Cold Air Intake Article in TDR Issue 59

[gfresh]

Like a kid on Christmas morning, I installed my S & B Cold Air Intake system last Sunday. I was a little puzzled by the gaping hole in the bottom of it (not shown on their website photos), but I'm not an engineer, figured this must be a well designed system, and thought little more of it. On Monday, I got my first ever issue of TDR magazine. Tonight I was not happy to "learn" about the limitations of after market intake systems (see pages 130 to 134) and the cold air advantages of the OEM system that now sits in a box in the basement. After reading the article I was beating myself up for getting duped into buying something that will actually decrease the performance of my truck significantly in the mountainous region I live in.



Then I read it again and realized it's an article in the "product showcase" section, written by someone who makes alternatives to the typical aftermarket cold air intakes. Though much of it sounded quite logical and perhaps even balanced, I'm now really confused and thinking "bias" may or may not be a problem in that particular section. I had just read Jim Anderson's article on pages 111 to 112, "Quest for Power" that sounded sensible and confirmed to me that an air intake was a proper step in the upgrade journey.



So here are 3 questions:



1 - What is the truth on after market "cold air intakes" with gaping holes in the bottom of the filter boxes for sucking, presumably, warm air out of the engine compartment?



2 - Has anyone modified their OEM or after market box with a snorkel for picking up air from under the truck?



3- Should I be careful with what I read in the Product Showcase section?

 

[Scottyg1]

There is a write up by John Holmes concerning Air filters. Sorry not to good at posting links etc, but the following is for the Carson Dodge support site. May be worth reading. It changed my mind about purchasing an after market filter. Johns claim is that the OME does the best job.





Carson Dodge Chrysler Support

 

[cerberusiam]

So here are 3 questions:



1 - What is the truth on after market "cold air intakes" with gaping holes in the bottom of the filter boxes for sucking, presumably, warm air out of the engine compartment?



2 - Has anyone modified their OEM or after market box with a snorkel for picking up air from under the truck?



3- Should I be careful with what I read in the Product Showcase section?

Heh, heh, you should be careful of what you read ANYWHERE, and even what you see sometimes.



There are a couple of solutions that duct air from the fender and hood areas into a closed filter box. The Banks product comes to mind right off and there a couple others that use hood scoops to feed the air box. Just have to do some searching and deciding.



Question number one has been kicked around and debated since the inception of this forum, sometimes with mixed results. It really amounts to two questions:



Does an open filter ingest hot underhood air? It has to at some point due to the location, but, how much and when? Several test indicate that once you are rolling there is actually very little difference in underhood temps as opposed to exterior. There is quite a lot of air flow underhood from the rad support and thru the radiator so it is not a dead air space. It can't be or the compartment would cook itself to death quite rapidly.





The other part of the question is, does it matter if you are sucking in hot air and at what temp is it detrimental? Air compressed to 35-40 psi is pushing 400 degrees fromt he turbo and is cooled back down to around 150 degrees by the IC. How much difference will underhood air really make? How much temp difference does it take to make an impact? Last, how difference on your performance will it really make?





The 3rd gen air system and exhaust is pretty efficient even with some moderate power increases. A better flowing air filter will help but maybe at the expense of ease and/or filtration as will a muffler change/delete. Bottom line is, will it impact how you use the truck and how much?



Its not a simple answer and it varies widely due to use, personal preference, environment, etc, etc. Make your choice on what you think is right then just enjoy it. Chances are it will not make a huge impact either way.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

Here's a thread I started a few years back on "underhood intake air cooling" - it generated a LOT of HEAT back then, and probably will now as well, if THIS thread progresses very far! :-laf:-laf



https://www.turbodieselregister.com.../136388-value-special-aircleaner-ducting.html



My "test" at the beginning was relatively crude and simple - but progressed as the squeals of anguish from "fresh air" system customers, makers, and general disbelievers poured in...



As it turns out, in spite of the great and grand CLAIMS made by the users and makers of fresh air intake systems, there are virtually NO actual independent TEST results showing actual, no-doubt-about-it PROOF that there is any significant reduction in incoming air temperature setups, as compared to outside ambient air temperature - OR any significant HP gains FROM their use.



If at this later date, someone DOES have, and can provide that independent testing data, *I'd* sure like to see it!



The actual, and LARGEST increases, are when going from the relatively restrictive OEM setup on a HP upgraded truck's intake system, to some form of improved airflow filtration system. That "system" does NOT need to be some complex airbox and special ducting, but may be something as simple and inexpensive as THIS:



#ad




Or THIS:



#ad


#ad




NOW, you CAN pay LOTS more for some fancy custom air filter box and ducting - but the GREATEST improvement will be from the included larger capacity filter element ITSELF - so why pay more?

