The great Air Box Debate!

[Guest SoCalDon]

I got in a conversation with my dyno tuner about "open air box".

Mine is wide open with a FBF ring and a re-useable filter.

 

He said that 99% of bikes don’t get better HP because of an open air box.

The Tuner Guy recommended keeping the stock box stock.

 

Has anyone dyno tuned their Guzzi enough to have solid results one way or the other?

[luhbo]

I got in a conversation with my dyno tuner about "open air box".

Mine is wide open with a FBF ring and a re-useable filter.

 

He said that 99% of bikes don’t get better HP because of an open air box.

The Tuner Guy recommended keeping the stock box stock.

 

Has anyone dyno tuned their Guzzi enough to have solid results one way or the other?

 

 

I have solid results as my onboard lambda meter tells me that my engine runs more on the lean side when the snorkels are removed.

 

Going lidless is not really an option for those wanting their brain not to be blown out by the ill noise related to this modification.

 

I have stock x-over, stock airbox, open cans and this combo I can only recommend.

[Guest ratchethack]

Don, Todd Eagan has logged a great deal of experience on the dyno and has made lots of comparisons. The most significant thing is that there seems to be no performance advantage on the dyno going between an open-top airbox and pods.

 

My own experience WRT open-top airbox seems to match that of others, but still many others disagree. I fabbed-up a bracket similar to the FBF bracket that replaces the airbox top. The deafening intake honk in the midrange when opened up was nothing short of excruciating. It completely out-honked the mellow baritone of my "open" FBF carbon mufflers and Stucchi crossover. The only way I could tolerate it is to wear earplugs all the time, and this ain't happenin'. The airbox top went back on and it's been there ever since.

 

I rode it long enough without the airbox top to have no question about what Todd says - if you go this route, you need an all-new map for the PC III.

[Ballacraine]

Well, I got a spare airbox lid and hacked off the top.

 

Slapped it on.

 

Yes, it is certainly noisier; but not as much as I expected, especially so given I have mounted a LM2 fairing on it. Paradoxically, this may have quietened it by keeping the clatter reflected low and away.

 

That given, I is a bit of a deaf git anyways!

 

I am running Skorpion Guzzi Works crossover and Titanium cans.

 

I have a PC3 but have never got around to fitting it.

 

Much to my surprise the bog standard ECU seems to be coping OK.

I haven't done dyno or plug chop, but it pulls cleanly and eagerly throughout the rev range ( To infinity and beyond!!! ) without any stutter or glitch.

Obvoiusly, there will be more there if I get my act together with this, and get the PC3 and dyno organised.

 

Nige.

[Guest SoCalDon]

Don, Todd Eagan has logged a great deal of experience on the dyno and has made lots of comparisons. The most significant thing is that there seems to be no performance advantage on the dyno between an open-top airbox and pods.

 

My own experience WRT open-top airbox seems to match that of others, but still many others disagree. I fabbed-up a bracket similar to the FBF bracket that replaces the airbox top. The deafening intake honk in the midrange when opened up was nothing short of excruciating. It completely out-honked the mellow baritone of my "open" FBF carbon mufflers and Stucchi crossover. The only way I could tolerate it is to wear earplugs all the time, and this ain't happenin'. The airbox top went back on and it's been there ever since.

 

I rode it long enough without the airbox top to have no question about what Todd says - if you go this route, you need an all-new map for the PC III.

 

Ok, here are Todd's words;

 

4. On the intake side of things... a modified airbox lid - see picture here - works as well in the low-to-mid then any seperate filters... No, it doesn't look as cool, but it's worth almost 5 hp/5 ft-lbs through the meat of the midrange over the stock airbox lid. Seperate filters? They finally caught the modded airbox near the rev-limiter. *A noisy note: The "open-lid" airbox gives a near deafening honk at full throttle... as it probably tries to suck the paint off the bottom of the tank. It works, but don't say I didn't warn you. Cut away at the airbox lid, just simply leave the lower "rim" (with bolt holes) to hold the element down -or- you can try aftermarket prodcuts such as Fast by Ferracci's airbox eliminator kit and BNC air filter element.

 

I'm in no place to challenge Todd's results.

It just makes me wonder when the guy that makes a living putting bikes on a dyno

(and knows the diffrence between a 2 cyl air cooled bike and 4 cyl water)

tells me otherwise...

