Mad Chemist

Hey Dr. Z,

I was taking a look at the Volant site- correct me if I'm wrong, but it looks like they're pulling in air from the same location as the stock intake hole in the fender. Do you know if they change the path of air on the other side of the fender wall (ie. the elbow mod)?

Dr. Zhivago

Hey Chemist,

I don't know if they use the snorkle and factory elbow. I never got around to asking them that when I was researching intake mods for my truck. At that time, the 3.4L intake from them was still in the R&D phase and I never called them back after they had finished making it because by that time, I had done the ISR mod and no longer was in need of any other intake mods.

Volant is a spin-off company from Truck Performance Center. They are great people to deal with and they usually have wider selection and lower prices than Performance Products.

Peace!
Dr. Z

Dr. Zhivago

Uh, I need to find pics of one of those engines. Also, I think the year it was produced is going to matter how you tackle it because I think they changed things intake-wise as the years went on. I could be wrong about that...

I'll see what I can dig up and post here.
Dr. Z

98Tacoma

I will post a pic when i get home and get a chance to take one. . .


This morning she died in my driveway so she is gonna be towed to the mechanic

I posted about a clicking in the start before, thats all it is doing now thats what i wanna do to it right now


hopoe it is just the contacts on the starter!!!


Thanks Dr. Z

rimpainter.com

I dont understand why some people run premium, and others do not with the ISR mod. What worries me, is when I had this mod on my Tacoma, the pinging was VERY hard to hear because the freakin intake was so loud. So, not to discredit everyone's ears who run 87, but seriously, you could be missing the pinging all together.

I had to drive like a gangsta (you know, leaning to the center with one hand on the wheel) to hear the pinging. And, yes, my 98 was definetly pinging.

I realize all engines are a bit different (and conditions, etc) but I had to run premium. What gives?

Dr. Zhivago

I think it's just due to manufacturing tolerances and the individual engine's "personality". If I tow running 89, I can make it ping with stock timing and all the mods except for the SMT-5. Adding the SMT-5 to the mix, with no towing, I can advance timing a bit all across the board and have no ping. I haven't had a chance to tow anything yet since adding the SMT-5, but I'm sure I'll have to run Premium to avoid ping.

Dr. Z

rimpainter.com

My 98 must have been "moody."

I wonder how my 96 would do...haven't tried it yet.

vtruong1

WOW,

That intake looks awesome!!! Good thing I didnt see that before I did the MOD or else I would be about 300 dollars poorer. I mean it look really really good.


96 Runner,

Yeah I really dont know what the deal is. I have tried to enduce the pinging. But I dont hear anything. You are right, it could be that the roar of the mod drowns out the ping. I dunno but if it is pinging, its not loud.

Dr Z.
What happens if you keeping driving on a pinging engine??

Mad Chemist

96 runner,

Since pinging is usually caused by the engine running a bit lean (I think???) I'm wondering whether its partially due to the fact that you've got a larger deckplate that most of us? Could doing the ECT mod help you enrich you're fuel mixture a bit, and still allow you to run lower octane fuels?

rimpainter.com

Hmmm. Good question. Not only did I have the 6" deckplate, but I also had the elbow removed on my 98. My 96 currently has the same set-up as my 98.

I wonder if I over-did it with the deckplate, elbow and ISR mod?

You raise an excellent point. I also agree with you about the ECT mod. The richer condition may help curb the pinging without turning to premium. Grrr, so much to do!

Mad Chemist

Although it may take a while to re-adjust the EFI, if you put the deckplate plate back in, and just run with the elbow removed, you could get by with low octane. Gadget has dyno results showing there weren't any real big gains by doing both the elbow and deckplate, so maybe just the elbow would get you out of the pinging zone.

I hear you about so many mods, so little time- my girlfriend is beginning to loose her patience a bit...

98Tacoma

ok so how do i get my pictures small enough to fit on the page??? it says they r to big


my pictures average 900KB???

zedex

Dr Z.. I was reading up on your silencer mod tutorial. Very very nice. Everything is explained in great detail. Your font was even easy on the eyes. Good photos. Hell of a job.

Dr. Zhivago

*blush* Thank you. I wanted to answer as many questions as possible that might pop up about the mod in the text of the mod itself. I still feel I could have done things better... We're our own worst critics, you know.

Dr. Z

Dr. Zhivago

Yeah, they're pretty sweet looking, huh?

A little pinging every now and then isn't a HUGE problem, but rather more of an annoyance. However, it does mean that your timing isn't set up correctly, or you are running inferior fuel or you have built up a lot of carbon deposits in the comubstion chamber, which rasies the compression ratio. Any way you look at it, pinging shouldn't be happening on a properly functioning engine.

If better fuel makes the pinging go away, you're all good. Manufacturers tell you what fuel the engine is supposedly tuned for and will recommend a minimum octane rating in the user's manual. But, sometimes a particular engine, due to manufacturing tolerances or geographical location, requires a higher grade of fuel to run correctly than the vehicle manufacturer recommends.

If your timing is off, it needs to be adjusted to spec to cure the pinging. Carbon deposits will need to be removed to restore the stock compression ratio to fix that problem. Either thru an engine disassembly and cleaning or by using one of the new Engine-Vac treatments currently available.

A little Pinging on a Normally Aspirated engine isn't much casue for alarm. A LOT of pinging should be dealt with quickly because it can mean the onset of Detonation. Detonation can bend or break connecting rods, burn holes in pistons, heads, cylinder walls, etc. Detonation is horrifically bad for your engine. Boosted engines need to be especially cautious when it comes to ping and detonation.

I hope this answers your question.
Dr. Z

furthur

DocZ,

Thanks, it has been awhile since I checked them, and they do list the 2003 3.4L now (2003 3.4L Tacoma D-cab).


That looks pretty cool, I wonder how well it works, and where I can get the best price. Time to go shopping.

John

Dr. Zhivago

You can check w/ Truck Performance Center for applications and pricing.

Hope that helps.
Dr. Z

vtruong1

Maybe Ill get Premium on my next tank and see how it runs..

rimpainter.com

I wonder if they would sell just the intake tube. That's a very clean set-up.

I doubt the gains would be any better than the deckplate though.

Mad Chemist

I agree- just getting the tube would be nice, although just getting a piece of mandrel-bent steel wouldn't be too tough. I'm wondering whether you'd see much gain with putting some type of heat shield/tape around the intake tube and box.