K&N problems read! CONSUMER ALERT!

The TL K&N filter does not fit correctly and you may be taking non filters air into your engine!

Here is the part number 33-2078
I used this part number on my 2004 Acura TL A/T


The top of the air box does not fit around the filter correctly causing the filter to bend and maybe have holes in the seal that will cause a leak.

Here are pictures. I am going back to my stock air filter. K&N should have done more R&D


Here is the top housing of the air filter


Here is the stock filter inside the top housing.


Here is the faulty not correctly sized K&N drop in air filter


Another shot


The filter fit's into the bottom housing of the air box which could mislead people to think it fit’s correctly. Please check your filter to see if it looks like the pictures. Save your TL engine!


I will be contacting K&N about this.

 

Where did you get the info? I have K&N also.

 

is there a K&N filter that will fit the TL correctly?

 

Just called K&N. The Tech said there is NO PROBLEM with fitment that they are aware of. The correct # is what you have-33-2078. Either its the wrong filter in the box, or you put it in incorrectly. It will say the part # on the FILTER itself. Check it out

 

looks like it's the correct filter, you can see the part # on the filter in the 3rd picture. I put one in 2 weeks ago and had a little problem keeping the middle of the long sides from bowing out and getting pinched when I tightened the top down. The filter fit perfectly in the bottom of the housing, but I never checked the fitment with the top. I'm going to pull the top again and check. I'll let you know what I see. thanks for bringing this up flnsx!

 

I installed mine a couple of months ago and experienced the same thing. Didn't think much of it as it fitted fine in the base. The problem is that the K&N's corners are sharper than the corners of the top of the filter box. The filter box's corners are more rounded, causing a bit of the corners on the K&N filter to stick out. I just forced it in and closed the sucker thinking securing the top tightly will press it down enough to form a proper seal.

 

We got the same situation, I just trim the four corners of the K & N filter.

 

How well does a corner-trimmed K&N filter fit?

 

Thanks for the tip. I didn't even think about that.

 

It fits good, I only trim like a1/8 of an inch and after that it fit perfect.

 

IMO, a $40-50 filter should fit without modification. K&N either:
A) Did not check to see if this filter actually fit a TL or
B) Did check it and felt it was "good enough".

Neither scenario speaks well of them.

 

My filter fit just fine, yes the edges were a little snug. Surprisingly, I am getting better milage on the highway (may be the warmer weather). This weekend I averaged 31 MPG!

 

mine fit fine as well maybe you got a bad filter

 

Yours did not fit well.

If you take the top part off your Air Box you will see.

Don't say it fit's because you don't know for sure.

Just because it fit in the bottom part of the box doesn’t mean it fit's in the top.

Don't be so naive.


I trimmed mine and now all is well.

 

So if it fits in the bottom portion, and there's no gaps for air around the filter, isn't it doing its job? I would think the main thing is that dirt cannot get around the filter, so does it matter if it does not fit in the top?

 

If there is a gap between the upper filter housing and the filter, unfiltered air will be drawn into the motor. Sounds like you can squeeze it in or trim the corners to make it fit. Take an extra minute or two to ensure the seal isn't squishing out or buckling, and all should be well.

 

I just noticed that K&N has removed the TL from it's application list for P/N 33-2078. The site is no longer listing a drop in air filter for the 2004 TL in its application and part search section.

 

I had a VERY VERY long talk with them.

I think it worked.

They need to make a new one that fit's right!

Check yours or you could be sorry. At least but the edges.

 

There is no fitment for a K&N air filter for an '04 Acura TL on their website. What did they do, pull it after complaints that it doesn't fit? WTF is going on with their air filters? You shouldn't have to clip the edges to make them fit.

 

I emailed them about the TL application not being listed on their website anymore and got this response:

The listing of that part number for the TL was an error. We currently do
not have an official listing for an air filter on the 2004 TL. I cannot
recommend you continuing to use the same filter as it will not seal
properly. You can return the filter to where you purchased it from for a
full refund. You will need to contact the online dealer. If you have any
trouble returning it, please feel free to contact us at 1-800-858-3333.

Thanks for writing,

Shaun McClure
Technical Support
K&N Engineering


For those of you that trimmed the corners to fit, did that seem to do the job? For the rest of us who have been using it, are our engines f'd now?

