Best Air Filters Explained!

5480 Views 41 Replies 10 Participants Last post by ARJ, 14 d ago

8ballz

Discussion Starter · Sep 22, 2021

I've used and currently have 5 air filters for gsxs 1000/ gsxs1000f. Some of these are for sale.

1) 🔥The K&n Street is best for a stock bike with no mods.. (Best fuel economy)

2) 🔥 🔥 Bmc Street is best with a slip on exhaust, or muffler box removed but cat still in place. Remove muffler box and you WILL NEED A FLASH OR PCV...

3) 🔥 🔥 🔥 Sprint p037 best with muffler box removal, with or without cat, or full exhaust... filter is waterproof

4) 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 Sprint p08 best for decat, or full exhaust ...

5) 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥😁 Sprint P08f185 best for full exhaust AND if you want all out gsxs performance to the max (not a commuter) waterproof filter also.

Sprint filters are cleaned with compressed air. & No need for oil!

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8ballz

Discussion Starter · #21 · Sep 23, 2021

871JZ said:
How about trying to post without the arrogance and insults?

There's multiple videos a couple posts above yours showing the standard filter from K&N with filthy air boxes. Not their RACE filters, the STANDARD one. If that much grit is laying in the air box, how much do you think was ingested by the engine? Much, much more.

You have no experience with any of the above filters on a motorcycle (not a truck). You are only going off of a vid & a tuner that you say you spoke to. That would be a lack of information because you have no 1st hand experience with any of the filters above.

Ignorance - lack of knowledge or information.

I own all 5 filters. I have 5 motorcycles in the garage. Never has debris made it past air box or damaged engines. That is 1st hand experience based on 20 years of observing (not arrogance).

Just so you know. A youtuber makes money off views. How do you get the most views? Post controversial/ slanted/ or fake/ exaggerated informaton. Thats like watching a Ghost vid on youtube & saying its real because someone made & posted a video..

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LEAVEITSTOCK

· #22 · Sep 23, 2021

8ballz said:
You are absolutely incorrect. These are for people wanting the bike flashed/ dyno tuned and want the extra 3-7 horsepower. Stock filter is garbage Unless you're leaving your bike stock. I have been riding over 20yrs never had dirt make it past filter or top of air box get dusty. You spreading misinformation is terrible especially for those that may read it and believe you. Call Brock performance tomorrow. Call Chris Moore and let them chime in. Do your research before you go off of 1 youtube vid that you seen. I doubt that the guy you mentioned has more experience working on bikes than brock or chris moore or blais cycles.

Let's say you do a 520 conversion 1-2 hp.. You do full synthetic oil 1 hp.. Air filter 3-7 hp.. Shed 7-15 lbs off the bike 1-2 hp.. Your bike would get dusted by this bike making 6-12 more hp.. Point being is that small numbers add up with bolt-ons. These filters are not for those that live in the desert.

Dirty air box don’t lie. I believe my eyes

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8ballz

Discussion Starter · #23 · Sep 23, 2021

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8ballz

Discussion Starter · #24 · Sep 23, 2021

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8ballz

Discussion Starter · #25 · Sep 23, 2021

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8ballz

Discussion Starter · #26 · Sep 23, 2021

All the top tuners & engine builders that I use in the USA have all said the same thing. Of course you have to follow the maintenance schedule.

And keep in mind that you cant leave the filter in the bike uncleaned for 30000 miles.

Let me know if I need to post Chris Moore screenshots.

Drops Mic & walks off 😎

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871JZ

· #27 · Sep 23, 2021 (Edited)

8ballz said:
You have no experience with any of the above filters on a motorcycle (not a truck). You are only going off of a vid & a tuner that you say you spoke to. That would be a lack of information because you have no 1st hand experience with any of the filters above.

Ignorance - lack of knowledge or information.

I own all 5 filters. I have 5 motorcycles in the garage. Never has debris made it past air box or damaged engines. That is 1st hand experience based on 20 years of observing (not arrogance).

Just so you know. A youtuber makes money off views. How do you get the most views? Post controversial/ slanted/ or fake/ exaggerated informaton. Thats like watching a Ghost vid on youtube & saying its real because someone made & posted a video..

You've said multiple times now that I haven't researched this topic enough and now you say that only first hand experience counts. Which is it?

And a performance air filter is a performance air filter. It makes no difference whether it's under the hood of a truck or under the tank of a motorcycle, as the requirements are the same. If they filter as good as you claim, what difference would it make whether they're on a car or bike? I don't see what difference it makes whether they're filtering air leading into a V8 pickup engine or an inline four sportbike engine.

You also brought up Brock Davidson and Chris Moore, both of which have very popular YouTube channels and told me to contact them for answers. I then post videos from a smaller channel and you tell me he's made fake videos to get views. Yeah, I can tell by his massive 347 person subscriber count and super dramatic click bait titles that he's all about the views, baby! Lol. Ridiculous...

