment for performance in the snowmobile industry today.

Were your tests done with airbox or open carbs before trying Kicka$$ filters? Also, have you or others compared the gains and/or losses of Kicka$$ pod filters as compared to K&N pod filters along with open carbs and airboxes ? I have a 1994 MXZ chassis that I long tracked and installed a modified 800 Mach Z. I can't fit my 1997 Mach 1 airbox in it, so I bought and installed K&N filters, thinking that I will gain another couple horsepower. I was under the assumption that K&N's flowed better than an airbox, as you usually have to go up on main jets about 2 to 6 jet sizes to compensate for extra airflow ?