 

I called K&N and the support engineer I spoke with told me to take the filter out of the car and return it to where I purchased it from. The engineer i spoke with could not tell me when a new filter would be available for the 04 TL.Called AJ USA and spoke to them and they agreed to take the filter back and give me a full refund.

 

Because your being a pain in the ass, trim the corners dammit.

 

The Stock airfilter looks alot better.

 

Haha, you guys should've gone the CAI route instead.

 

Bad advice on trimming the corners of that filter.

Now that K&N has back pedaled on the filter and is advising people to stop using it, if continued use results in engine damage, K&N won't stand behind the failure and neither will Acura because a non-stock filter was used.

K&N will be trying like hell to dodge liability for any engine failures that may result from the poor fit.

 

Because the filter was modified, K&N can dodge liability because an un-approved change was made to their product.

Not trying to be a smart ass or anything, just pointing out the realities of how their legal department would respond in the event of a dispute.

 

Pardon my ignorance but why would anyone use a non stock filter and risk engine and warranty problems? Is it to save a couple of bucks?

 

Thanks for the tip on this one guys. I'll be contacting K&N to get a response from them on the air filter's compatibility before I try to arrange a return of the one I have sitting around waiting to be installed.

 

The reason why anyone would use a non-stock air filter is the same as for any non stock part - to get additional benefits afforded by the non stock parts. The K&N filters offer slight increases in engine performance (HP and MPG) over stock paper air filters and last for about 50,000 miles (as opposed to 7-8K miles for stock paper ones).

As with any non-stock part it cannot void a warranty on a car unless it was shown to be a direct culprit in causing the problem.

 

That's true if the non OEM part meets or exceed OEM specifications.

But since K&N has reversed themselves on the filter compatibility, Honda might say that because the owner used an improper part they can refuse warranty.

That's assuming of course that the engine failure can be directly attributed to debris ingested because the filter didn't fit properly. Something that probably could be proved with a top end teardown.

 

That's true in this case, since K&N no longer has a compatible filter. But if they did, that's why you would want to use them. I was trying to answer the question on why you would want to use the filter in the general case, since that how the question was posed. When I thought they had a compatible filter, I bought one, as did many others here. Now that it's apparently not compatible, you shouldn't be using it.

 

This post is the reason why K&N pulled the 2004 TL Filter.

My job is done!

 

flnsx, I think you're right with this issue in the very first beginning. And, K&N has retracted...

 

Here's the response I just received from K&N support about this. They've seemingly toned down the claims of it not fitting properly, but are still offering a refund, which I'll definitely be taking advantage of. Even though they claim (in this email) that the filter "fits" and filters "effectively", I'm not going to take any chances with it. If and when they come out with a new one, I'll reconsider.

From: "Tech Support" <tech@knfilters.com>
Sender: "Marti Herbage" <MartiH@knfilters.com>

After re-evaluating this filter, we realize, that although it does fit and will filter effectively, it is difficult to install. For that reason, we have removed the filter from our listings for 2004 and will be designing a new one.


In the meantime, if you wish to return the filter for a refund, please contact AJ-USA about returning it to them. If you are unable to return the filter through them, please contact customer service at 909-826-4100 or toll free 800-858-3333, Monday - Thursday, 7:00 am to 5:00 pm and Friday, 7:00 am to 4:30 pm Pacific Time, they will be happy to assist you.

 

Mine fits fine - I'm leaving it in.

 

Your choice, but personally, I'm not going to risk a $30K+ car with a $40 air filter that the manufaturer might not claim support for should something happen because of it and your car's warranty gets voided because of it. Yeah, it might not happen, but the key word here is *might*. Not worth it to me. If they come out with one that they're willing to stand behind and say is the official recommended replacment part for a 2004 TL, then fine. But that's not what they're saying now.

 

Pug,

Yours does not fit fine. All the 2004 TL's air filter box housings are all made the same size. All the K&N air filters with part number 33-2078 are all the same size.

The filter DOES NOT FIT the top of the Air box correctly.

Take off the top of the Air box and SEE for yourself instead of just making a blind oblivious statement.

You have to cut the corners for it to fit correctly.

PERIOD!

 

With the K&N replacement filter have you guys notice any change with the rpm's

 

I am getting this K&N filter for sure!!!!!

Check it out.

http://www.vtec.net/forums/one-messa...sage_id=234425

 

Confirms long standing suspicions about the quality of the loust Platisol frames of these filters, and the generally drop in quality of K&N, fromt he early 1980's when I supported their products.