As usual with Amazon, the package came in 2 days.
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Some propaganda:
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I opened up the box and took out the filter:
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The air filter is designed to last the lifetime of the vehicle, or is guaranteed to last 1 million miles, whichever comes first.
The air filter on the PCX is located on the back-left of the scooter:
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Looking in closer, the filter's behind this box:
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Remove the 8 screws holding the cover in place, and the cover and filter will fall out into your hand:
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Lift the filter out.
Here's what the stock filter looks like next to the K&N filter. As you can see, the K&N filter has larger ribs and more surface area for air to pass through, theoretically increasing airflow, and therefore performance and/or efficiency.
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The stock air filter's filter component's dimensions are 5.25" wide by 3.25" tall, or just over 17 square inches.
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The K&N filter provides more cross-sectional area than the stock air filter -- about 5.5" wide by 3.5" tall, or just over 19 square inches.
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To reinstall, place the K&N filter where the stock filter was previously, and screw it back in place.
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Before the installation, I came up with a quick test set to see how the air filter would perform. I decided to do 3 runs on flat ground, and 3 runs uphill, all at full throttle to see how quickly the scooter would attain top speed. Then, I installed the K&N filter and repeated, doing 3 more runs on flat ground and 3 more runs uphill.
The test platform, my PCX:
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Video of the speedometer was recorded using my Droid II, then edited post-run on my computer to determine times. Droid mounted in place:
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In addition, it has been mentioned before that, for the ECU to remap, the battery would have to be unplugged. To ensure fairness, I unplugged the battery for 5 minutes before the initial tests with the stock filter. Then, I ran the 6 tests with the stock filter, changed out the filter for the K&N filter, unplugged the battery for 5 minutes again, then ran the 6 tests with the K&N filter... Battery unplugged:
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0-60 times on flat ground with the stock air filter
Run 1: 14.92 seconds
Run 2: 13.97 seconds
Run 3: 14.19 seconds
Average: 14.36 seconds
0-60 times on flat ground with the K&N air filter
Run 1: 14.72 seconds
Run 2: 13.40 seconds
Run 3: 14.15 seconds
Average: 14.09 seconds
0-50 times uphill with the stock air filter
Run 1: 25.88 seconds
Run 2: 28.62 seconds
Run 3: 26.54 seconds
Average: 27.01 seconds
0-50 times uphill with the K&N air filter
Run 1: 28.55 seconds
Run 2: 24.95 seconds
Run 3: 29.12 seconds
Average: 27.54 seconds
On flat ground, the scooter was, on average, 0.25 seconds faster with the K&N air filter.
Uphill, the scooter was, on average, 0.53 seconds slower with the K&N air filter.
And here's the video proof of all that, in case you care to view it:
Both test results had large P-values (0.6024 and 0.7503) due to the large range between the run times. It is clear that results were inconsistent due to varying wind, a lack of rider skill, or inconsistencies in the fuel injection system. To draw results conclusively, with statistical significance, several hundred runs would be required. That said though, it is apparent that there is not a profound difference.
Given the maintenance schedule calls for replacement every 10000 miles, and the K&N filter costs about 4 times as much as a stock filter, the K&N filter is an economical option if you plan on putting over 50000 miles on your scooter.
I have begun tracking my gas mileage again to discern if the increased airflow will improve efficiency. I'll update in another 1000 miles or so with my new gas mileage.
