My homebuilt 'True cold' air

Well ignoring the hate....

Nice work. Definitely has the URD look and function at about half the cost. Given that it's URD-like it does have the same possible issues as the URD, i.e., avoid water holes, if you have big rain storms get a shield or a sock. I know some posts, and yours, have covered this, but also be aware of a couple things.

Water in the intake and getting through to the cylinders in sufficient quantity to hydrolock hasn't been an issue with the URD, unless you do water crossings,,, so shouldn't be an issue for you.

Water on the MAF sensor, now that is a know problem with the URD when in a torrential rain, or a heavy rain and you floor it. Water gets on the MAF and the truck will stumble or quit. A sock, like you have, or a shield usually takes care of that.

Just one question though, have you done your research on oiled cotton gauze filters (K&N and others...) and are happy to move forward with it? You might want to check on BITOG for oil analysis results using oiled gauze filters. I would consider moving to a tighter weave filter like the Amsoil or an aFe dry for use up front.

BTW, I have the URD with a shield and an very happy with it.

Otherwise, again, nice work!

 

Any thought to getting it ceramic coated to reduce heat absorption within the tubing?

 

Is that a bung in the first picture? Or is that a weld on nut basically for mounting hardware?

URD also sells the weld on MAF flange adapters.

http://urdusa.com/More-Products-MORE/c9_174/index.html

As well as the splash shield for the filter. Definitely get the splash shield. It will help with buffer problems and protect it from the elements.

http://urdusa.com/Intakes-Rechargers-&-Heat-Shields/c151_160/index.html

 

Thank you for an intelligent post! Yes, I am aware of K&N filtering abilities (or lack thereof). My main issue was clearance, thats why I chose the filter. K&N has a large selection of varying sizes. If I come across, or anyone for that matter, an alternative filter, I will be willing to try that as well.

 

It is a 3/8" NPT bung by Vibrant.

 

What is the bung for?

 

I can def agree u should get at least a splash shield....its less restrictive than the hydrophobic sock (i have both for my URD and u can feel it being sluggish with the sock so I keep it in the center console for only the worst torrential downpours).

Getting on the freeway, or any decent throttle application WILL draw water onto the MAF sensor (if u dont use a shield or sock) and it will lead to at the very least a stumbling/miss type of action which may or may not be harmful to the engine (im not sure).

Ive seen it myself when in a moderate rain and getting on the freeway....The shield will also help with buffeting issues on the MANUAL trans guys...Ive never had an issue with the automatic. Ive run the URD behind a grillcraft mesh grill, with the filter completely open for shits and grins wondering if the truck would have issues with buffeting...None were noticed. Seeing as OP is automatic, this shouldnt be an issue.....but the MAF getting water into it is a possibility.

Also, faulty filter element placement (NOT product related, and FULLY INSTALLER/OWNERS MISTAKE) has been known to cause rough idle....IIRC Gadget had amsoil make a small change to an existing cone filter to prevent people from bottoming out the element on the intake piping. Ive spoke to him a few times on the phone, the man knows what he is doing, and went through many prototypes and many MAF sensor locations and used (I forgot the name) a device that measures turbulence and he placed the MAF sensor in the optimum location he found through numerous testing.

OP, congrats on being 1 of the few franken intake owners.... Hope it works out good for you, please get us some dyno numbers, and intake temp numbers?

BTW, what filter element are u using?

 

The PCV hose coming off the passenger side valve cover. It has a 3/8'' to 1/2'' nipple fitting screwed into it

 

I like it!

How long have you been tig welding? That mirror like puddle always threw me VS the glowing puddle you get with mild steel.

 

Learned tig in highschool (and they say public school doesnt teach anything, ha!)

Bought a big Lincoln welder and welded a lot with it. Sold that, then bought a Thermal Arc Arcmaster 200 and love it. So about 4 years welding mostly intercooler tubes, stainless manifolds, exhaust piping and bar and plate intercoolers

 

I really need to invest in a TIG machine.

I learned how to arc weld in highschool and self tough with MIG.

 

I recommend it!

 

No product was ever brought to market in it's first incarnation.
They all went through some development process.

Some products, even after that, have some issues.
This project, in it's current form, has a few issues that can be either dealt with or ignored for the time being.


Too many kids who can't play soccer worth a crap are being given ribbons and trophies just because they tried.
Too bad the real world doesn't work like that.

 

Screw the naysayers . On my 99 tac I made a cai with sewer pipe and insulation. It worked great . If you like it then that is all that matters

Nothing ventured nothing gained.
Oh yeah nice job
Now jus put a fan from the exhaust in there then add a butterfly valve .... JK haha

 

Not really sure why you quoted me or what you're trying to say.

 

I quoted you because you were ragging on those who are critical of the design... a more intelligent way of of saying "haterz gonna' hate".
The last part of my comment was directed at the modern line of thinking that people should be told they're doing a good job, even when they are wrong.

My point is every viable design on the market today went through a development process. The light bulb was an incredible innovation, but had Edison stuck to his guns with his first design and ignored the observed and reported issues, we would still be reading by candle light.

OP may have a good basis for an idea, but the design has issues in it's current form that will cause problems in the future.

Ignoring the inefficiencies of the washable filter's filtration performance, as I indicated, I ran an open element on the motorcycle for a couple of years.
The filter was constantly getting covered with bugs and caked with road grime, and when cleaning the filter I was finding that small stones were perforating the element.
Add to that, riding in the rail would wash the oil out of the filter.

For the OP's design, ignoring the flooding issues posed by off road applications and understanding this to be an on-road-only system, adding a shield to protect the filter from road debris would be a HUGE improvement.

 

Did someone say Squirrel fight?!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGhZHlpSE6k

 

That was funny. As for rich, what's your issue? I never said the op's design was perfect, my comment was just that TW has certain "accepted" ways of thinking and people who think outside that acceptable box are often shat upon. Ignoring the everyone is a winner side track, comparing this to pods on a motorcycle isn't very useful. The bike pods are a couple feet lower, way more exposed, and way smaller. I don't think urd would have sold many of their intake if it led to engine failure.

 

I took it personally as I was one of those criticizing the design.

The workmanship and overall setup is beautiful, I just see the open element as being a problem that I have had personal experience with.

If we can't learn from the mistakes of others, then we will learn from our own mistakes.
I'm offering the OP the opportunity to learn from my mistake.

I wasn't running pods.
I've got a V-Twin and was running a pair (dual airbox, one on each side with a crossover tube) of 9" diameter x 2.5" tall circular K&Ns.

And my point was not that thinking out of the box is bad, but that initial designs can often be improved upon, and I see the unshielded front as being a big problem. A prefilter will help a lot, but a plate is better. I had a rock damage my filter THROUGH the prefilter that I ran for a couple of months before I redesigned the whole thing with chrome shields.

Look at the fins in your radiator/condensor? That crap will end up in the filter element, same as it did with my bike.


There have been a couple of reports of Volant owners and owners of other "ram air" systems hydrolocking their engines in wet conditions off road, so it is a concern with the intake up front.

Is the URD element completely exposed?