REPLACEMENT AIR FILTERS

For a while now, replacement Flavia and 2000 air filters have been difficult for us to source.  Various alternates have been found for the Flavia air filter (e.g. a cylindrical unit intended for an old farm tractor), but nothing really satisfactory for the 2000.  There was a solution involving two Triumph 2000 air filters (which are also cylindrical) in tandem, + a bit of packing, but I never really took to that.  [The odd thing about the air filtration on these cars is that the flow is reversed compared with most other cars.  By that I mean that fresh air comes in through the centre tube, then passes from inside to outside through the filter, and to the carburettor down the annular space between the filter and the canister housing.  In most other applications the air flows through the filter from the outside to the inside.]

I was looking at the engines in a line of modified cars recently.  These all had an aftermarket “universal” filter – usually conical with a metal top and a rubber collar at the outlet end, which was secured to the intake duct by a jubilee clip.  It occurred to me that this type of filter should work for Flavia and 2000.  I have tried a couple of different ones.  For the Flavia I’ve used an Apiro universal filter from GB Driver, which cost about £25 (http://www.gbdriver.co.uk).  It came with a variety of sleeves for the outlet collar, none of which came down to the 55mm. Ø needed for a close fit onto the inlet tube in the canister, but had an maximum OD of 110mm., so leaving plenty of annular space – the ID of the outer canister on the Flavia is 125mm.  I used some self-adhesive foam strip to sleeve the collar down, and drilled a 7mm. hole in the centre of the top plate to allow the threaded rod that holds the end cap to pass through.  You will need a back nut on this rod with the Flavia to hold the filter clear of the outlet end of the inner annular tube in the filter can.

For the 2000, I used a Jetex filter (http://www.jetex.co.uk).  This was more expensive (~£40), but I wanted to be sure that I was using a filter rated for the BHP of the engine, so I could also make a comparison with the Apiro filter.  The unit # was EC-06507, rated for 140 BHP.  It is in fact slightly smaller than the Apiro unit, so proving that the Apiro filter would do the job in both instances.  [That’s another odd thing: these filters are small. I have used a Jetex filter on my Thema turbo for a while now, also small, but which is an excellent modification.  S2 16 valve turbo Themas don’t pull from low revs like the S1 8 valved used to.  They almost do with a Jetex air filter though.  And you gain some useful engine bay access by using one.  I have heard it said that some owners always throw away the standard air filter on any car they own, and replace it with one of these aftermarket kits, because the car will always go better.]  You need a 7mm. hole in the end plate again, but there is a saddle over the top of the inner annular tube, so no back nut this time.  The Jetex universal filters can be ordered with a variety of collar sizes, so a 65mm. Ø inlet collar and a 150mm canister ID are easily accommodated.

                                                          

Both have been in use for a while, with no obvious problems.  They do require cleaning about every 7500 miles, which means sloshing them around in a special solution (very ammoniacal smell!), swilling off under the tap, then re-oiling when dry with a special oil spray – neither of which is hard to obtain.

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