--OR JUST QUIT--
And buy from somebody else like:
1. AEM
2. ASPEC
3. Bomz (cheap eBay Chinese knock-off)
4. Fujita
5. HPS
6, Injen
7. N-Take (cheap eBay Chinese knock-off)
8. T1R (Type 1 Racing)

All of these people make Short Ram and/or Cold Air Intake systems that FIT the 2007 Honda Fit. K&N Filters is the only manufacturer who can't do that. Actually, they can, they have just chosen not to up to the present time.

In another long thread, I promised to write a detailed DIY installation article on the new K&N Typhoon Short Ram Intake system that they just released as a replacement for their defective previous system. I made that promise in good faith that the replacement system would be worthwhile and worth money. IT IS NOT. So I feel no obligation to instruct people on how to waste their time and their money. I will, instead, show the defects of the new system.

The "NEW" K&N #69-1016-1TS is not, as they claim, something precision designed to provide maximum performance in a 2007 Honda Fit. It is a "kluge". This is engineering slang for something cobbled up from scraps and spare parts to provide a temporary solution to a problem. A "kluge" is what "McGuyver" came up with in the weekly TV series. If you are too young to remember "McGuyver", you won't understand the rest of this post anyway.

Click on photos to enlarge.

#1. You can see in this photo that the Intake Tube is made of two 90 degree elbows of different sizes that have been welded together. The proper design would be a smooth S-curve bent from a single piece. THIS piece promotes turbulence, as does any change in size and shape when fluids are moved (gas and liquids are fluids).




#2.Just as with the Intake Tube in the original Typhoon system that K&N admitted was a mistake, this Intake Tube is too long. This photo shows that the Filter Adaptor (to which the filter is attached with a clamp) has a 1 1/4" wide area where the filter slides on to be clamped in place.




The filter cannot be moved 1 1/4" to the right for removal for cleaning or replacement, because there is only 1/8" from the end of the filter to the radiator support/fender joint. You have to disassemble the whole intake assembly to get the filter off. Not so with any other intake system.




#3.This photo shows that the "Heat Shield" is nothing of the sort. It is only a thin, sheet metal "L" shaped platform that provides no protection of the filter from being bathed in heat from the engine bay and water coming from the bottom edge of the hood in wet weather.




#4. This photo shows the "Vibration Mount", a rubber pad with studs on the top and bottom, that holds the "Heat Shield" to the car body. In order to remove the filter for service, you must unbolt and move the radiator filler hose/cap assy., and move the top radiator hose, to be able to reach the lock nut that holds the "Heat Shield" and filter in place. Even with the two radiator hoses moved, access to the stud and nut is extremely limited.




5. Because of the size, shape, and placement of the filter, when the engine rocks backward under high torque conditions (every time you hit the gas), the filter slams into the front rod that holds the battery. This photo shows the dented filter.


6. This last complaint is just about "POOR FINESSE". Other systems like Fujita and Injen have the hose connection for the engine breather hose located either at the front or top of the Intake Tube. This only requires a 4" hose to connect the engine breather tube to the Intake Tube. K&N puts the hose connection on the bottom and back side of the Intake Tube, which makes them give you a 12" long hose to make the connection without kinks. This doesn't affect performance, it's just dumb, short sighted, and wasteful.


This manufacturer is trying to capitalize on the good reputation that they earned 20 years ago when they knew what the were doing and cared about their customers and their products. They no longer know, or care. After five months of study and investigation of their past mistake, they are still selling a mistake for the Honda Fit. If all fitfreaks drove cars that sold in the millions per year, K&N would not try to get away with this kind of amazing stupidity and SCAM marketing.

Consider yourselves lucky that these people only make BAD quality aftermarket car accessories. You would not survive a ride in a car, plane, or even a skateboard made by K&N.

 

well, there went my idea for getting this intake.

that fujita looks really sexy, it was my second option, i was just waiting for the K&N issue to be fixed...

meh.


EDIT: woops, it was the injen i was talking about, the one that BAP had.

 

great write up! helps out fit owners wanting to buy a short ram

 

Anthony,
Remember that BAP's Injen is a cold air intake, not a short ram. That makes proper fitment even harder to produce. Injen did a very good job in their design.

And thanks George02!

 

Pictures dont't lie,i agree with you,you already proved your point,let's move on to the next mode and i hope youre the first customer again.(just kidding !!!)JUSTICE DELAYED MEANS JUSTICE DENIED,If i'm the TOP DOG who works at K&N and i still have a decency left in my body I will give you your money back just to keep you quiet,in that way i might still get some customer in this forum.

