Air Filter for '73 1.7L?, hard to locate Options

[BCinSC]

Round dry element. I found one part number: STP AF103 that apparently AutoZone lists, but doesn't carry and can't order. I've checked all local FLAPS, Pelican, AA, etc. What are my options?

[ThinAir]

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=99915
http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=103615

I did a search for +round +air +filter

[JamesM]

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=99915
http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=103615

I did a search for +round +air +filter

I just recieved my filter housing and was able to take a closer look at it today. It is pretty close to what i remember with the ID and the height being the important dimension to match. It was actually shipped to me with a CA146 filter in it so i was able to examine it and i am sorry to say anyone using that filter element is not actually filtering the air going to their motor. While the CA146 does appear to "fit" in the housing if you examine it closely you will see it is not creating an airtight seal anywhere. On the bottom side the ID is to large and the base of the filter is not touching the inner ring where it needs to in order to create a seal. Also though you can not tell just from looking at it the element is about 1/4 inch to short to create a seal on the top when the housing is assebled. From what i can tell a large amount of the bottom and 100% of the top is open to passing air. You can even shake the housing and hear the element flopping around inside.

The napa gold 2110 element listed in the other post is a slightly better choice as its ID as least would place it on the lower sealing surfaces of the housing however its height is listed at 3" which would still make it to short to seal properly at the top.


I used a highly scientific method of stacking pennies on top of the CA146 element inside the housing until there was enough pressure to keep them from sliding off to determine the height the filter would need to be to contact the top sealing surface properly. The stock filter is supposedly 82mm high but looks like there is pressure at 81mm, which is good because all the K&N custom sizes come in at 81 or 83. I measured the useable lower sealing surface between 123mm - 145mm anything larger then that and a gap starts to open up near the air intake. The stock filter had a 125mm ID so i will use that as the realistic minimum. Also if any OD less then 8" is used the filter has the potential to be installed slightly off center, so meausing from a fully offset position the maxium ID used should probably be no greater then 132mm to insure a proper seal in all cases.

So to summarize, the ID needs to be between 125-132mm with a height of at least 81mm (and not to much larger) to seal properly.

SO...

K&N E-3270 is still looking like it will probably be the tightest seal with
Height 3.25" (83mm)
ID 5"(127mm)
OD 6.375"(162mm)
However i played around on the K&N site some more and found
K&N E-2520
Height 3.188"(81mm)
ID 5.188"(132mm)
OD 7"(178mm)
The fit wont be as snug however i think it should still seal and it is a thicker filter element. 23mm vs 17.5 mm

So far i have been unable to find any paper element that will work that is not NLA