I installed a Volant cold air intake today.

Volant Performance

The installation was very straightforward and took less than 1.5 hours. I ended up removing the resonator in the fender and the resonator near the SC bypass solenoid.

I was using a K&N drop in previously and the difference between the two is noticeable. I can feel an increase in throttle response and the sound is very different (louder). I have also noticed a sucking sound, but I assume this is just the cone filter breathing a little more heavily than the stock closed box system.

I took detailed notes and photos during the install process and I will be writing up an installation guide shortly.



-Dan

Very clean look. Im thinking of getting rid of my SLR (AFE) cleaner and putting somthing like the Volant on. I sucked a bunch of water once driving through a rain puddle coming home from a date with my wife. From that point on I get nervous whenever it starts to rain. THe SLR is completly open and is prone to the heat and water.

I stepped on my dick when I made that purchase. If I even hinted to my wife that I wanted to replace it she would be livid.

That is a beauty!

Did you buy it (where from) or test it for Volant?
Any CARB approval? in the works?

Is it entirely closed except for the oval/rectangular opening that can be seen in the pic in your link?
If so, it appears to be the strongest candidate of all the aftermarket intakes for combination with a snorkel (either custom or aftermarket).

I purchased the kit from AJ-USA . Real nice guys and quick (free) shipping.

Volant indicated that the kit is "CARB pending".

The fit against the fender is nice and tight with no gaps. The lid on the box however, has a little gap so it is not completely sealed. I am thinking about using a self-adhesive strip of rubber to seal it up. I think that would eliminate the sucking sound I am hearing.

There is also another opening where the intake tube meets the filter box. It has a foam rubber ring around it like the opening that sits up against the fender.

Overall, I am very pleased with the purchase. The parts are very well made and the improvement in throttle response is noticeable.

-Dan

any problems with install? I called Volant and they told me they did not have one for the S/C. Also what did you do with all the hoses in the intake tube? Looks great though! I think I found my intake! Does the S/C scream now?

No problems with the install except there was no hardware included to secure the filter box to the fender and the clamps included with the kit were way too small. To secure the filter box I used some plastic snap rivets, so I will easily be able to remove it in the event I need to get at the headlight (yes, the filter box limits access to the headlight assembly). I also re-used the original factory clamps to secure the intake tube to the throttle body.

I called Volant prior to purchasing the kit and asked about SC compatibility. One person I spoke with said something like, "duh...it won't work with a turbo." I called another time and asked to talk with an engineer and he said, "It should be fine and we currently don't have any plans to make a SC specific model." I asked him to e-mail me his statement as well in case my supercharger blows up a few weeks from now :p

In a previous post , I was concerned about the dump from the boost solenoid. I ended up drilling a hole and installing a nipple as you can see in the photo on the right side of the filter box. Based on my investigation (and the originial stock configuration), this seemed like the right thing to do.

The SC sounds nice now. I plan to do some testing to see how this intake changes my mileage (if at all) and then match it up with a different exhaust.

Cheers!

-Dan

do you have the instruction on install or the pics? I am interested in purchase of the kit. What about the nipple you had to install.

I have not had time to write up an installation guide yet, but I should be done by the end of the week.

Feel free to PM me if you have any additional questions.

-Dan

As promised:

Volant Installation Instructions

-Dan

Very good Dan, you might want to mention that a couple of connections will be different for those of us who don't have the S/C.

A very good detailed write up! Ian could use it for XOC.

It looks like a good mate to a snorkle.

I thought so too; if you read a few posts up you can see where this possibility is discussed a bit...it seems doable. Wish I had a few $$$ right now....

Excellent write up & pics...thanks for the effort!

err, where does it suck air in through? does the front of the box have a hole or connector that mates up with the fender?

Very nice, Dan...

How come you went with Volant over others, such as K&N? Any particular reason? :rolleyes:

Rick- Good point. I have made a slight change to the document. Thanks for the suggestion.

Cranky - The air box has a large hole that snugs up against the fender to draw cold air in through the fenderwell.



Akio-

I liked the K&N, but I wanted a fully enclosed filter element. Most of the other kits only had a "shield" of some sort, but they didn't necessarily prevent the filter from drawing in warm air from the engine bay.

Although the Volant system is not completely sealed, it looks like it does a better job of drawing air from a source outside the engine bay.

The price was also about the same as most of the other kits.

-Dan

Dan well I ordered mine Friday. Should recieve it today or tomorrow. Will let you know. Thanks for the write up.

dandingo,

Great writeup for this - I've elevated the Volant intake to #1 on my list after seeing how much tought obviously went into the design and with you step-by-step, installation should be a breeze.

If you don't mind a question, you mention in your writeup the option of removing the resonator from the fender after removing all the stock intake components. Did you take that out or not? Any comment on how easy that is to do (I don't think it could be that hard)? Anyone care to point out the pros and cons of removing that component?

jeffsix-

I ended up removing the resonator from the fender only because I have been experimenting with some sound dampening spray coating (more on that later). There was also a bolt that was a little in the way when installing the Volant air box. You can see the bolt in this photo:



Removing the resonator from the fender was quite simple. I believe there are also some instructions posted on the board if you do a search.

First, I removed the nut on the bolt in the photo and then removed the fender trim in order to get under splash guard in the fender. You will also need to remove some snap fasteners, but be careful or you will destroy them - they are really flimsy. Now here is the fun part... The last bolt holding the resonator in the fender is a bitch to get to. I ended up just grabbing the resonator and twisting it until the plastic tab broke off then the whole thing came out of the fender. Problem solved.

Here is a photo of all the parts I removed. This should give you an idea of how the fender resonator looks and is bolted in.



PM me if you have any additional questions.

Cheers!

-Dan

Dan

Where did you purchase that intake? Was it a total pain to install?

Wow nice intake Dan, just curious on how you think the NISMO CAI stacks up against yours?

Truckin2001-

My installation instructions can be found here:
Volant Installation Instructions

The installation was very straightforward.

I purchased the intake from these guys:
http://www.ajusa.com/

Nice folks and free/fast shipping.

cpepe-

I have no idea how the Volant compares to the Nismo since I have never installed or owned one. I would imagine they would be very similar.

-Dan

One last note about the Volant intake....

In the last two months of driving my mileage has increased by an average of 1 extra MPG.

Before installing the intake, I was getting approximately 210-215 miles to a tank, but now I am averaging between 230-235 miles per tank.

I took long drive down the Oregon coast last month and I had one tank last 281 miles (all freeway miles).

Maybe I was just dreaming...

-Dan

Edited to add: I am running 32" BFG ATs - YMMV

Hi Dan,

Does that number come up with just the intake or an exhaust mod as well? Thanks!

I am running the stock exhaust.

Anyone know why it doesn't fit the 2000?
dave