I am a new member here so I hope I am doing this right....Anyway, I have had a rancher for about four months (great machine by the way) and I was thinking about installing a K & N air filter. I have a few questions before doing it: 1) can I do it without jetting the carb 2) can I leave the carb cover off or should I leave it on 3) will it make a noticable difference 4) is it worth it? I have read a variety of resposes to similar questions but they never really give an answer one way or the other. I know everyones experience may be different but I am hoping that I can get some good feedback for riders who have had to make the same decision.

 

Well yes it's worth it, your quad will breath better and ahve better throttle response, yes you can put a filter on without jetting the carb, i'm not to sure by what you mean by leaving the carb cover off maybe your talking about the airbox lid off which a lot of people to for more power that's fine to do as well, and it worth it cuz you'll have better throttle response. You wont really see a major increase in power with just a filter but yeah if you get a pipe and jet it and all that other stuff yeah big difference but this is a great mod for a rancher.

 

You will get better throttle response. If you keep the airbox lid on, you will not have to re-jet, if you take it off, you will have to, but you will gain some extra HP too.

 

I installed the K&N filter and jet kit, plus the hmf pipe for a friend of mine on his 01 rancher 4x4 a few weeks ago..talk about waking it up! He now pulls the front tires off the ground in second anytime he wants to. I have the same set-up on my Foreman, it made a difference, but nothing like on the Rancher..I am sure the filter helps a lot, but i believe the combination of the slip on muffler helps alot. The stock muffler is so baffled it really hold the Honda back. I have read several post on here and in articles from magazines about Hondas exhaust being so restrictive. I sure believe it to be true from the experience on these two machines mentioned above. Try it, I believe you will like it. The filter alone may make a good difference. You can always add the jet kit and slip on later.

 

I ran K&N's on all my bikes for years, but have now gone back to UNI foam. I just like the added security of an inch of foam, vs a wimpy little piece of cotton that you can see right through! Save the K&N's for street machines.

The most restrictive thing on your stock Rancher intake is that screen insert (it is a spark arrestor in case there is a backfire into the carb). Also, being a ute, you might want to leave the lid on for riding water and mud. Anyway, if you insist on a K&N (always use an outerwears as well), it will have minimun effect if you are running the stock muffler and stock airbox.

 

Here is something to try also. I changed over from the heavy oil that Honda uses to K&N's filter oil with the stock foam. It made a world of difference on the top end power.
I used K&N filters for years on dirt late models and they never gave me any problems as long as they were cleaned regularly.