 

[BHolm]

Like a kid on Christmas morning, I installed my S & B Cold Air Intake system last Sunday. I was a little puzzled by the gaping hole in the bottom of it (not shown on their website photos), but I'm not an engineer, figured this must be a well designed system, and thought little more of it. On Monday, I got my first ever issue of TDR magazine. Tonight I was not happy to "learn" about the limitations of after market intake systems (see pages 130 to 134) and the cold air advantages of the OEM system that now sits in a box in the basement. After reading the article I was beating myself up for getting duped into buying something that will actually decrease the performance of my truck significantly in the mountainous region I live in.



Then I read it again and realized it's an article in the "product showcase" section, written by someone who makes alternatives to the typical aftermarket cold air intakes. Though much of it sounded quite logical and perhaps even balanced, I'm now really confused and thinking "bias" may or may not be a problem in that particular section. I had just read Jim Anderson's article on pages 111 to 112, "Quest for Power" that sounded sensible and confirmed to me that an air intake was a proper step in the upgrade journey.



So here are 3 questions:



1 - What is the truth on after market "cold air intakes" with gaping holes in the bottom of the filter boxes for sucking, presumably, warm air out of the engine compartment?



2 - Has anyone modified their OEM or after market box with a snorkel for picking up air from under the truck?



3- Should I be careful with what I read in the Product Showcase section?

That is strange... I have an S&B on my 2006 and it is only open to the stock fenderwell side, the bottom of the box is closed. It has a larger opening than the stock airbox but that is the only hole.



My experience with it is that you get to hear more turbo whistle, that and the fact that I can re-use the filter are the only benefits I have seen. The factory airbox works up to 500hp by most reports so I didn't expect better performance. The CFM+ air horn dropped EGT's without the S&B, no change after adding it.



I admittedly bought into some of the hype though, 40% better flow from the S&B system, 40% better flow for the CFM+ and a muffler delete for better flow on that end. I love how my truck performs in the mountains

 

[gfresh]

Second Look

I just opened the hood and had another look. When I take out the oiled filter and look straight down, all I see is pavement. The side of the new box fits into the stock (foam gasketted) cold air hole. But the hole in that side of the box is significantly smaller than the hole in the bottom of the box.



I went to the John Holmes (Carson Dodge) website, Diesel 101 - Carson Dodge Support Forum and found some discussion on intakes. I learned that on a 2001 or 2002, the oil from the oiled filters may have been a culprit on mucking up the map (I think) sensor on a truck that was getting crappy mileage. That may be reason #2 not to go with a system like this.



Anyway, live and learn. The debate could be endless - there are so many opinions on all these issues that it must be bewildering to most people. I sent an email to S&B about adding a bottom snorkel and will let everyone know if I get a reply. I think I'd feel better about the $280 spent if I could direct air into the bottom from further down. And I'll be really careful not to over-oil the filter when it comes time to clean it.



By the way (I'm hijacking my own thread), my Quadzilla Xzilleraider 2 with control pod is a ton of fun and they've been great to deal with. I've searched for discussion on this item and could find almost nothing - it must be really new, or terribly unpopular.

 

[Regcabguy]

Can you keep it down,please?

Coming out of a lightly bombed '99,I wanted to preserve the ability to converse with my passenger at a normal level. Consequently,I went with the PSM downtube,PG7 drop-in,Shuttleworth low-restriction muffler(direct spice-in) and of course Smarty. So far so good in the Quiet Zone.

 

[DPKetchum]

I brought this to AFE's attention and got a canned reply about differances in drivers,cetane level and some other hog wash. Asked them point blank if back in 03 I wasted $300 or so bucks on my Afe Stage 1 system and every one was bashing the stock setup that turned out to be more enough for most situations. Got NO reply. I also referred them to issue 59 etc.

 

[EArp]

I modded my stock air box myself by cutting a 4" hole in the bottom and attaching a dryer vent hose right to the bottom of it with a dryer vent coupling. This way it sucks cold air from the bottom of the truck. In addition, I busted out my baffles and took off my silencer ring. I'm also using a AFE super stock drop in filter. I can notice a big difference in my throttle response and power. Not too mention, it sounds nice too! Best part is, dryer vent hose and coupling only cost me about $15!!!

 

[LRutigliano]

Go to Performance Systems Manufacturing, LLC and check out the facts for yourself. You can also call Pete Tomka and he will give the honest skinny. He is a degreed engineer that started his own business and he works with actual, honest to goodness dyno test data AND road test data. The difference between PSM and others is the verification using road test data.



