Air Box Alternatives

[thelonewonderer]

So, since I'll be removing the engine from my 2003 V11 Sport, I've been considering replacing the air box with pod filters.

 

Any thoughts on this, or recommendations on which brands are the best for such a swap?

 

Thanks everyone!

 

--Ted

[docc]

Over the years, most have found the pods to be very sexy and interesting, but not as good for the day-to-day running. If she's a looker, pods are ok, but if you expect the best performance, the factory airbox is well designed. Also, the consensus has been: ditch the rubber turn-down snorkels.

 

There is some good data on expanding the air inlets further . . .

[fotoguzzi]

Any thoughts on this,

 

I wouldn't !

[docc]

I wouldn't !

I wish I could learn to be that concise!

[thelonewonderer]

Thanks for the responses.

 

I've done swaps like this before on carbureted bikes, and dealt with rejetting, but I wasn't sure how it well it works with fuel injection.

 

I'll look into ditching the snorkels.

 

Thanks again!

[footgoose]

I'd do pods if I knew enough to make it right. I have the BMC system now and I'm really happy with it. Top of the air box goes away and a nice alm frame sits right on top of the stock intake box, with a large K&N style filter in it. It just sits open under the tank. It makes a beautiful noise! With the FBF Xover, and a dynotune, I am very pleased.

[GuzziMoto]

With a lot of work (or luck) you can get pods to work almost as well as the stock airbox. And they do look sexy. But, like doc said, if you are more about riding the bike than looking at it the stock airbox is hard to beat. I have pods on an older Guzzi, it was like that when I bought it and on that one the stock airbox is perhaps not as well designed. But on most motors the airbox provides a large pocket of still air for the motor to inhale and that is almost always a good thing. Stick your head out the window while driving your car down the road and you will see it gets harder to breathe in. The larger that pocket of still air the better. Pods are typically limited in the size of that pocket of air they provide. If you do go with pods get the largest ones you can fit, but that kinda defeats one of the main reasons to run pods; the open look.

[Scud]

On my Scura, which was bone-stock, I removed the snorkels and installed a K&N filter. It makes a little more intake noise (which I enjoy).

 

My LeMans had too-small K&N pods from previous owners. I got the stock airbox with the bike and reinstalled it (sans snorkels). I think I've finally got it running better than when I got it.

 

The LeMans has been caught parked in the rain a few times. I was glad to have the air filter tucked up under the tank and kept dry - not exposed and rain-soaked like the pods would have been.

 

The BMC system Footgoose mentioned seems like a fun experiment... 

[thelonewonderer]

I like the idea of losing the snorkels and getting a K&N filter (a little more noise never hurt anyone )

I stick with the stock airbox, for now. I don't really have the means to get it dynotuned, although I'd LOVE to. One day...

[GuzziMoto]

The wife's V11 has the K&N / BMC filter with the stock lid but the snorkels removed. There is someone on here who used heat to mold / alter the stock snorkels so they were larger in the opening and better shaped for flow. I always thought that was a good idea, but I have yet to play with it. The open top airbox is another common mod, the noise does increase with that one. Something to watch for if you go that route is the underside of the fuel tank has some heat insulation attached (I use that term loosely). If that heat shield comes away from the underside of the tank it can find itself laying across your open airbox / filter combo, resulting in airflow issues. Just make sure the heat shield is firmly attached to the underside of the fuel tank.

 

Getting it dyno tuned does not really mean it will work out. It really comes down to putting in the effort to find a good compromise to make the pods work. Or stumbling across a good compromise if you are lucky. Even with dyno tuning it likely won't be better than stock over all, it might make more power in some rpm ranges but usually that is a trade off and in other rpm ranges it makes less power.

 

For my older Guzzi with the pods, a '93 Daytona, I have a fairly complicated pod set up with velocity stacks (without them the pod set up is at a disadvantage) and pods mounted to / over the velocity stacks. Then there are synthetic covers for the pods that help with water resistance.

[Meinolf]

Hi,

 

 

...but if you expect the best performance, the factory airbox is well designed.

...the consensus has been: ditch the rubber turn-down snorkels.

 

I agree with the first point, but my measurements indicate differently on the 2nd one.

 

When measuring air throughput with and without snorkels I found that it increases 1-6%. And air Lambda fluctuations decreased by a factor of 4 3.

 

My impression was that the engine ran significantly smoother.

 

Cheers

Meinolf

[docc]

Hi,

 

 

...but if you expect the best performance, the factory airbox is well designed.

...the consensus has been: ditch the rubber turn-down snorkels.

 

I agree with the first point, but my measurements indicate differently on the 2nd one.

 

When measuring air throughput with and without snorkels I found that it increases 1-6%. And air fluctuations decreased by a factor of 4.

 

Cheers

Meinolf

Can't argue with that! Well done!

 

I do wonder what you mean by "a factor of 4?"

[Gio]

I stuck with stock air-box, drilled the hell out of the lid, added a K&N and ditched the snorkels ... no empirical data on how much better the flow is (or not?) but seems to work well with the power commander map (mistral / open air-box? - I forget) ... intake sound is most pleasant when on the boil.

 

Gio

[LowRyter]

the PO has mine running good.  It drinks gas (33 mpg) but runs good.  It has the airbox and K&N (+ pipes and crossover), don't know about the snorkels. Just ran it 1500 miles (slab and twisties) over Labor Day.  Checked the oil when I got back and it looks like you could fry potatoes in it.  I have K&N on all 3 of my bikes, they seldom get very dirty and I don't run on dirt roads.  

[Camn]

When measuring air throughput with and without snorkels I found that it increases 1-6%. And air fluctuations decreased by a factor of 4

 

I understood that the air throughtput is 1-6% better, and the fluctuation 4 times less: with the snorkels on, on the original air box. Not based on sound, appearance or dyno measurements, but on measurements of the combustion inside the cylinder. How optimal everything takes place there.