 

Tough break man, sorry to hear they fudged a quick fix instead of reworking it the right way. That has got to be frustrating with all the waiting they put you through only to get a sub-par product in the end.

Too bad really, I have had a few intake products from K&N in the past and they were generally pretty good fit & quality. I guess it is all about the quick buck and low production costs these days.

 

Thanks guys-

This thread and the last one were not written to get sympathy. For fitfreaks who do not have much, or any, experience with vehicle modifications, my K&N warnings are just that- warnings. We do not have a forum reserved for reviews of products or vendors, and we should. A lot of mods are still to come for this popular, new to the U.S. car. Scams, crooked marketing traps, and products with terrible quality should be exposed so that people don't throw their money away through misplaced product or name-brand loyalty. Manufacturers must EARN your trust and your patronage.

I can afford any intake system I want. I gave K&N TWO CHANCES to make good on their advertising claims and they refused to put the required thought into finding a proper fix. If I, or ANY of the other members with technical backgrounds, had K&N's factory resources at our disposal, we could fix this SRI intake to make it fit and work properly in a Fit in an hour or two.

K&N JUST DOES NOT CARE!! Not about quality, not about customer retention, and they don't even care about how ridiculous they make themselves look.

I feel sorry for Steve Gibson. He makes his living by apologizing and making excuses for the stupidity and lack of responsibility of his employers.

Keep watching for the NEXT problem from K&N---. My bet is that they won't pay the fees to obtain CARB (California Air Resources Board) Exemption status and stickers for the Honda Fit Typhoon system. My personal opinion based on their past performance. Four years from now California Fit drivers who did not read or follow my warnings will have to swap their stock intakes back under the hood to pass their smog tests.

 

After the posturing and excuses from K&N that my original "Warning- Do Not Buy" thread produced, the 5 1/2 month wait that only produced more garbage was EXACTLY WHAT I EXPECTED. I had hoped to have something good to say for a change, but did not expect it.

K&N just keeps on providing more evidence to show what YOU should expect.

 

ADD THE H-FIT CHAMBER INTAKE to the "Buy from somebody else" list in post #1.

 

I just went with the Injen.

 

ANYTHING but K&N will fit better, work as well or better, and probably cost less. Good luck.

 

Since purchasing my 07 Sport AT over a year ago I have gone through:

1) Fujita CAI - had to force fit it to get it to fit past the A/T! Worked well but looked like crap after scratching it all up after install.

2) Fujita SRI - worked well but missed the CAI sound.

3) Injen CAI - Awesome Intake! Awesome sound! Loved it! But had a near disaster when driving through deep water. Hydrolock/Vacuumlock problem causing me to replace my engine with "gettinafit's" old engine....he's dropping in a K20 anyway!

4) Injen SRI - OK, I didn't really buy it. I just removed a few of the rubber tubes from the old Injen CAI. Work's OK but the CAI is definitely better.

5) H-Fit Supa Sucka - waiting for this to be delivered. Had to try it as I am not pleased with SRI's in general.

 

damn that sucks...how can K&N be like that??? that is some f**cked s**t. i would go ape s**t if it was me

 

K&N's SRI fits lousy, is overpriced, their customer service attitude is lousy, and I have only reported the truth in my threads. But K&N has only hurt themselves by allowing the original "Do Not Buy" thread to continue to attract thousands of views without fixing the problems.

Unfortunately, not all Fit owners who might think that K&N is still a good manufacturer are fitfreak members. They will buy this crap kit from their local K&N dealer or some on-line parts store without knowing in advance that they are making a mistake.

That's where the scam comes in- K&N's dealers will have unhappy customers based upon K&N's attitudes about quality and customer service. But then again, not all buyers of this system have enough experience to even know that it doesn't fit or perform well.

4drforlife thought that his prototype K&N system was fine until I showed him the truth in the "Do Not Buy" thread. He probably thought the same about the replacement kit until my "If It Doesn't Fit----" thread.

Keep in mind that this system works. The main flaw is that you can't R&R the filter without taking the whole system apart, which makes ALL of the other available chamber & SRI systems better. At least 1/2 of them are also cheaper in cost.

 

I am glad I read manxman's thread abotu the K&N because I first thouht about buying one. Then I decided to go with the Injen.

 

Manxman, from a new owner of a 2008 Fit, I have read every post in both of your threads relating to the K&N typhoon fiasco, and I thank you for your work. You have saved me from an expensive introduction to modding. Be very well in all you do. Cheers.