Volant Ver3 CAI...Wanna see it??

RockyMtnTitan · 06-16-2005, 10:46 AM

Well I've been waiting patiently for this puppy for about 6 months now, and Joe w/ Volant finally
got it finished and shipped out to me. I first purchased the Ver2 Volant Nov '04, and had fitment issues causing
terrible vibration noise (not resonance/drone). After completely removing it 6 times and trying various
fixes to isolate the problem, I got fed up and sent it back to Joe in Jan '05. He told me they were still having
problems with some of the Ver2 boxes and were looking at doing a complete remold of the kit. I told him
to just send me out the new kit when finished, rather than sending me out another Ver2. I didn't want to say anything
until I actually saw this thing with my own two eyes. Six months later, it's finally done and in my hands!

This is a completely new remolding of the airbox and the intake tube. Also the lid is now recessed instead of flush
mount. The new lids will be aluminum, instead of the plastic w/ carbon fiber look. The one on mine in the pics is a
temporary lid they fabbed for me out of an original one, which is why it looks a little rough and doesn't quite fit
perfect. The new one should be sent out soon. Also, the new lids will fit the older Ver1/Ver2 airboxes, for those
that prefer the aluminum.

I installed this new kit a few days ago, so here's my opinion...so far.

Pros:

*Better overall fitment of airbox.
*Better alignment between box and fender hole openings
*Better alignment of mounting hole. Note: Lower hole on older versions was used as a drain hole, but now aligns perfectly
with lower mounting hole from oem box. I ended up using both holes to mount the box more securely. I used a 8X1.25X35mm
bolt and washer to mount to this lower hole.
*New box has a notched out section (see pic) to accomodate the upper ABS controller bracket that used to hit on the back of
the Volant box. This was the upper mounting bracket for the oem airbox.
*Better lid design (hopefully) using aluminum vs plastic. Using aluminum and a recessed design should eliminate the bowing
effect and minimize air infiltration from engine compartment. Many have had to add extra screws in the old lid to keep it flat.

Cons:

*Kit was missing parts, i.e.,adhesive-backed foam pad, & rubber mounting grommet. I supplied my own.
*Same terrible instruction sheet as old version, although installation is straight-forward and easy to figure out.
*Vibration caused by slight bow in lid, should not be a problem when the new aluminum lid is installed.
*Some resonance drone under WOT, not too bad, though. I even drilled out the two holes and used the factory box rubber
mounting isolaters, and did not seem to decrease in-cab noise. (see pics)

Performance: It is the same as older boxes...same inlet tube diameter and filter size is same.

I don't know the p/n of this new kit....I'm guessing it will remain the same as the older version. I can tell you that the
molding number on the bottom of the new box is different now. The old number was a V2165, new number is 412165, FWIW.

RockyMtnTitan · 06-16-2005, 10:47 AM

Some more pics...

Hatchman · 06-16-2005, 11:24 AM

Thanks for the review and the pics. This will be the one I'm getting, once they become available.

canman · 06-16-2005, 11:36 AM

Thanks for the pics and review. Do you know if there any changes to the ram air scoop? Are they fully available yet or did you get yours a "trial" or anything?

Looks good!

RockyMtnTitan · 06-16-2005, 11:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by canman

Thanks for the pics and review. Do you know if there any changes to the ram air scoop? Are they fully available yet or did you get yours a "trial" or anything?

Looks good!

No changes to the ram air, at least not since the last version came out a few months back. I'm getting the ram-air because I got a good deal on it..wink, wink. I don't think there is any benefit with it unless you're going over 100mph. I may do some testing with my digital manometer to see if it negates some of the negative inlet pressure to the manifold.

I know Head has done some track testing with a home-made ram and didn't see any gains at the track. I'll probably fab a cover for the scoop so I can pop it on/off easily if I go off-roading, or if driving in heavy rain.

smoketitan · 06-16-2005, 12:59 PM

NICE I glad they are stll perfecting it

can we buy this model yet?

im off to call Big Joe

this will be box # 3 for me LOL

I really dislike my AEM at this point

and does the box still hit the AC line on this verison, on the left corner (if you are facing the engine, and you reach in and touch the back left corner of the box)

and the drone?? did it decrease at all or is it still loud as all heck LOL

RockyMtnTitan · 06-16-2005, 01:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by smoketitan

NICE I glad they are stll perfecting it

can we buy this model yet?

im off to call Big Joe

this will be box # 3 for me LOL

I really dislike my AEM at this point

and does the box still hit the AC line on this verison, on the left corner (if you are facing the engine, and you reach in and touch the back left corner of the box)

and the drone?? did it decrease at all or is it still loud as all heck LOL

Calling Joe is def your best bet. I believe they are ready for production, and the new lids should be ready, hopefully.

On the A/C lines, I still had mine zip-tied from the last install, so not sure if they rub or not....no big deal to tie them off though for clearance.

Like I mentioned, even though I used the factory mounting rubber isolaters, there is still some drone when you really get on it. But I think it will be reduced when I install a better foam pad under the box. They didn't ship one with mine, so I used a very thin pad I got at the hobby store for now.

RockyMtnTitan · 06-16-2005, 06:00 PM

Talked to Joe w/ Volant today about sending me out the foam pad they forgot to ship. I also asked him about the new aluminum lids. The lids are still at least a couple weeks away from completion. They will be a little more flashy than the previous ones, for those that care about that kinda stuff. The outer edge will be polished, while the interior portion will have a retro cross-hatch(?) design with the embossed Volant logo in the middle. What's more important is that they should lay flat and thus, not allow hotter air to infiltrate. Although, if you look at the new notched area on the back side of the box, you'll see that some hot air will mix in anyway, but not much.

