Aftermarket air intake sys...

VR3

http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductDetail.aspx?mfrcode=KNN&mfrpartnumber=572503&parttype=1344&ptset=A

Im considering that...

To my understanding it will....

A) Remove the stock air filter housing and the "hose" that leads to an open end that sits at the front of the truck - so all that would be left basically would be the K&N and my factory hoses that lead to the engine?

What is the smaller hose for?

Are these easy to install? Do I need help...

Thanks!

Meeks32

For $228 its a rip-off. The only thing you would really notice with that setup is that your car would be louder since you would be taking away the intake silencer. The smaller hose is just a vaccume line. If you want to buy a new intake, look for one that comes with a pipe that goes all the way to the throttle body.

VR3

http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductDetail.aspx?mfrcode=KNN&mfrpartnumber=572542&parttype=1344&ptset=A

?

Frank Z

The smaller hose is for oil return. AEM makes a better FIPK, but you can fab a DIY setup forfar less money than either system.

VR3

DIY with wood, yes - anything else, DIY is a big no no...

What type of advantages is an aftermarket intake going to get me?

Frank Z

Not much, a slight increase in performance but nothing major. A good tune-up and regular maintenance would be more beneficial. Try using a Frame Air Hog in your truck. They flow very well and are better than disposable paper filters.

What are you trying to do with your truck?

VR3

Improve gas mileage...

Yep, thats about it...

I figure Im stuck with this truck for... *at min* of 3 years (insurance restrictions - cost) and for 3 years Ill be spending like... at minimum of 5040 in gas... which I knew when I was getting the truck it would suck on gas - but I would like to get a few miles (1 or 2) per gallon...

Maybe a lil more pick up on the gas, among other things... - just looking for a lil better performance out of the motor overall that dosnt involve major surgery...

VR3

Whats involved in a tune up? Anything in particular?

I already do the whole maintence thing, probally more than most - change oil every 3,000 miles and everything haha - monitor fluids on a weekly basis... sometimes more... yada yada

ESavinon

I installed one in my aurora and noticed better mileage, better throttle response, and better idle.the new air intake made the engine sound way better specially at full throttle.
I got one on ebay for $50 with a K&N filter.

Meeks32

What size is the engine in your truck? Some people who say they could hardly tell any difference probably put it on a car with a small engine like a civic. But if you have a large engine then the benifits are pretty good, atleast from all the dyno charts I've ever seen.

Jstas

I don't think it will make much difference on your 302. The reason being is that it's Speed Density fuel injection and the way that works, things are basically set as they are. You could get it and stick it on but really, the only REAL benefit is that you fork over a bunch of cash for your new reuseable air filter and all you'll need is $8 for recharge kit every 5-6 years or so. You'll likely never need to replace the filter. It's ALOT cheaper than buying paper ones. But the performance benefits are dubious at best.

Better breathing is always a good thing but if the rest of the truck is stone cold stock, an intake is only going to make more noise and likely not get you much in the way of mileage at all. You'd do better to keep the tires inflated and oil changed regularly with regular changing of the air filter and fuel filter. I usually clean my K&N ever other oil change. The fuel filter gets replaced every 20-30,000 miles.

Basically, don't go getting an intake tube and air filter expecting a huge boost in performance. Afterall, th intake tube and air filter matter very little when you still have a 55mm throttle body going into a stock intake plenum meant tomaximize torque at low RPM's and not power at high RPM's. However, there are benefits to them and if you feel it's worth the cost, by all means get it. But you can probably find a better price on it elsewhere. Summit Racing probably has them dirt cheap compared to the Parts America and JEG'S ir probably even cheaper than Summit Racing. I got my K&N because my paper filters were 34 bucks and I had to order a case of 10 or 14 when I needed one. The K&N was $31.99 at JEG'S and the cleaning/recharge kit was $8 at Pep Boys and I still on my original kit.



As far as a tune up goes, it's simple really. Spark plugs, spark plug wires, distributor cap, rotor, oil change, fuel filter, air filter and check things like your radiator hoses, accessory drive belt, ignition coil and replace if necessary. The most difficult part is the spark plugs, wires and such. the best thing to do is replace one at a time using the new cap to plug the new wires in to. The cap comes off pretty easy and the rotor underneath pulls off in you hand. You drop the new one on, replace all the cables to they match the way the old one did (very important to firing order) and put it back on the way it came off. You will likely not need a new coil but if you do, those are wasy too. Usualy only 2 wires, sometimes 3. Pull the wires off, unmount the coil, mount the new one and put the wires back.

Radiator hoses should not have cracks at the joints or anywhere. If you squeeze it it should pop back into place readily. If the ends are cracked/sliced then the hose should be replaced. Hose clamps should not be badly corroded either. The belt should not have cracks on the ribs and if it looks like it is starting fray or excessivly worn, replace that too.

Also check out the battery cables. If the ends are corroded and the terminals are corroded, clean the battery terminals and replace the cables. You can clean the terminals with a brush you can pick up at any parts store. You will also need a gallon of distilled water. Don't use straight water, that corrosion is battery acid. Mix baking soda into a bucket of warm tap water, not the distilled water. Put enough baking soda in the water to make it cloudly. Clean the terminals with the brush to remove the huge chunks. Use a paper cup to dump the water on to the battery and stand back, this will pop and sizzle. You don't want it in you eyes. Keep dumping the baking soda water onto the corroded areas until the popping and sizziling stops. Once the popping and sixxling stops, all the acid has been neutralized. Take that gallon of distilled water now and dump it all over the area where the corrosion and baking soda water is. Make sure to clean off all the water with teh baking soda and corrosion in it. If you leave it, it will just cause problems elsewhere later down the road. The reason you use distilled water is because it has very few if not any impurities in it. It will clean the bad stuff you just cleaned off away and it will not arc between the two battery terminals.

