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jalalski
Date Registered: 02-2004
Location: SUTHERLAND, SYDNEY
TOTAL POSTS: 29100
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Re: Air intake design & modifications
Nope Kev. Forum's little secrect and you will hopefully find-out about it soon
Now, stay on topic please! hehehehehe (just kidding)
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6/Mar/2007, 1:26 pm
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NPC73
X-TRAIL HOLIC
Date Registered: 12-2004
Location: Mount Isa, QLD
TOTAL POSTS: 1247
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Re: Air intake design & modifications
After much anticipation the Custom CAI on the Golden Bullet is now complete and here it is folks
I started this little project mid way through Dec-2006 and am now finally glad to see the end of it. She’s cost me a small fortune more than I expected and about 4 times over my budget however now that it’s complete I’m very happy with the end result.
Here is a breakdown of the cost of the parts:
- Ford XR8 Pod Enclosure - $180
- Apexi POD Filter (Chrome Type) 3" - $140
- Apexi POD Filter Adapter 3" - $65
- 90° Silicon Elbow (Blue) 3" - 2.75" - $59
- MAF Adapter - $18
- AEM Bypass Valve (Lower Duct) - $92
- 3” Adapter (Lower Duct) - $30
- 3" Flexi Tubing (Lower Duct) - $30
- Snorkel/Scoop (Lower Duct) - $30
- Custom Stainless Steel Intake (Upper Duct) - $400
- Incidentals (Rubbers, clamps, bolts, brackets, etc) - $50
TOTAL: $1094
I chose a POD enclosure setup over conventional CAI setups for a number of reasons and recommendations from several people. POD filters inside the engine bay, short rams, etc are safer setups however you normally need to deal somehow with hot air from the engine bay entering your filter, in the way of shields etc, which are not always effective. POD filters outside the engine bay need to deal with environmental elements so you’re always trying to keep the whether out.
The beauty of the POD enclosure is that it is contained in the engine bay and by the use of ducting you can channel cold air from the outside through to the POD filter and into the engine. My lower intake is also using a scoop therefore I also have the added benefit of natural forced induction. The faster my exy goes, the more cold air being forced into her.
Some will say that the POD enclosure in the engine bay will get hot, which it does, and affect the incoming air, however other opinions say that the air passing though won’t be in there long enough to get hot. From my experience so far I believe this is true. I have found that even when the POD enclosure gets hot, the POD filter itself is not hot at all and at room temperature.
Another benefit of the POD Enclosure is a reduction in noise. I ran around during my installation with just the POD filter without the POD enclosure and noticed that when using it without the noise from the air filter was quite cattery. With the POD enclosure on the sound is contained and has a more deeper rumble about it. So in effect it acts like a muffler on the air filter.
For the POD Filter I chose an Apexi Power Intake (500-A022 OD 160 ID 75mm). Why did I choose an Apexi over a K&N? Well via recommendation once again and finally this review: Induction Kit Review. I especially like the idea of “Zero Maintenance - Lifetime Use”
The Apexi was also much easier to purchase than a K&N as we have a hopeless K&N distributor here in Australia. I purchased my Apexi from modyourcar.com.au
The main standout feature of the Apexi is the internal funnel of the filter which eliminates turbulence of air inside the filter itself.
On the negative side of things and unknown to me at the time but this POD filter does not come with an adapter and this needed to be purchased separately
Now fitting a Ford XR8 POD enclosure into an X-Trail is a bit tricky. In the place I have mine installed I needed to move the battery which I did further to the side of the vehicle.
Now the MAF sensor housing also required an adapter so I could connect the MAF sensor to the POD filter adapter. I scored one very cheap from eBay and a perfect match as it is made for the Nissan Sentra. The adapter is only plastic so anybody getting one of these, be very careful, as I nearly cracked mine.
The next obstacle I had was getting something at a 90° bend to fit between the MAF sensor and the throttle body. I settled on a 90° Blue Silicon hose (3” – 2.75”) as it was easier to cut and bend into shape. The 2.75” side was a perfect fit on the throttle body, however the 3” on the MAF sensor housing was an extremely tight fit, but with some persuasion with hot water I managed to fit it on. I really needed a 3.25” size but nothing was available.
