mxridercrf450r

Over spring break i was driving my truck in the desert and the motor started making a loud banging noise(like a pot and pan smacking together). I thought damn, that must be a rod. i was idling, so i quickly popped the hood and ran around to listen. The sound was comming from the top of the motor. I shut it off and then i noticed this....

It's a Downey intake and there "was" a nut on the inside keeping the plastic elbow secured to the housing. My friend proceeded to tow me the 15-20 miles to the highway so i could get towed 100+ miles home, luckily i have AAA.

I ripped the top end apart and found the culprit sitting in the #1 cylinder intake port.

I was lucky that i was idling when the nut got sucked in because the damage was minimal. The valve had just started chpping away at the nut. Here is the top of piston #1:

I called Downey and they acted like this has never happened before. I told them that they need to change this design asap before it happens to more people. Three alteratives would be: tack weld the aluminum nut to the aluminum housing, thread the whole, or weld an elbow to the housing. They seriously thought that a flat nut mated up to a curved suface was gonna survive in an offroad vehicle. I had to leave my truck sitting in the driveway for 5 weeks while i focused on the rest of my school semester. Now that school is out i finally began the repair and while i am at it, i decided to upgrade some stuff:

-Engnbldr Street/RV head, gasket set, grade 10 head bolts, LC exhaust studs

-LC Engineering dual row timing chain conversion kit(dual row chain, steel guides, new timing cover, new japanese oil & water pump).

-LC heat isolator intake gaskets

-Injectors cleaned and balanced at Whitch Hunter Performance

-All aluminum radiator

-100 amp alternator conversion by Broadway Auto electric

Here is a list of bolt on parts that were already on the truck:

-LC header, 2.25" flowmaster

-Downey intake

-LC Pro EFI cam

-LC throttle body

-Black magic electric fan

-LC flywheel

-Denso Irridium plugs, NGK wires

I spent all day tearing the rest of the accesories off the motor so i could get at the timing cover. The biggest set back was in order to get the oil pan off i needed to take off the lower A-arms and strut frame. While i had it apart, i replaced my 500lb springs with new Eibach 450lb springs.

This is where i was at yesterday:

dirtoyboy

So uhhh your gonna put another downey intake on?

Are the gains REALLY worth it?

mxridercrf450r

i will put it back on, but not with a nut on the inside. I will probably weld and aluminum elbow to the housing

norcalsvx

damm i gotta check mine, nice truck your gonna love the street rv head (have him port it while its out)

abecedarian

that aluminum 'nut' you're talking about looks like a typical lock nut used for electrical conduit junction box fittings. but yeah, you're right about it not tighening up flat against a curved surface.
You could ever-so-gently crimp the new nut with a pair of pliers or maybe put a second nut behind it and jam them together.

strykersd

Ouch, that sucks about the intake.

Nice truck, I was looking at the pics thinking "I've seen that truck before." If I remember right I bought a 31" spare AT tire from you a few months ago.

corax

Cyberman

Looks like the nut portion should be welded to the outside of the intake. It would certainly stop that problem from happening again. Where is that hose coming from anyway? Is it a breather hose?

abecedarian

If I'm correct about that part being a lock nut for electrical connectors, you'll have a heckuva time welding it- it's cast / pot metal.
Better to tap the hole and thread the fitting in.

norcalsvx

yea its the breather tube

LTrunner

did Downey say anything about paying for the repairs after thier porduct failed???

Cyberman

That's odd. Most breathers I've come across are connected with a grommet, and the tube is pushed into it. Could be another alternative, as the breather really doesn't require it be torqued into place, just as long as it's fairly airtight.

mxridercrf450r

Yep that was me, hopefully your putting it to good use

That does sound like a better idea

It goes to the smog air pump

No they didnt, i didnt expect them to offer

Here is what i accomplished today:
intalled the dual row kit, oil pan and put the front suspension back on

abecedarian

I'm confused.... where are the oompa loompas?

mxridercrf450r

I had to work all weekend so the progress isnt where i would like it to be. The cam sprocket was extremely difficult to get on the cam. Im worried now that it is too tight. I have no spark plugs in the head and it felt like 20ft-lbs of pressure to turn the motor over, but when i used my torque wrench to measure, it read between 35 and 40ft-lbs. I know the spread between the crank center and the cam center was different on the older and newer 22r blocks. Im wondering if LCE sent me the kit for the older block. Does anyone have any ideas?

HAVOC

I don't have an answer on the cam, but have somebody weld an elbow to that intake. I wouldn't use any nuts after that happened. Doesn't LCE have any kind of warranty? Is it not covered because it's "off-road"?

cadman

I bought one of these when I still had a 3.0 in my truck and when I saw the plastic elbow and electrical conduit nut I knew this wasn't good. I found a rubber grommet that fit the hole perfectly, then turned, drill and tapped some Delrin rod to replace the part of the elbow that goes into the air cleaner. I milled some wrench flats on the part outside of the air cleaner and screwed in a brass barbed elbow fitting for the hose. Inside, a clevis pin and washer is safety wired to keep the new elbow fitting from coming out. I also used nut retainers and safety wire to bolt on the VAFM. The fitting I made for it also seals that area, unlike the elbow supplied by Downey.

I would forget about welding this thing. I did some machining to it to make it fit and it had lots of small voids in it. The casting is a little on the mediocre side.

just a 22re

all i can say is what the heck do you do to just say well im going to do this so ill just replace this wile im at it?????????? i mean my god kid well nice truck i mean very nice i really like you front end what is it? long travel? looks good on that man

iamsuperbleeder

lawl...

yeah, that is a sick front suspention setup

91Toyota

Alright, is your truck a 2wd? I can't tell from the first pic. Also, what have you done to it. Sorry for the thread jack but your truck is soooooo sweet