I'm a believer. I had an aFe Stage 2SI system and am now running the PSM system, with cool red hose and aFe PG-7 drop in filter and my EGTs are very low when towing at max throttle up a big grade (1100-1150 deg F). I also have the CFM+ intake tube and think it also contributes to my "low" EGTs.



Hope this helps,

Louis

 

[JBonpua]

That is strange... I have an S&B on my 2006 and it is only open to the stock fenderwell side, the bottom of the box is closed. It has a larger opening than the stock airbox but that is the only hole.



My experience with it is that you get to hear more turbo whistle, that and the fact that I can re-use the filter are the only benefits I have seen. The factory airbox works up to 500hp by most reports so I didn't expect better performance. The CFM+ air horn dropped EGT's without the S&B, no change after adding it.



I admittedly bought into some of the hype though, 40% better flow from the S&B system, 40% better flow for the CFM+ and a muffler delete for better flow on that end. I love how my truck performs in the mountains

The newer S&B has an opening at the bottom. I closed mine off with a plexiglass and routed a 3" tubing down toward the bottom so the engine will only ingest cold air.

 

[JDiepstra]

The newer S&B has an opening at the bottom. I closed mine off with a plexiglass and routed a 3" tubing down toward the bottom so the engine will only ingest cold air.

Has anyone taken thier tubing and bent it to achieve a "ram air" effect? I bent my tubing and mounted it next to my plow mount. I've had my Juice unhooked for a while cause I had to go to the dealership a couple times but I'm hooking it back up today so I look forward to seeing what that does to EGT's. Obviously the ram air only works at higher speeds, but it does sound cool.

 

[gfresh]

"I closed mine off with a plexiglass and routed a 3" tubing down toward the bottom so the engine will only ingest cold air. "



That's exactly what I was hoping to hear. I'd love to see a picture of that... and this,



"I bent my tubing and mounted it next to my plow mount. "



LRutigliano, Pete Tomka is the author of the article I'm revering to in TDR 59 mag. By the way, I still haven't had a reply from S&B.

 

[BHolm]

I would be careful with the ram air idea, that leads to ram bugs, ram birds, ram weather:-laf Though, as long as the big opening to the fender remains, sucking stuff up shouldn't be a problem.

 

[CToney]

If you read the arcticle closely injesting hotter air in the pre-'03 does not change power output. In the '03 and up they sense the incoming air temp and adjust fueling maps accordingly. The hotter the air the less fuel provided and thus less hp. These trucks run high egts stock so this is necessary. It makes sense to me and with the mods I have made to my truck performance and mpg have both increased. On a newer and higher hp truck a larger or oiled element may be necessary to avoid sucking the filter minder down. My setup works for me.

 

[AH64ID]

I have a scan tool that tells me intake temp... On a normal day around town and cruising the intake air (at the manifold) is about 7-10* warmer than the outside air... pretty darn good... When pulling long grades at higher boost it gets 20*-25* warmer than the outside air, still pretty darn good... . I run the amsoil filter and with my Smarty Jr have good EGT's, power, and intake temps. (thou on the 100hp setting the enigne pulls the filter minder down on the amsoil filter (but its an OEM replacment not a hi performance replacment, so that is kinda expected)...

I would say unless you pushing a ton of mods/power the OEM box is just fine with a quality filter, but if you need more air you have to go to a CAI, even if the air is warmer its the amount that you need with the higher HP.

 

[DZLROKET]

I did the Home Depot cold air mod and was still sucking the filter minder down (Smarty JR @ 70 hp) that was with an Amsoil filter. I lost the Amsoil filter and bbought the AFE Proguard7 drop in . Now the filter minder does not budge even under hard accel. runs.

 

[SShafranko]

I like the idea of running the hose to your grill and installing some type of close knitted screen to keep the contaminants out better than running the hose from the box straight down. I believe that in the summer the air you are sucking in from the hot pavement is probably hotter than under hood. Heat rises so it would make sence that the hot air from the ground is rising into your hose.

 

[CToney]

It sounds like the 305hp 555 engines can use the Amsoil filter (stock replacement) without sucking the filter minder down. But when you add more fuel to the newer engines with the larger compressor and higher boost levels the amsoil filter might not flow enough air. I guess a proguard 7 would be the way to go to retain the stock air box.

 

[AH64ID]

It sounds like the 305hp 555 engines can use the Amsoil filter (stock replacement) without sucking the filter minder down. But when you add more fuel to the newer engines with the larger compressor and higher boost levels the amsoil filter might not flow enough air. I guess a proguard 7 would be the way to go to retain the stock air box.

Yeah if your looking to add 100 or more hp... . I haven't tried the 70hp setting on my junior to know if it sucks it down or not.