The kd4crs/Power Hungry/Gotts Mod (revisited - and with pictures)

[dmjackson76]

Great post Jack. I get fly in from this dirty rig tomorrow, & now I have a project once I get to the house. I think I will even celebrate the completion with a pile of crawfish, & some cold Bud Light . Thanks for giving me an excuse. Also I don't have to tell my wife I am spending more on my truck as well. Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

[Jackpine]

Originally Posted by Power Hungry

Looks nice with the bellows on there. Give the aesthetics of it, I'd doubt the dealer would even spot it except for the rubber grommet missing.

I do have one question (or favor) to ask... When you have time, could you pull the tube out and trace a pattern of the sanded end on a sheet of paper and scan it or fax it over? We'd like to be able to post it on the forums so folks can have a reasonable template to go by if they should decide to try and do it themselves.

For what it's worth, we might even be able to see if we can get them molded. I've got a guy that does carbon fiber molding that might be able to make them relatively inexpensively.

Once again, great job.

I think the carbon fiber molded idea is a great one! I'll be happy to pull, trace and fax the cross-section, but it probably would not fit into the fender wall hole without grinding off the small "lip" in the opening as I did. I measured the original oval in the fender at 3 1/8 x 3 1/2, using a pair of dividers, since I don't have any inside calipers. By grinding the opening, I was able to make the short diameter about 3 1/4". I was worried that sanding down the tube to 3 1/8 across would make it too weak.

What we really need is a tracing of the inside of the fender hole (unmodified). But, I don't see how one could get anything behind it to trace on.

- Jack

[AgentOrange]

Hi guys & gals, brand new to this forum. I stumbled across it while checking out other homemade CAIs after tinkering with one of my own and this was the first one I've seen that had an excellent one for the 2004 +. I like the caron fiber idea.
Here is a pic of what I came up with (hopefully the pic works):

[Jackpine]

The pic came out just fine AgentOrange (and welcome to the forum).

That's a pretty "sexy" looking intake. Sure doesn't look "homemade" (or cheap either).

Where'd it come from? And, what does it cost, does it work, etc., etc.?

- Jack

[AgentOrange]

Where'd it come from? And, what does it cost, does it work, etc., etc.?

- Jack

Thanks...It's actually the stock tube with the baffles cut off and capped. I also sealed the 6 holes you mentioned with silicone sealant. I took the bellows end off and replaced it with a flexible 3" Y pipe then I ran some 3" flexible metal ducting into the fenderwell and another length of ducting through the radiator support down to the rear of the tow hook which should add a little bit of ram air effect. I like your use of the ABS plastic pipe into the fenderwell better, however, so I might steal that idea later...BTW, do you think the end that is inserted into the fender could be heated and formed to fit inside the oval opening to avoid the sanding?
As far as it making a difference...to early to tell. I am still using the stock filter, which I plan to change to a Amsoil soon, so I doubt I have seen the full potential. I have not heard any whistling noises as of yet, but I haven't done any interstate driving or made any high RPM runs yet...I'll follow-up if I notice any strange sounds. I'll follow-up on MPG's also. Since the mod, which has only been a couple of days, I haven't driven my normal route which is very short with a lot of stopping and starting, so any numbers I would give now would be misleading.
Total cost was around $30 for the parts.
I have several other pics of the mod in my album...check 'em out.
Originally, I was going to do the same mod as you sans ABS pipe, but then I saw the Y-pipe while I was shopping for the other parts and figured hmmm...2 cold air inlets would be better than 1, so that's what I came up with.

[Northern Supercrew]

Great write-up Jack. i've never seen/heard of that modd...just the cut filter housing on the 97-03 series. Thanx for sharing that.

[Jackpine]

Wow, AgentOrange! You just blew me away!

That's what I love about talking to people on these forums, you find out there are some REALLY bright people out there!

First, your question - do I think the end that is inserted into the fender wall could be heated and formed? Yes - but I'd rather do it by some molding process. The ABS pipe is just a cheap homemade thing. To really do it right, it needs to be the same kind of plastic that is used in the original intake, which allows a thin, rigid structure. And that brings me back to my original concern. If this is all that is needed, why didn't Ford engineers give us a 3" intake in the first place? I still think there's a reason for the choked down intake. If I knew what it was, I'd feel better about defeating it. My very uneducated guess remains - they don't want you abusing the engines at WOT and high RPMs, so they limit the potential there to avoid warranty claims from people who drive that way all the time.

The "Y" IS going to bring in more air, no doubt about it. But, you get turbulence from the two intersecting sources and that COULD be a problem, or maybe not. I can't tell just from looking and I'm not smart enough to figure out a way to test for this. I'm interested that you removed and capped the resonator inlets. What led you to this approach? And, I haven't looked at your album yet, but if it's a "T", rather than a "Y" leading into the filter inlet, you could be working against yourself as ram air effect increases. But I suspect you wouldn't call it a "Y" if it wasn't.

And maybe, just maybe, your "Y" intake gets rid of harmonics that cause noise, so you don't need the resonators at all.

I just don't know. Your creation has all the hallmarks of an "invention".

As far as the filter goes - I'm skeptical about these things. If the device filters dirt out to a specific micron size, it has to restrict the flow somewhat. The only way you can overcome that restriction is to increase the filter area and the "cone" filters look like they might do that. But, as the filters start to build up crud, they actually filter better but pass less air. So, no matter what filter you use, you need to keep it clean to keep the airflow. I honestly think the stock filters do a pretty good job of compromise - size vs performance.

Oh and crap! You've got an engine compartment that looks like a surgeon's operating theater - like jbrew's. What's wrong with a little dirt - like John Madden's idea of real football?

- Jack

[Power Hungry]

The baffle removal looks fantastic! That's a nice job. As for the "Y", that's really nice looking, too. It's amazing what you can find at Home Depot or Lowes!

After closer inspection, I am led to believe the "holes" are to allow any water collected by the intake to drain out. Even old carburetor air cleaner assemblies had an outer ring that sat lower than the filter element and the ring had holes to allow water to drain out without soaking the filter.

Good job, guys.

[kd4crs]

Here are some pics of mine. I am going to do a write up on it and send it to Bill to post.




I have taken the truck in for service several times and the dealership techs never noticed it.

EDIT to add: See post #71 in this thread for instructions to make the DWV intake mod.

[Jackpine]

David! Glad to see your version here too!

This has become a dynamite thread, hasn't it? I'll be looking forward to what you send in to Bill.

Bottom line, it DOES seem to be possible to have a CAI that doesn't break the bank and that DOES provide increased performance.

Bill - interesting that you think these might be water drain holes. But, in operation, the low pressure effect of the air flowing down the tube would prevent any draining. At rest, of course, water could drain.

Respectfully, sir, I'm not buying it. I think them holes is in there for some other friggin reason. And, it appears to be a Ford, "burn before reading". secret!

- Jack