[Guzzirider]

I took Todd's advice and went along the lidless airbox route on my V11 rather than separate filters. He mentioned that both himself and Fast By Ferracci had completed extensive testing and recommended this was the way to go.

 

I also did the same mod on the Jackal, and in both cases could feel some extra midrange urge afterwards.

 

I must be insensitive to noise because I do not notice it at all and it does not seem much louder than Helen's V11 which runs the same cans but still has its airbox lid.

 

Unless you are determined to eek out every last possible horse (like me!), then I do not think it really matters whether you go for standard airbox, lidless or pods- either way its still a slow old bus.

 

Guy

[guzzi jon]

Don,

I machined a number of openings in my Lemans stock airbox, and the intake is not noticably louder. I suspect Louie was referring to highly developed Japanese with ram air etc. On both of my guzzi's one with the FBF bracket and the other I machined, I obtained positive results.

Jon

 

Ok, here are Todd's words;

 

4. On the intake side of things... a modified airbox lid - see picture here - works as well in the low-to-mid then any seperate filters... No, it doesn't look as cool, but it's worth almost 5 hp/5 ft-lbs through the meat of the midrange over the stock airbox lid. Seperate filters? They finally caught the modded airbox near the rev-limiter. *A noisy note: The "open-lid" airbox gives a near deafening honk at full throttle... as it probably tries to suck the paint off the bottom of the tank. It works, but don't say I didn't warn you. Cut away at the airbox lid, just simply leave the lower "rim" (with bolt holes) to hold the element down -or- you can try aftermarket prodcuts such as Fast by Ferracci's airbox eliminator kit and BNC air filter element.

 

I'm in no place to challenge Todd's results.

It just makes me wonder when the guy that makes a living putting bikes on a dyno

(and knows the diffrence between a 2 cyl air cooled bike and 4 cyl water)

tells me otherwise...

[Guest SoCalDon]

Jon,

I got to believe the guy knows the difference between High rev jap bikes and ours.

I e-mailed Dusty at Dyno Jet and he flat out deferred to Todd so I'm inclined to go Todd’s way.

I'm looking everywhere because I should have got close to 70hp's out of the SS last tune.

I'm taking one thing out at a time. First I'm going back to the Stucci H-pipe with the Bubs and let's see if the Dyno improves. If not then I'll go back to the stock headers.

Could be an expensive experiment.

[Guest ratchethack]

I'm in no place to challenge Todd's results.

It just makes me wonder when the guy that makes a living putting bikes on a dyno

(and knows the diffrence between a 2 cyl air cooled bike and 4 cyl water)

tells me otherwise...

Nor am I, nor would I, Don. My experience fits Todd's read on it to a "T".

 

From your post, and like Jon said, it appears that Louie was referring to all moto's and Todd was referring only to Guzzis.

 

This is how I'd square the difference.

[guzzijack]

Here's what I did to my '97 Cali EV

 

Has a straight through exhaust X over and a PCIII.

 

With no airbox lid intake honk could be problem as it gets reflected back in a big way by the large Guzzi touring screen (I tried it). But this seems to offer a good compromise and anyway I wear earplugs all the time .

 

Graham

[badmotogoozer]

 

With no airbox lid intake honk could be problem

 

 

It's a Goose dammit! It's supposed to Honk!

 

Rj

[jrt]

Meh.

 

All the cool people have pods.

 

Cue music.....

 

When you're a Jet you're a Jet all the way

From your first cigarette

To your last dying day

When you're a Jet let them do what they can

You've got brothers around

You're a family man

You're never alone

You're never disconnected

You're home with your own

When company's expected

You're well-protected....

[guzzijack]

It's a Goose dammit! It's supposed to Honk!

 

Rj

Yes, but there's Honk and there's HONK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Graham

[dlaing]

Yes, but there's Honk and there's HONK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Graham

 

I got tired of the HONK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and put my lid and snorkles back on.

I now have to lean out my map as fuel consumption went down about one or two MPG.

High speed runs seem to be a little slower with airbox lid on.

But my hearing will hopefully come back so I can better hear the music of the Mistrals

[Greg Field]

If you cut a 4x4-inch hole in just the flat top surface of the airbox, you get the flow, and the vertical sides of the box lid keeps the honk form getting to your ears.

 

And keep the paper filter, unless you need every tenth of a horsepower . . . for a while, anyway. Afer 30,000 miles of the K$N letting dirt in, your ring seal will slip to the point where the power drops below what a bike with the stock dirt grabber would make anyway . . .