**BULLTITAN** · 06-16-2005, 06:25 PM

Nice pics, I have a question about that "Poweraid" you have on yuor throttle body between the volant and the body, Do you see a difference with that? I'm in the military and things can busy and get alot of time to tinker with my truck. Can you educate me on some of your mods to your engine? Thanks bro.

RockyMtnTitan · 06-16-2005, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BULLTITAN

Nice pics, I have a question about that "Poweraid" you have on yuor throttle body between the volant and the body, Do you see a difference with that? I'm in the military and things can busy and get alot of time to tinker with my truck. Can you educate me on some of your mods to your engine? Thanks bro.

I like the Poweraid TBS. I honestly don't feel much of a performance increase with it, but it's worth it to me just because of the mileage benefit with highway driving. I did some mileage testing before/after installation, and got a 2.8mpg increase in highway mileage. This was done running two identical 100 mile routes at 80 mph w/ cruise on. Haven't noticed much, if any, increase in city mileage, though. Like most, I removed the TB inlet screen when I installed the TBS. Scr186 did some pretty thorough before/aft testing with his G-Tech and saw definate gains in his Armada runs. He is also running the Volant.

You'll notice how tight the Volant's intake tube fits to the radiator with the TBS installed. I had about 1/8" clearance. Most have cut a 1/4" or so off the Volant tube for better clearance and easier installation. I may do this, as well.

The only other real performance mod I have is the Flowmaster cat-back exhaust. I'm trying (w/o success) to find someone to replace my rear cat sections w/ Dynomax race bullet reso's.

travisreed · 06-16-2005, 07:54 PM

I have the v2 box and replaced my lid with a sheet of 10 gauge (roughly 1/8th inch) stainless steel. I also lined my box, inside and out with high density 1/4th inch foam. It makes less noise (drone) than it did, but I still wish it were a little quiter. Yes, I know, some people on this site think you are a wuss for wanting performance and no drone.......whatever.

Titan4x4Aggie · 06-16-2005, 09:41 PM

Is this aluminum cover going to increase cost?

I'm guessing yes, since $ aluminum > $ plastic.

I'd personally rather go with a plastic option and replace with some thicker clear Lexan.

Titan4x4Aggie · 06-16-2005, 09:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RockyMtnTitan

I like the Poweraid TBS. I honestly don't feel much of a performance increase with it, but it's worth it to me just because of the mileage benefit with highway driving. I did some mileage testing before/after installation, and got a 2.8mpg increase in highway mileage. This was done running two identical 100 mile routes at 80 mph w/ cruise on. Haven't noticed much, if any, increase in city mileage, though. Like most, I removed the TB inlet screen when I installed the TBS. Scr186 did some pretty thorough before/aft testing with his G-Tech and saw definate gains in his Armada runs. He is also running the Volant.

You'll notice how tight the Volant's intake tube fits to the radiator with the TBS installed. I had about 1/8" clearance. Most have cut a 1/4" or so off the Volant tube for better clearance and easier installation. I may do this, as well.

The only other real performance mod I have is the Flowmaster cat-back exhaust. I'm trying (w/o success) to find someone to replace my rear cat sections w/ Dynomax race bullet reso's.

That sounds too good to be true. Did you change directions on trip, or do it on different days, or did a cold front blow in during the process.

Considering your high rate of speed, a head-wind vs. tail-wing would greatly effect gas mileage (since drag is a product of velocity^2)

37L1 · 06-16-2005, 10:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RockyMtnTitan

You'll notice how tight the Volant's intake tube fits to the radiator with the TBS installed. I had about 1/8" clearance. Most have cut a 1/4" or so off the Volant tube for better clearance and easier installation. I may do this, as well.

Rocky,

Don't cut the the Volant tube, trim the neoprene/rubber sleeve that goes from the tube to the throttle body, it's a lot easier to do it that way, or is that what you meant?

RockyMtnTitan · 06-16-2005, 11:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Titan4x4Aggie

That sounds too good to be true. Did you change directions on trip, or do it on different days, or did a cold front blow in during the process.

Considering your high rate of speed, a head-wind vs. tail-wing would greatly effect gas mileage (since drag is a product of velocity^2)

Here's how I did my test:

*Without TBS installed (Air Hog filter/airbox mod/cat-back exh), I filled up with 87 oct letting pump click off.
*Jumped on the highway, easing up to 80 mph @ 2000 rpm (2.94 gears), put her in cruise and ran a 100 mile loop on a fairly flat section of I-76.
*Topped her off at same station, same pump, etc, and installed TBS in parking lot of gas station....about a 15 min install. Mileage was 17.0 mpg.
*Ran identical course, speed, etc. Weather conditions did not change more than a couple degrees. There was no real wind during that period, and even if there had been, my runs were east/west loops, so it should have averaged out.
*Topped off again, same station, pump, etc. Mileage was 19.89 mpg. I was very surprised, but the numbers don't lie.

This of course, is not indicative of how I normally drive on the highway, but on long, fairly flat highway trips, I should be able to come close to this...we'll see. Obviously, a test run of longer than 100 mi would have been more ideal, but it was tough enough finding the time to do this much.