[cbzdel]

Whats so different about the OEM oil filter. When I bought the bike the dealer told me that if my engine craps out and I dont have a OEM oil filter on it, its my problem. They said I can do whatever I want with the bike, intake, exhaust mods, anything and I should be fine.. But if I dont use the OEM oil filter and the engine breaks, its going to be a battle to get it fixed under warranty...

I asked what the deal was and he said.. All oil is pretty much this same these days and I can use whatever oil I want to, but when it comes to the filter, he said no company can prove their filter is equal to or better than OEM.. And if they can not prove that the warranty claim will be denied by Kawasaki.

I asked for a little more detail, and he said well let me put it this way, a cheap filter way have a lighter filter material and let more oil pass and contaminates.. A more heavy duty filter might pass less oil and starve the engine.

He said the chance of this happening are pretty much none, but he said he has seen claims get denied because people were not using a OEM filter. Now he was not trying to make a sale at all, he actually told me to go on eBay and buy them in bulk for the best deal..

Just wanted share this little FYI.. Its not a dealer thing, its a Kawasaki warranty thing..

 

[RedRaiderX]

is there anywhere to order one online or do I have to go down to a dealership?

 

[NoD GP]

I purchased a K&N filter... if my engine craps out I will just swap it back with the OEM filter before turning it back in

 

[NoD GP]

is there anywhere to order one online or do I have to go down to a dealership?

It's the internet. You can order anything on here!

 

[HardRacing]

Totally up to each person on what to use, but kindly Remind them of the Magnuson–Moss Warranty Act .... and here's K&N's letter about it...

http://www.knfilters.com/warrantyletter.htm


.

 

[NoD GP]

Totally up to each person on what to use, but kindly Remind them of the Magnuson–Moss Warranty Act .... and here's K&N's letter about it...

http://www.knfilters.com/warrantyletter.htm


.

Awesome. I am definitely holding on to that link just in case anything ever happens. Thanks!

 

[cbzdel]

I completely agree with the Magnuson–Moss Warranty Act..

But I am hearing more and more about how much better the factory filters are in comparison to any aftermarket filters, same goes for air filters as well..

I like the K&N filters and have ran them on my bikes in the past, probably will on this bike to just because they are easier to get locally from Cycle Gear since my dealer is far away..

 

[NoD GP]

My dealer is right next to Cycle Gear. The reason I got a K&N filter? My dealer was closed when I needed to buy the filter and Cycle Gear was open.

 

[dkw12002]

Interesting topic. Nothing special about it except that it for sure SHOULD meet the specs of the bike with regard to filtration, flow rates, pressure that the bypass valve opens, size, color. Remember this is exactly the same filter the Ninja 650r, ZX10, and Vulcan uses, so these specs are very general.

 

[thecomputerguy06]

I'm no longer a FRAM guy.

There a quite a few comparison vids on yoo toob. Seems the height of the filter, end cap material, and spring tension are the major differences between many filters. A higher pleat count with metallic end caps is best from what I gather

 

[dkw12002]

Problem is that looks may not be the important factor. What you would need is long term studies of engines or at the very least an oil analysis using different filters and seeing how much metal or dirt was in the oil. Lots of anecdotal stuff, but not much science unfortunately. One site says the anti-drainback opens in cold weather and another says it never opens on any filter unless the entire filter is clogged so dismisses the importance of the valve. Hard to say. I asked the Fram guy about their compatible motorcycle filter just a few days ago and this is what he wrote (see comments):

 

[dkw12002]

OK, I guess you have to go to YouTube itself to read comments. Sorry, this seems to just be showing the video. In short, he says the Fram motorcycle filter is even used on race bikes, and stands by the filter. Of course, right?

 

[thecomputerguy06]

The end caps may not matter but if you click on any of the video suggestions that pop up when this last video is done and you'll see tons of examples of FRAM failing. I'm sure other filters fail but FRAM seems to have the highest publicity for failure.

There's always a difference in what a product rep claims a product will do and what the actual consumer says has happened after using the product.
High heat and pressure builds up in these filters, common sense tells me I don't want a paper card board holding it together.

I'd like to see how the Kawasaki OEM filter stacks up

 

[dkw12002]

My Kawasaki dealer just had a sale on oil filters and so I bought 4 oems at $7 including tax each. That will probably last me as long as I have the bike. However I would not be afraid to use ANY motorcycle or car filter, including the Fram. Of course I only keep a bike a couple years, so I would probably never need to change oil anyway. LOL

 

[Geeker]

I bought three OEM filters when I bought my bike. They aren't expensive and they are readily available. I'll continue to use them, however, Kawasaki cannot void a warranty based on the type of filter as long as it is an OEM cross reference.

 

[dkw12002]

In the unlikely event that you lost an engine or an oil pump which could be arguably due to a faulty filter, you could always run and buy an oem, pour some old oil in it and screw it on. Really though, you can't go wrong with oem for any bike. I think a lot of people are convinced though that there are much better filters than the oems. I wish I knew for sure. What I find when I look for cross-references for filters that people recommend is a lot of motorcycle (and car) filters from K&N, Purolator, Bosch that will certainly fit, but when you go to the actual filter company and plug in your bike, you come up empty. I emailed Purolator to ask about the ML16817 filter that is a motorcycle filter to see if it is recommended for both/either of my bikes, but they haven't responded yet. The Fram spokesman/engineer did say their PH6017A would be good for 5,000 miles using synthetic oil in my Ninja 300 and my Triumph Street Triple r. That's pretty specific.

 

[cruizin]

I'm no longer a FRAM guy.

i dont blame you, they dont stand up well against bullets now do they