If you're so confident in the super duper filtration capabilities of high flow air filters, try this. Contact K&N, BMC, Sprint, DNA, and whoever else you wish. Ask them what micron rating their filters are good for and then do the same with several of the standard paper filter manufacturers. If the performance filter companies will even tell you, I'll guarantee their ratings will be far less than those of the paper filters. Try it and see. It's all about research, remember!

There's also several good videos online showing, in real time, the difference between high flow and paper air filters when it comes to what and how much contaminants make it through. Be careful, though. You know how those guys on YouTube love to post all that controversial, slanted, fake, and exaggerated informaton. Remember, if the results contradict your opinion, it's probably CGI.

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871JZ

· #28 · Sep 23, 2021 (Edited)

8ballz said:
All the top tuners & engine builders that I use in the USA have all said the same thing. Of course you have to follow the maintenance schedule.

And keep in mind that you cant leave the filter in the bike uncleaned for 30000 miles.

Let me know if I need to post Chris Moore screenshots.

Drops Mic & walks off 😎

So the YouTube videos I posted don't count because that guy just wants views, but messages about Sprint filters from Brock Davidson do count because it's not like he's in the business of SELLING SPRINT FILTERS, right? 🙄

Send him a message asking if Sprint filters will filter as well as an OEM paper filter. If he's being honest, he'll tell you they don't. But it's okay because you'll be making an extra three horsepower which will help make up for the accelerated wear caused by all the dirt the engine will ingest over time. 🤣

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871JZ

· #29 · Sep 24, 2021

You can also read many accounts from people who have performed oil analysis while running standard filters and then the same with high flow filters. In every single one the results are the same. They show massive increases in silicon levels, which is the dirt, as well as large increases in metal content from additional wear to the piston rings, engine bearings, etc.

There's a good article by California Scientific detailing the results of a large company who was spending approximately $30k/month on air filters alone for their vehicles and equipment. They switched some of their filters out for K&N replacements in an effort to see if it was possible to achieve long-term savings on maintenance costs. With a history of performing oil analysis tests prior to the switch, they had a perfect baseline with which to compare. Needless to say, it didn't take them long to switch back to the paper filters after their OA test results came back.

ETA: Link to the CS article below:
https://motorcycleinfo.calsci.com/Filters.html

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Sixstring123#

· #30 · Sep 24, 2021 (Edited)

HAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHHA okay a drag bike does not need an air filter it is on a track LOL.. Now then a FILTER filters dirt sand leaves bugs etc- a High flow filter filters LESS dirt then the stock filter that suzuki designed..
Yes a high flow air filter will give more power if it is tuned. you are not going to feel 1hp on the street.. Now the drag GUY Salesman is worried about thousands of a second so 1hp may save .000056 in a quarter mile which could be a win.. heck he runs zero weight oil run that around on 100 degree day see how that works for ya..
Now to say that dirt going through the injectors on to the top of the cylinder and burned off out the exhaust valves does not cause wear i call BS.. little particles of sand cause wear period.. why do you think your oil gets dirty?? HUH HUH why does the oil filter pick up dirt in the oil because crap is burned in the combustion chamber whether it is a dirty air filter or dirt in the gas or in the tank.. yes the oil turns black when the additives burn off but it picks up dirt..
SO a stock filter is fine for the street no matter what mods you have done..... i myself have used k and n filters for years never had an issue but i keep them clean and check them periodically it saves some money in the long run.. did i feel any more hp from them NO..but i got a sticker for my toolbox so now i am cool..

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Gixxus_Lou

· #31 · Sep 24, 2021

8ballz said:
Seems as though you can't read. 1 of his points is that all hi flow filters will eventually lead to engine damage by debris going past filter. Which is incorrect. That is the point that I am speaking of.

Seems you've got no common sense.

Even Brock in his post refers to the P08 that "filters less but flows more". If it filters less then what do you think is getting past the filter into the cylinders?

Now is it enough to lead to engine damage? Likely not depending on the filtration efficiency but there's no denying that less filtration leads to more grit getting into the engine.

Answer me this:

Which cylinder walls will look newer after 50,000 miles? A. The one with the factory filter, or B. The one with the high flow filter?

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Rim72

· #32 · Sep 26, 2021

Gixxus_Lou said:
"filters less but flows more".

As much as I am amused by this conversation, people should realise that filters filter. We use 2 micron filters in an application at work. This means particles smaller than 2 microns pass through, larger particles get filtered.....Same with the oil filters. Will the particles passed cause issues? I don't know. I'm not qualified to tell. But I trust the manufacturers recommendations are correct. Plus they mitigate all of this through regular oil changes. And this attitude will probably cost me an engine after 200 000 kms. I can live with that.

