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For 30 Years Bob Wirth R&D Services has been Adding Performance to Engines

Bob Wirth R&D Services is an engine development shop in Hayward, California. The company builds engines for midgets, motorcycles, road racing and circle track racing. Bob has even put together engines for lumberjack chain saw competitions.

 
Engine Dyno at Bob Wirth R&D Services
Engine Dyno at Bob Wirth R&D Services
Bob builds up engine performance. When Bob puts an engine on the company dynamometer we try to duplicate field circumstances, said Bob’s wife Lois Crayder. “We help our customers with the performance they want to see on the race track,” said Lois. “We also use K&N Engineering’s air filters for testing. K&N filters increase the ability of an engine to breathe which can increase power.”

Bob’s shop has been in business for 30 years and values its scientific approach but down to earth values. “Our customers find us through the racetracks or word of mouth,” said Lois. “Our job is to make more efficient, more powerful and reliable engines. We use 4 to 5 of K&N filters depending on the environment and the engine. We want to be at the front of the race.”

K&N Engineering in Riverside, California has been in business for more than 35 years. In addition to our washable/reusable High Flow Air Filters, K&N offers four lines of High Flow Intake Kits that provide guaranteed horsepower. K&N also started a revolution with Fuel Injection Performance Kits and AirCharger Kits which allow a smooth flow of air from the company’s famous washable and reusable air filter. K&N Air Filters and Intake Kits are backed by the famous K&N million Mile Limited Warranty.


Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

K&N Air Flow Engineer/NHRA Top Comp Class Driver Jonathan Fiello Off to Good Start

“I race to have fun, but I really race to win,” said K&N Project Engineer and Top Comp Class driver Jonathan Fiello. The 25-year-old Yucaipa, California resident has been in the game for 9 years. Jonathan’s most recent race was the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series: Division 7 at the Firebird Raceway in Phoenix, Arizona.

 
Jonathan Fiello's 2003 Undercover Dragster
Jonathan Fiello's 2003 Undercover Dragster Jonathan Fiello at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway 2006
Jonathan Fiello at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway 2006
“I was 8 out of forty-eight in the Top Comp Class,” said Jonathan. “I lost second round because I broke a starter in the stadium lanes. I was really upset because the car was running so good.” Jonathan drives a 2003 undercover dragster with a 635 cubic inch big bock Chevrolet. It is fuel injected on alcohol and runs about 1200 horsepower. His dragster’s wheel base is 230 inches long.

Jonathan runs K&N’s valve covered breather filters, K&N nozzle filters (E-3003) and K&N’s big block Chevy oil filters. “Since I run the motor on methanol we have to change the oil filter frequently,” he said. “When we redo the engine and pull the oil pan out we noticed it stays clean, it’s unreal.” Jonathan said K&N oil filters are a key component for his motor.

K&N Fuel Injection Line Air Filters (E-3003) are a unique way to protect a high performance engine from contaminants through aeration holes in the fuel injection nozzles. These filters slip onto the injector nozzle and protect the aeration hole from dust and debris. Sold individually, these filters have a 1 ¼ outside diameter and a 1 1/16 height and fit securely over ¼ to ½ fuel injection nozzles.

“My job at K&N helps me with racing. I have a degree in engineering, but I come to work and love to study air flow,” said Jonathan. “I also listen to the people I work with at K&N and go home and see what new knowledge I can apply to my engine.”

K&N Engineering’s premium Performance Gold Oil Filter has many features to satisfy the demands of racers such as drilled safety wire holes for racing, heavy duty construction and a sturdy one-inch wrench nut to make oil filter removal quick and easy. “We just jack the car up and plop it off,” said Jonathan. “It’s so easy to remove, that it has taken me as little as 3 minutes, very awesome.”

Jonathan’s said his last two years of racing have been his best. “In 2004 I won the championship for the southern California Super Eliminator Series,” he said. “In 2005 I finished second in the Mike’s Transmission Top Comp races in Las Vegas, Nevada. I missed the championship by ten points, and that was a heartbreaker.”

Jonathan’s racing team is a family affair. His brother Daniel and father Nick are part of Fiello Racing. “I love to work on the car, it is relaxing and so much fun,” Jonathan said. “For me, it’s the love of racing.”

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

Del Worsham NHRA Racing Team off to a Good Start After 2nd Event

It’s still early in the 2006 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing season, and for driver Phil Burkart the early part of the season has been good.

Burkart of Del Worsham Racing earned a semi-final finish at the season opener in Pomona and came away with their second consecutive trip to the third round of racing in Phoenix, Arizona at the Firebird International Raceway.

Crowd cheers as the two CSK crews see who can tear down and build up an engine the fastest.
Crowd cheers as the two CSK crews see who can tear down and build up an engine the fastest.  (Photo courtesy of delworsham.com)

Blue Team Wins the 'Crew Challenge'
Blue Team Wins the "Crew Challenge" (Photo courtesy of delworsham.com)

K&N Flame Logo to Run All Season on Both Team Worsham Cars
K&N Flame Logo to Run All Season on Both Team Worsham Cars (Photo courtesy of delworsham.com)
Phil Burkart and his blue Checker, Schuck’s Kragen Funny Car team use K&N oil filters (HP-5001). “Arizona is in the middle of a horrible drought,” said Worsham Team Manager Bob Wilber. “The air is so dusty it’s hard to breathe. All that dust could cause problems, but with the K&N filter it was all good. In fact, we had more problems breathing than we did running our cars.”