Once that is done, let it dry. Coat the terminals with electrolytic grease and put the cables back on to the battery. Once they are installed, take a can of that battery terminal dressing and cover the exposed terminals with it. Anywhere there is exposed metal, coat. It will help keep the corrosion problem from occurring again. If it happens again, replace the battery and check for any shorts in the power or ground line that would cause a draw.

audiobliss

ROFLMREO!!!!! If you end up spending anywhere near $200 on an intake for your truck, I will be paying you a visit!!

VR3

audiobliss wrote:

ROFLMREO!!!!! If you end up spending anywhere near $200 on an intake for your truck, I will be paying you a visit!!

Mike,
I think you're a great guy...

But this post had about as much worth as a tin bucket with holes in it trying to catch water.

Jstas, on the other hand - thank you. Will look into these avenues...

exalted512

you can make your own intake...itll be a lot cheaper and all youll really have to buy is the filter.

In all honesty, this question will be responded to much better in a full size ford truck forum rather than a polk car audio forum...
-Cody

audiobliss

Vr3MxStyler2k3 wrote:

But this post had about as much worth as a tin bucket with holes in it trying to catch water.

Just how I like my posts. Thought you'd know that by now.



But, really, I thought it was just common sense. Spending over $200 on an already way outrageously over-priced intake system...on an old Ford pickup? Maybe it would net you some better fuel mileage, but not much for sure.

VR3

Im no car expert buddy, 200 to me dosnt sound bad - because I just dont know these things...

Im more of a general maintence person, I can change fluids, keep fluids up to level, yada yada - but when it comes to the nitty gritty, Im ignant...

Same with computers... I can manage, organize, repair, yada yada - but nitty gritty = not me...

BIZILL

i spent over $250 for my intake, but i wouldn't spend that much on an old truck. (unless it was restored/cherried)

research info on home-made.

Serendipity

Are these intakes (such as the one Trey mentioned) difficult to install? I just learned about these things from our very own RuSsMaN and I'm interested...

I don't know much about cars though.

audiobliss

I definitely can't say for sure, but the difficulty of installation would depend on the aftermarket intake and the car.

I would think that in general they really shouldn't be that hard. Basically, it would be undoing several adjustable hose clamps (like the one pictured below), removing the old one, setting the new one in, and reconnecting the hoses.

Serendipity

audiobliss wrote: »

I definitely can't say for sure, but the difficulty of installation would depend on the aftermarket intake and the car.

Do you think a novice (like me) would be able to install this on a 5th gen Nissan Maxima? I mean it's not a complicated car IMO...

audiobliss

5th gen...what years are we talking? I don't like Maxima's enough to keep up with which gen is what year.

But I would certainly say so. The only hard part could be getting to it in a smaller, crammed engine bay. Even if you have some sensors, they should disconnect fairly easily, and the new intake system should already have a place read to mount it.

Serendipity

audiobliss wrote: »

5th gen...what years are we talking? I don't like Maxima's enough to keep up with which gen is what year.

2000-2003 (I think)...

Looked under the hood once and it wasn't too complicated inside.

audiobliss

Haha, sorry. I updated my post a little.

Serendipity

So on a scale of 1-10 how difficult would you rate this?

audiobliss

Well, I'm afraid you might be putting too much stock on what I say, here. I'm not sure enough to say anything really specific, but if 1 is changing the spark plugs and 10 is rebuilding the engine, I would say 2.5 at the most.

Serendipity

One more thing, do you think it is a worthwhile upgrade? How much will I save on gas?

rskarvan

I stronly suspect that changing the airbox/filter out will give you minimal (if any) improvement. And, it will probably detract from any resale value in the future as people who buy trucks NEVER complain if it is all factory original.

Do you have any idea how many design updates and tweaks are made on every single component of a Ford vehicle? Its not 2 or 3... but, more like 12 to 15. Nearly every time a field failure is identified, an engineering fix goes into place and a design release is issued. Now, do you think K&N and company really have the engineering expertise to do a better job? And, do you really think Ford would compromise the performance of a vehicle and engine by trying to save a few bucks on an air intake? Even if you want to believe its true... its not.

Put the cash into buying an extra 5 tanks of gas and you'll be 2000 miles ahead in fuel economy savings.

audiobliss

Oooh, now you have to go and bring that up. Forget the fact that you can do it. Forget the fact that it'll be fun. Forget the fact that you'll have valuable bonding time with your car. Forget the fact that you can proudly display the company's sticker on your rear window. Forget the fact that you'd be able to brag to your buddies that you put it in all by yourself...in 7 hours...when the instructions said 3 hours tops...

It's likely a waste of time if you're looking for any real improvements.

Serendipity

rskarvan wrote: »

And, do you really think Ford would compromise the performance of a vehicle and engine by trying to save a few bucks on an air intake? Even if you want to believe its true... its not.

I don't have a Ford.

Serendipity

audiobliss wrote: »

Oooh, now you have to go and bring that up. Forget the fact that you can do it. Forget the fact that it'll be fun. Forget the fact that you'll have valuable bonding time with your car. Forget the fact that you can proudly display the company's sticker on your rear window. Forget the fact that you'd be able to brag to your buddies that you put it in all by yourself...in 7 hours...when the instructions said 3 hours tops...

It's likely a waste of time if you're looking for any real improvements.

audiobliss,

I actually want to do this.

It's part of the "I can do it" attitude I've got and the fact that I'll have some fun AND learn something about cars.

audiobliss

Yeah. I can definitely relate to that. I'm in exactly the same boat. So, if it's not a lot of dough, do it, man.