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871JZ

· #33 · Sep 26, 2021

Rim72 said:
As much as I am amused by this conversation, people should realise that filters filter. We use 2 micron filters in an application at work. This means particles smaller than 2 microns pass through, larger particles get filtered.....Same with the oil filters. Will the particles passed cause issues? I don't know. I'm not qualified to tell. But I trust the manufacturers recommendations are correct. Plus they mitigate all of this through regular oil changes. And this attitude will probably cost me an engine after 200 000 kms. I can live with that.

I look at performance air filters the same as I do performance oil filters. You can buy performance oil filters that will flow much more than a standard oil filter, but will only filter down to about 35-40 microns, whereas a standard oil filter will filter down to 8-10 microns. That's 3-4 times more efficient at capturing the stuff we don't want circulating through our engines. One is meant for track use and the other street use. The same applies to air filters. One will flow more air, but common sense dictates that in doing so, it won't filter quite as well. With all the potential crap floating around in the air out on public roads, I want a filter that's guaranteed to capture all of that crap and only let through what I know won't induce premature wear, even if it's slow wear that's happening over time.

All I have to go on is my own common sense and personal experience, as well as the wisdom of others more knowledgeable than myself. All of this adds up to it making more sense to keep the OEM air filter in place and learn to live with missing out on those two or three extra horsepower I'd otherwise have. Both options have their place and where they're best suited for use and I prefer to use them accordingly.

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871JZ

· #34 · Sep 30, 2021

Here's a video from Brock showing the difference between the OEM Suzuki filter and a Sprint filter. Remember when I mentioned the window screen earlier in this thread? That's exactly what the Sprint looks like. He also talks about how well the OEM paper filters flow.

OEM Suzuki GSX-R1000 filter:

Automotive lighting Wood Automotive tail & brake light Bumper Window

Sprint F1-85 filter:

Grille Bumper Automotive exterior Hood Gas

Link to the video:

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temporarykiwi

· #35 · Sep 30, 2021

well i lived right beside a beach , i loved riding my xr500 there, when i tore it down to install new rings, i can tell you the top of piston above the ringlands looked like sandpaper had been used on it, it had the stock air filter, if you ride any bike in highly dust / sand filled air, it will get into the engine.... if you ride around where there is little dust or sand, little will get into your engine, ALL air filters have holes in them, or the air wouldnt get in, yes race filters have bigger holes, stock usually smaller holes, i chose to run k & n airfilters in my hotrodded xr650 engines, as it wore out the conrods quicker than the pistons

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871JZ

· #36 · Sep 30, 2021

temporarykiwi said:
well i lived right beside a beach , i loved riding my xr500 there, when i tore it down to install new rings, i can tell you the top of piston above the ringlands looked like sandpaper had been used on it, it had the stock air filter, if you ride any bike in highly dust / sand filled air, it will get into the engine.... if you ride around where there is little dust or sand, little will get into your engine, ALL air filters have holes in them, or the air wouldnt get in, yes race filters have bigger holes, stock usually smaller holes, i chose to run k & n airfilters in my hotrodded xr650 engines, as it wore out the conrods quicker than the pistons

Don't the XR500's use the oiled foam style/standard dirtbike air filters, like the UNI Filters? I don't think they run paper air filters like the OEM sportbike filters we're comparing here.

temporarykiwi

· #37 · Oct 3, 2021

871JZ said:
Don't the XR500's use the oiled foam style/standard dirtbike air filters, like the UNI Filters? I don't think they run paper air filters like the OEM sportbike filters we're comparing here.

k & n filters arent paper, they are a cotton gauze with wax medium

871JZ

· #38 · Oct 3, 2021 (Edited)

temporarykiwi said:
k & n filters arent paper, they are a cotton gauze with wax medium

I know K&N filters aren't paper. I was referring to your statement that your XR500 pistons looked like they had been sanded. You said that happened with the stock air filter in place. I said I believe the stock XR500 filter was an oiled foam type dirtbike filter, not a paper filter like the OEM sportbike filters being discussed here, so that experience isn't really relevant in this context.

8ballz

Discussion Starter · #39 · Oct 3, 2021

🗣🤓😁😉

ARJ

· #40 · 15 d ago

8ballz said:
These filters are not for drag racing. You can use them in that application. That isn't the only application. We not talking about a dusty old truck. We are speaking on motorcycles.. Call those three tomorrow and let me know what answer you get. The 3rd shop I mention builds motorcycles & tears them down all the time. Call or email them. You are living in the 1960's thinking that these filters aren't for the street.

Don't by the filter that says "race" from k&n or bmc, they will let particles in. That's why they are for close circuit clean environments only.... None of the filters I spoke of are filters that are for "race" designation.

You would be correct in your comments for the "race" version of the k&n & bmc. They tell you on the box not for street use.. All the filters I mentioned above are not those. So know which filters do what before you comment. Research is the key. The rest is ignorance

Here is the video with proof!

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