HOW-TO: Snorkel on a Budget - Tips and Advice

There are a few of these threads floating around and some helpful posts scattered around TW, but here's another one for ya!

The snorkel I used is similar (i.e. identical) to the Safari SS135 for the HiLux, that Dave (@TACODOC1) installed for cruiseroutfitters.com. He was the "OG" guinea pig who first tested this out on a Tacoma years ago. Thanks for paving the way Dave!

• I ordered the snorkel directly from China for about $120 shipped. They can be sourced from various vendors: eBay, Amazon, Alibaba, DHGate etc. just make sure you order the HiLux 167R series (could be dubbed the SS135HF/SS136F or something similar).
  
  This is the exact one I purchased from Unity4WD (Chinese ARB ripoff company):
  http://www.4x4order.com/page85?product_id=393
  
  
• It took only 5 days to be delivered to my house - and the quality of the snorkel itself is actually really good!
  
  However, the included template is absolute garbage! Even if used for a reference, it did not have any holes punched through, and when I inserted the studs in the snorkel and laid it on top of the template the marks were almost 1/2" off from the studs! I threw it away.

Here's a brief step-by-step, with some tips/things I learned during the install.

1. Drink a beer and come to grips with the fact you are about to drill a BIG FUCKIN' HOLE and bunch of smaller holes in your fender! It REALLY helps to have another set of hands and a drinking buddy to support you if shit goes bad!

2. Tape off the Fender and Pillar with a couple layers of painter's tape.

3. You will have to fold back the inner fender liner. The plastic clips in the engine bay are easy to get out, but I struggled with the 2 that have the fender flares screwed into them. I ended up just pulling the fender liner through and it survived with no damage. I hate those stupid clips!

4. Since I threw out my template, I had to get creative. I took a piece of thin cardboard (but corrugated would work too) and pressed it onto the snorkel with the studs installed. This pushed the studs through in the correct spots. With the cardboard still in place, I traced around the snorkel with a sharpie. I also traced around the radius of the inlet pipe, so I knew where the center point would be, then cut out my new "Ghetto Template".

5. I used the Ghetto Template and the snorkel (studs and pillar bracket installed) to test fit numerous times. I must've checked 15 times before finally marking my holes. I paid CLOSE attention to the antenna indent and pillar bracket to find the sweet spot.

I also used the top of the fender (hood line) as my horizontal parallel to check against the snorkel -- this seemed to work best, rather than the body lines or fender flare.

Once I found the best spot, I marked my holes through the template onto the painter's tape, and used a center punch on each of them...this was the point of no return, DRINK A BEER!

6. I drilled the holes with a 11/16" bit and an 83mm (3.25") Hole Saw (yes 83mm not 92mm). I chose a smaller hole saw, because the OD of the outlet tube was just about 3.25" and I didn't feel the need to make it so big. I measured about 1.5" to the left of the big hole, and used a Dremel and small cutoff wheel to make the hole oblong/oval *this is required to fit the angled outlet hose into the hole:


7. TEST FIT TIME!!! Drink another beer (you deserve it )


After inspecting the initial fitment, I knew I had to slot some of the holes to fine-tune the fitment. Other than that, everything lined up beautifully!



8. After getting the final fitment, I cleaned up all the rough edges and painted some primer on all the exposed/bare metal. Some people choose to paint-match after priming, but I didn't see the point - it's a hole.....in your fender.....that will be covered with a snorkel. I just sprayed some Rusto flat gray primer in the cap and literally painted it on all the holes front and back and let it dry for a few hours before proceeding...more beer? Sure!!!

9. Now it was time to attach the rubber hose and see how close it was to the hole. I found the EASIEST way to do this was insert the snorkel tube into the fender, but keep it angled away from the fender. This allows for more space behind the fender to fit the inlet hose on the end (MUCH easier than trying to squeeze it on when it's tight against the fender!!!). Spit on it if you need to.

