For those of us with the stock KZ750 Twin air box, finding air filter replacements can be a hassle. Here’s a new solution! First, let’s look at the common options we face:
- Foam Filters – Less restrictive (a jetting consideration), and need to be oiled to maintain usability… but available at many stores.
- OEM/NOS Filters – Some are still out there on eBay (Air Cleaner Element 11013-051), and still a good choice if you can find them, but the foam rings will likely be disintegrated, and the NOS filter will likely cost more than it’s worth.
- Your Old Filter – Yes, you blow it out with the air hose, and it looks fine… kinda’… okay, maybe not.
- Pods – Yep, you’ve had enough and you swear that some day soon you’re gonna tear out the stock box and go with pods. If so, this article isn’t for you.
…so the other day, I said to myself, “…man, there’s *got* to be an alternative out there”, and I started searching deep on the Internet. Crazy enough, my search led me right back here to my own site! It looks like “Paul Nolz” posted a simple message about the Fram CA-9248 right under my nose way back in 2011 about an alternative that I somehow missed until now. Argh!
Was it too good to be true? I looked it up, and for around $20, they were still available on Amazon, so I ordered one:
Comparing them, they are almost the same in nature, with a few small, important differences…
First, the Fram is sealed on one end, where the OEM is not.
Second, the Fram is also just a millimeter or two longer, due to a “lip” at the open end.
Third, the open end is definitely a bit smaller on the Fram, and will be tight around the air inlet tube.
But since there is that one small hole in the bottom of the air box that exits to the outside at the bottom (drainage? second inlet? not sure why), I think I’ll go ahead and cut open the bottom of the filter…
And like Paul wrote in his post, it is a bit snug on the tube, but not too much. But the flare at the top of the tube makes it an even tighter fit.
So, just like Paul’s brother did, I applied a little WD-40 and it slipped right on.
Then, in she goes, only a *tad* more sung than the stock filter.
The only odd thing is that you can’t really feel when the filter is seated in cradle at the bottom, since it’s made out of foam. But then, you can pretty much only get it installed the right way anyway, or it won’t close, so that’s good.
So thanks again to Paul (and his brother), 12 years later as I write this, for having solved my problem (and maybe yours) with the Fram CA-9248 way back then. Much appreciated!