Major Screwup? - Synthetic

[katata1100]

Nothing was changed except the oil and the area ridden. The K&N was already  there for the Rotella. I am not saying Motul is bad oil, I'm saying Rotella is plenty good oil and  for half the price of the Motul I am sticking with it. I DO wish they made it in 15w50.

If your K&N wasn't leaking with the Rotella, it sure as hell is with the Motul now. Doesn't matter what kind of oil you use; if you got a high silicon level in your oil, your air filter is letting dirt in, either through the media itself or around the seal. Since K&N filters filter better as they load up with dirt, my guess is it is leaking around the seal.

[lather]

As recommended by Blackstone I did check the air filter and could not see anything unusual. I did clean and re-oil it and re-seal it. But again my post was not to bash Motul Oil, I tested it against Rotella because I believe it is the best oil available. Someone posted that oil analysis is the only way to know how well your oil is doing. I agree and thought I would Blackstone share my results. And my results show I can safely go 6000 miles with $22.00 a gallon oil.

[katata1100]

As recommended by Blackstone I did check the air filter and could not see anything unusual. I did clean and re-oil it and re-seal it.

K&N filter more dirt when they already have dirt in them. In other words, a new K&N will let more air in than one with 5,000 miles. If you look at the filter, there are noticeable itty bitty holes that small particles of grit can fly right through, into your intake, into your engine.
As you put on miles, large particles get stuck to the filter, their accumulation makes it harder for the little guys to pass on through. That's one a reason why should clean your K&N more often than  necessary. When you say reseal, I'll assume that you shmeared K&N sealing goop on the seal. I am not a K&N fan, but if you have one, I'd use that goop and hope for the best as I have problems with filter sealing of K&N filters on other cars that I have owned.

[lather]

There is a warning in the owners manual about the air filter after riding in the rain. Seemed nonsense to me but  perhaps the filter is subject to water invasion which could ruin the OEM paper filter. I thought maybe the water could also wash out the K&N oil. Prior to the Motul oil change I DID ride through 4 days and 600 miles of steady rain. BTW after the all the rain in New York and New England I rode the though Atlantic City and the Outer Banks which was maybe the source of the silicone. But as I said the filter looked normal.