After connecting the rubber hose, I could see that I needed to trim quite a bit off the hose AND the snorkel tube itself. On the OVAL part of the hose (not the round part), I cut a big chunk then smaller sections until it was able to fit in the stock intake hole without cutting into the metal.

Rubber Hose (Oval part, NOT the Round Section): 3.25" trimmed, then another 1", then finally another 3/4" (total of roughly 5")


Snorkel Tube: I trimmed about 1.25" off


After trimming, I ended up with the hose in a decent spot, though in retrospect, I probably could've trimmed another .25" to make it centered even more:



10: After making sure everything was where I wanted it, I added the washers to the backside and tightened everything down to see the final fitment. I knew the body lines would not match 100% with the snorkel, but it wasn't too bad! The front had a small gap, so I removed the snorkel one last time. I grabbed a BIG socket and "press rolled" it against the front of the big hole to smooth out the angle and create a slight lip to better fit around the snorkel. It worked great!!! This lessened the gap and also gave me a little more space behind the fender.



11. PLUMBING IT IN!

I know the 4" to 3" Fernco fittings are a great option, but I found this to be a better solution:

4" to 3" (102mm-76mm) 45° Angled Silicone Reducer

This eliminates the need to make (2) 45° bends in the pipe to connect it all up. This piece was $12 on eBay, but similar options can be found elsewhere for $15-$20. This will make it much easier (and less expensive) to have an exhaust shop bend a pipe to fit, since they should only have to do one 45° bend and then cut to fit.

12. I went to my local exhaust shop, and had them cut/bend and fit an approx. 15" length of 3" pipe for me. I went home and cleaned up the rough edges on the pipe and of course had to paint it black. Connected everything up and voilà!!! SNORKEL!!!

 

Nice writeup!

 

Thanks Dylan, hope it helps out some folks that want to do this!

 

Done, Doing it, Sold, LIKE! Nice job Benson X

 

In the works! thank you!

 

Thanks guys, good luck with the install!

I added a few more pics I forgot about too

 

looks good man

 

What's the length of the exhaust tube you had bent? Thanks!

 

I'll have to take it off tonight and measure. I'll post up later with the length

Thanks man! Only time will tell how well it holds up. I wouldn't mind seeing a real-world test or explanation of their findings (like they did with their lockers). There is this page I found, but the info. seems dated, biased, and is most-likely promoted by ARB/Safari.

But...

After personally installing one, I can say the material is thick and very resilient/durable. The company I purchased it from "assured me" they use higher grade, all-new LLDPE. They sent me these images which mean nothing:

I am not concerned and could buy 2 more for less than a Safari costs.

 

I will be doing this as soon as I get the cash, and mating it to my Volant CAI somehow . I think it's very doable given the end on the Volant CAI box has lots of room for a rubber fitting if I can find/adapt one.

 

No problem!

The Lab Report from that link I posted above is actually pretty damn detailed:
http://www.dont-get-burnt.com/report.html

Safari paid for the comparisons, but of course we don't know what China snorkel(s) were being tested. I do know when I installed mine, my brother and I were not treating it like a delicate flower - it got tossed around, pressed on, pushed/pulled etc. and it seems fine.

I have no doubt it will kiss some trees at some point, then I can really see how well it holds up.

 

I installed a different brand than Ben did. But I was very impressed with the quality and thickness of the material. I don't see a reason to think it would crack or fade, then again I've had it on for a little more than a month.

 

It's about 15" long

 

..and some fancy pitchurrrs

 

Thanks!

 

Nice work mang - I have been thinking about the snorkel mod for a while now.

Have you noticed any changes in gas mileage?

 

Not really, but I also swapped wheels/tires (heavier steelies and E-rated Toyo M/Ts) at the same time so I think it's about the same.

 

HiLux 167 Snorkel installed, thanks Benson X!

 

bout to install

 

Good luck, and take your time!