Another note on the K&N intake

treynor

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Like many, I received a pre-correction K&N intake complete with "the whistle". I noticed that the car didn't seem any faster after installing the intake (understandable, it's hard to feel the difference between 475 and 485 RWHP) though it didn't feel any slower either, and that it tended to buck significantly at low RPMs in 1st gear. I was disturbed, however, to discover that it had lost 12 HP and 15 ft/lbs on the dynojet dyno!

I promptly went out and bought the two correct-size drill bits, removed the intake, and drilled out the two holes to their proper diameter. Although from external inspection the intake holes appeared roughly correct, they were WAY off on the inside, and a lot of material was removed in the drilling process before the holes were the correct size. I cleaned out the intake and reinstalled it, then went for a spin.

In a word, WOAH. There was a dramatic difference in power, especially at the upper RPMs, and the whistle and bucking were both completely gone. I'm normally a sceptic about the butt-dyno (you expect it to be faster, so you think it is) but in this case there was no mistaking the power difference. It feels like at least a 20 RWHP improvement, possibly more.

Conclusion: anyone who has purchased a K&N intake needs to check the crankcase and IAC holes carefully, and if in doubt drill them to spec. You will be very pleasantly surprised at the difference if you've been driving around with one of the out-of-spec intakes.

Also, now that I have the bits, I'll volunteer to help out anyone in the Bay Area who wants to swing by with their SRT; just drop me an email. The whole thing just takes 30 minutes.
 

gtsviper

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I was asked by K&N to use my car to re-test an SRT on the current production version of the kit. Bert, the engineer said they had a problem with a supplier delivering plastic roto-molded tubes that were not properly made. He said that the problem has been taken care of and no future kits should have similar issues. If you have a kit that does have a problem, call Bert and he can help with the solution.
As I mentioned earlier, the before and after dyno runs on my stock 03 showed an average of a 10/10 gain in rwhp and torque. The torque difference is what registered on the "butt-dyno" and was definately noticable on the way home from the dyno.
 

ViperGMC

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Can you be so kind as to provide the correct drill size. I just installed the K&N and would like to make sure everything is in tune as well.
 

JKNUST

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Out of curiousity.... is the battery disconnect really required? If so, I assume the sole purpose is for the computer to go into a mode for "relearning".

I was curious if anyone knew for sure about the battery disconnect before I install mine?? I just got mine in from JohnB and I *think* I have a more recent set with proper hole sizes. I may just grab the bits and see if they fit through.

BTW JohnB - Thanks for the K&N's & gift!
 

Kai SRT10

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Out of curiousity.... is the battery disconnect really required? If so, I assume the sole purpose is for the computer to go into a mode for "relearning".

I was curious if anyone knew for sure about the battery disconnect before I install mine?? I just got mine in from JohnB and I *think* I have a more recent set with proper hole sizes. I may just grab the bits and see if they fit through.

BTW JohnB - Thanks for the K&N's & gift!

I didn't do a battery disconect with my install. This is the first I've heard about it. I can't imagine that the computer can't monitor and adapt to air flow and throttle without being disconnected. Is this true or just urban legend?
 
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treynor

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IIRC, the instructions specify that you should disconnect the battery. I believe this is to prevent the computer throwing a code when you disconnect the air temp sensor - as Kai observes, the ECU will adapt to the airflow changes from the intake without needing to be powercycled.
 

Kai SRT10

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IIRC, the instructions specify that you should disconnect the battery. I believe this is to prevent the computer throwing a code when you disconnect the air temp sensor - as Kai observes, the ECU will adapt to the airflow changes from the intake without needing to be powercycled.

I didn't disconnect the batter. Didn't get a check engine light. I didn't realize that the instructions told you to do it (real men don't need to read the instructions.)
 

Dash Riprock

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I installed mine last week, and disconnected the battery. No check engine lights or any problems. Watch out when you go to take the battery cover off. If all the other bolts on the car were torqued as tight as the ones holding the battery cover, none of us would have had any cam bolt problems.

Dash
2004 SRT10
 

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