K&N Engineering’s premium Performance Gold Oil Filter has a lot of features to satisfy the demands of racers. We use thick canister walls for extra strength and durability which reduces the risk of damage from loose rocks and debris. K&N’s filter also has drilled safety wire holes for racing and a sturdy one-inch wrench nut to make oil filter removal quick and easy.

Team Worsham may have enjoyed the K&N filter during their “crew-challenge” in Phoenix. “The red team and the blue team had to see who could work the fastest in the pit,” said Wilber. The K&N filter is easy to install, the crews could spin it on with one hand and tighten it. "A huge crowd came out to watch our two teams compete, as they started their motors, shut them off, then tore each engine down, replaced all 8 pistons, rebuilt them, and fired them up again," said Wilber. "The blue team won."

Phil left Arizona in 5th place; Del Worsham in 6th place. “Both of our cars did well,” said Wilber. “Del lost in round two by 3-thousandths of a second.” Wilber said it looked like a dead heat. “You can’t blink, you can’t snap your fingers or even think about the time 3-thousandths of a second really is in, 3-thousandths of a second,” he said. “But, you can certainly lose a drag race in 3-thousandths of a second.”

Team Worsham is getting ready for Gainesville where Phil will drive an orange and black 2005 Monte Carlo. For the first time K&N Engineering has a marketing relationship with Worsham Racing and CSK Auto, Inc., that changes the blue color to K&N colors for one race at the 37th annual Gatornationals. “It’s crazy, we have a push for Pomona, then Phoenix, then two weeks off,” said Wilber. “Just when we get into the swing of things we have to wait.”

“The body of the K&N car is ready to roll,” said Wilber. “We won’t see it until it gets to Gainesville, and we’re excited about it.” Phil will be driving the 7,000 HP 500 cubic inch Hemi supercharged K&N Nitro Funny car.

The 37th annual NHRA Gatornationals begin on March 17. It is considered the first race of the season in the east and people come from all over the world to watch, said Wilber.

It will be televised by ESPN2, check your local program guide for times and dates.

Find a K&N product using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer near you.

K&N Releases Air Filters for NASCAR Truck & Busch Series Racers

One of the nation's largest and fastest growing sports is NASCAR. As consumers flock to races and drivers continue to wow the spectators, K&N Engineering has discovered a new niche market with new 2-ply cotton un-oiled filters designed for NASCAR series racers.

E-3024R NASCAR air filter
E-3024R NASCAR air filter
NASCAR (stock-car and truck) racers have a choice of K&N's new replacement air filters (E-3024R, E-3025R, E-3026R, E-3027R, E-3028R, E-3029R, E-3030R, E-3031R). "The 14 inch round filters are for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and the NASCAR Busch Series; The16 inch round is for the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series," said K&N Engineering Sports Marketing Director Charles Maier. "We offer the new filter to teams in quarter inch increments from 3, 3 ¼, 3 ½, 3 ¾, and 4 for both the 14 and 16 inch filter." There are 5 of the size 14 and 5 of the size 16. Eight filters are available now and two more will be available soon.

NASCAR rules require air filters in order to race. K&N's new 2-ply cotton un-oiled filters meet NASCAR requirements. "The 2-ply cotton works the same as our 4-ply," said Maier. "It just allows more air to flow."

"K&N is not trying to convince the racing teams by telling them our product is better," said Maier. "We're building the best air filter and letting the teams decide for themselves, and when they see their racers are running better they'll know our product is no snake oil." K&N makes a quality filter and many of the racers do not have to be convinced.

Find a K&N product using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer near you.

K&N Engineering Releases Kart Airbox to House its Legendary High-Flow Air Filter

In the Kart world if your preference is 2 or 4-cycle engines or extreme Shifters, all classes have one thing in common; the vehicles are relatively straight forward.

 
K&N's Kart Airbox
K&N's RK-1000 Kart Airbox designed for K&N Filters

Air Filter for K&N Kart Airbox
RU-5006
Air Filter for K&N Kart Airbox
Many of the organizations that sanction Go Kart racing have gone to air boxes due to noise restrictions. K&N Engineering developed an air box for Karts that accepts one of two K&N washable/reusable High-Flow Air Filters.

Our K&N filter (RU-5006 or RU-5005) snaps into the RK-1000 Kart Airbox, next, the whole assembly is clamped on to the carburetor. The K&N Kart Airbox uses a 2 ½" (inside diameter) straight or 20 degree angled-flange High-Flow Air Filter for your 2 or 4 cycle kart. The RU-5006 features a 20 degree angled flange that is 1.5" in length and the RU-5005 offers a straight flange that is 1.5"in length.
Kart with K&N Airbox
Kart with K&N Airbox

In most cases, our K&N Kart Airboxes can be mounted onto the carburetor. Typically, 2-cycle engines have only one cylinder and range in size from 100cc to 125cc.

Some of the 2-cycle engines used in karting can reach around 19,000 RPMs and produce up to 40 HP. Some classes use larger engines, with up to a 250cc displacement.

"K&N Engineering has a history of providing higher air flow and performance gains with increased air flow, "said K&N Engineering Powersports Brand Manager John Jump. "K&N's Kart Airbox is pretty universal, built to the specifications of racing organizations except it holds a K&N Air Filter."

Use the K&N application search to find all K&N products for your car, truck, motorcycle, or ATV then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer near you.