A hole was then drilled into the Blue Silicon hose and a brass fitting inserted to feed the vacuum hose that connects to the rocker cover. At one stage I disconnected the hose entirely and fitted a small filter to the rocker cover as seen on other Nissan Sentra engines, however I re-installed it back for two reasons. 1. It’s an environmental issue and even though you have a filter, some oil can eventually seep trough the filter, and 2. By removing the hose you stop the system from draining the air from the top of the engine hence over time you will get a build up of oil. This hose is a vacuum hose. Another such hose is located at the rear of the rocker cover and connects to the intake manifold.
Now onto the Upper and Lower intakes….
The Lower intake is the Main intake which is 3” in diameter. With the use of a dremel I was able to neatly cut a 3” hole on the POD enclosure to fit the 3” adapter and bolt it through. Directly below I have installed an AEM Bypass Valve which will prevent any hydro lock in the event the lower scoop becomes submerged in water. I then used some 3” plastic flexi tube to weave down to below the radiator. For the scoop for my lower intake I used a plastic air intake snorkel; however mine is installed upside down. I’ve chosen plastic for my lower intake in the event I knock into something, the cost of any repairs to the intake should be quite minimal.
The Upper intake is where I have had my biggest dilemmas with and why this project has taken me so long to complete. The Ford XR8 POD enclosure inlet is solely on the top and the inlet is a strange oval type shape. I attempted a few tacky looking setups and using the factory inlet, but nothing came up to my liking. So I eventually bit the bullet and had the inlet done up professionally. Another big sting to the pocket ($400) however the boys at FNQ Custom Sheetmetal here in Cairns produced an awesome looking intake and in Stainless Steel as well. I initially queried the location of the intake in the grill facing down but as Michael assured me there will be plenty of cold air in the cavity in front of the radiator and having it angled down will minimise the amount of rainwater being forced towards the filter.
End of Report….
Here are the Pics:
Top Views:
Side Views:
AEM Bypass Valve:
Lower Intake:
Upper Intake:
--- Noel...
Member ID: X-072 (Retired Administrator)
2003 X-trail, TI, Manual, (Series 1) - (with the works)
2013 Toyota Prado, Manual, Turbo Diesel - (Snorkel-K&N-Full Exhaust, 20" Low Profiles, Chrome Bullbar, HID Spots, + All the Bling!)
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28/Mar/2007, 1:55 am
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jalalski
Date Registered: 02-2004
Location: SUTHERLAND, SYDNEY
TOTAL POSTS: 29100
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Re: Air intake design & modifications
Hi Noel,
Very nice set-up mate, but then again any set-up which costs THAT much better be nice, or you will end-up sleeping in the garage LOL
If this is the same "project" you and Josh have talked about HERE then I can safely assume that things did NOT go according to plan at all, mainly Josh's prediction that this system wont be a gold-plated one in terms of cost and I was wondering if he managed to get your exy on a dyno before and after the install as he promised, to show the gains of this set-up?
I have no doubts at all that by using dual cold air intakes, you will be getting a boost in power more than a conventional CAI with one pod filter and one intake, the question is:
Can the ECU and MAF sensor handle such increased air volume and adjust the fuel:air ratio maps accordingly?
I would have presumed that set-ups like these may require some sort of piggy back ECUs to ensure the full potential is explored, but I could be wrong.
In any case, the set-up looks awesome and you personally have put in a lot of effort in making it happen. Well done mate!
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28/Mar/2007, 7:32 am
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Dave4x4
X-TRAIL LEGEND
Date Registered: 08-2005
Location: NEWCASTLE
TOTAL POSTS: 690
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Re: Air intake design & modifications
Nice job Noel
Very smart and profesional instalation. There would be less air induction noise with this setup to which is a good thing
--- (Dave Newcastle 2004 ST
ID: X211
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28/Mar/2007, 2:32 pm
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