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MG MGF Technical - K&N filter, any probs

Hi all,
I am reading the posts here and on other forums regarding installing a K&N air filter. I know it will increase performance, and potentially economy, but I have seen warnings regarding the temp inside the engine compartment, and that you would need an induction hose also.

Is this induction hose a mandatory, or can you just install the filter.

Right, next question is, where can I get it done, and what is the expected costs?

Steve G

Cold air is denser and therefore contains more Oxygen, so to improve performance you need to get as much cold air into the engine as possible.

Induction tubes take cold air from under the car and force into the face of the air filter, the tubes can be ordered with the kit or some people have used tumble dryer hose kits etc to get the same effect. be careful here though as the tubes need to be sturdy and have some form of heat resistance.

The kit is easily fitted yourself and comes with full instructions for even the not so knowledgable DIY er, however, if you are not confident enough to tackle the job your local garage will be able to fit it for you, at a price of course.
Chris

My local MGR dealer fitted my K&N filter, induction hoses and bracket, as well as CAT saver nuts free of charge during its 12 month service. And I didn't even buy them there!

Sam
Sam Murray

Does fitting a K&N air filer cause your manufacturer warranty to be invalid. My F is a 1 1/2 yr old, and still has the same time left on warranty.

Also, does fitting the K&N increase your insurance premium by a substantial amount. Who are people insured with, if their F's have bee modified.
Steve G

Steve,

If you follow one of the banners at the top of the page to either B&G or Mike Satur, you can buy a kit yourself. This comes with the induction pipes. I was really worried about being able to fit this myself, but it's an absolute doddle and only takes about 45 mins.

I have had mine for about 4 weeks and love it. Fuel economy on the motorway has definately increased and although there is no real word difference in performance (I don't thrash the car, so it guess I'm not the best person to comment) it's worth buying for the noise and grin factor alone.

Fit it yourself, you'll save cash and it's very easy.


Nick
N Platt

>>Does fitting a K&N air filer cause your manufacturer warranty to be invalid.<<
Talk to your dealer - it's upto them to interpret. Some will allow the K&N (my own dealer allowed it), while others wont.

>>Also, does fitting the K&N increase your insurance premium by a substantial amount. <<
Modifying the car seriously restricts the number of insurers you can choose from. The K&N by itself may be allowed by your current insurers without any increase. I was with AXA, who didn't load the car any further; but then the suspension got modded - and now only a (very) few insurers will touch the car. I'm currently with Peter Best/Ecclesiastical(sp?).

Steve
Steve

>> Is this induction hose a mandatory, or can you just install the filter. <<

Induction hoses are not mandatory, however not istalling them will mean that the filter is exclusively drawing hot air from the top of the engine bay. This means that although the filter medium is a lot more efficient than the normal OE filter assembly, the potential gains are not being maximised.

>> where can I get it done, and what is the expected costs? <<

My advice is to do it yourself for free :-) On a difficulty scale of 1 to 10, i'd put it at around 3 and most of this is due to getting access to the engine bay in the first place. I have done several now, it is a simple job that can be done pretty much anywhere (i have fitted three in car parks). You will end up with a bag of unecessary OE filter parts though which can be a little worrying. :-)

Full instructions on how to do this can be found on Rob Bell's website:

>> http://www.mgf.ultimatemg.com <<

>> Does fitting a K&N air filer cause your manufacturer warranty to be invalid <<

Tricky one this, run it by your dealership. Most dealers have a pretty enlightened attitude to the K+N and aren't that bothered by them. However, some have been known to rule out parts of the car that conceivably be affected by it and others have taken a more aggressive stance and said that it would invalidate the warrantee. Speak to them forst before you proceed is my advice here.

>> does fitting the K&N increase your insurance premium by a substantial amount. Who are people insured with, if their F's have bee modified. <<

It can do, as with the warrantee advice, run it past your insurers first. Different insurers react differently to modifications, most mg specialists however are not too concerned by them and just add a bit to your premium. Peter Best, Peart and the MGOC are used by a lot of people on this board.

SF
Scarlet Fever

Steve,

Fit it yourself, it's easy. As mentioned above instructions on the web sites are good and it takes 45 minutes if you take your time.

Ask your insurer first - mine did not have a problem, no extra cost - whoopee.

Fuel economy is unchanged for me. I check my fuel consumption on every tank. I get around 34mpg around town (and that's driving reasonably hard) and on a long motorway journey I get about 38mpg.

The sound is worth it.

As a certain sportswear company says, "Just Do It."

Jodi
Jodi

Will fitting one increase the noise of my engine ??? I've got an upgraded exhaust and its really noisy when i put my foot down. I've considered fitting a K&N but don't really want any more noise (neither do my neighbours, I'm sure)

Stu
Stu Platt

The induction noise is much louder because the air filter is behind your head (ok your passengers head in a RHD car). You only get the noise under acceleration and it is hardly noticable from outside the car Even without a loud exhaust. If you have a loud sports exhaust nobody outside the car will hear a thing.

From inside the car the noise of the induction is great and adds to the grin factor noticably. It allows you to hear a roar as you accelerate and drops down to almost no extra noise when crusing.

It adds (with the cold air pipes) around 8bhp to an MPI and around 15BHP to a VVC. Not sure what advantage you get on a TF 135 or 160 though as the newer filters are much better and the bigger throttle body and better exhaust also helps on the TF. Maybe Rob can give more accurate figures.
T.E.D

<It adds (with the cold air pipes) around 8bhp to an MPI and around 15BHP to a VVC.>

Now that sounds like my cup of tea. Can anyone give me a rough idea how much they cost.

Cheers, Stu
Stu Platt

Stu,

Less than £100. Cheapest and most bang for buck, performance mod available.

Dave
Dave

Thanks, shall be putting one on very soon.
Stu Platt

Steve, You say you were insured with AXA and they didnt increase your premium. I'm insured with AXA and they say I cant install a K & N filter. Did they ask you what the performance increase would be? What did you say?
How did you swing it with them?

Cheers
Andy
Andy

This thread was discussed between 10/04/2003 and 11/04/2003

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