just installed the fabspeed cold intake, the question is the plug that comes with the tube, has anyone been concerned about the fit and letting unfiltered air in?
Does not seem to me that the carbon fiber looking plug seals the hole.
tx for the feedback.

 

Same here.
Installed my kit a couple of months ago and got this unpleasant surprise. The block off needs to be sealed, otherwise unfiltered air will leak into the "clean" side of the filter. You will let dirt into your engine.
I sealed my plug with a home made rubber gasket.

The "carbon fibre" block off plug is a poorly made piece of cheap plastic with a CF pattern painted on. AND it doesn´t fit. Needless to say, I did not expect this from Fabspeed.

 

The plug only closes off the Helmholtz resonator outlet to prevent dirt from accumulating inside it.
The resonator is a CLOSED compartment within the air box and the intake air is completely separated from it.

The resonator DOES NOT affect engine PERFORMANCE in any way .
All it does is alter the sound from the engine as the combustion air is drawn past the resonator outlet.
Actually , the resonator is pretty sophisticated .
It cancels out the engine noise at lower RPM's when the valve is open,
( to help comply with noise regulations in certain Countries )
and at higher speeds the valve closes and the sound from the engine is louder.
( similar in intent to the PSE muffler operation)

If you have ever blown over the top of a bottle outlet , you will get some idea of the principle behind it .
As you change the volume ( fill it with water ) the sound frequency will also change .To discuss sound frequencies and how they interact would be too lenghty on this forum.

 

Nope. The instruction calls for removal of the resonator. The plug is to be installed as a replacement in the resulting opening in the air box. (On the clean side, which makes the lack of seal a problem)

I agree that the resonator is a smart thing, with many engineering hours behind it. I don´t believe its removal enhances performance (possibly the opposite). I was after the extra induction noice.

 

Sorry .
I have the 997 S and thought that the air intake setup was similar .
In the 997 S the resonator is integrated inside the filter box ,so it cannot be removed .
I closed off the resonator outlet hose with a silicone plug, which in effect disabled the resonator and resulted in a very nice, deeper throaty sound across the entire operating range.

And we agree that it does not affect engine performance in any way .

 

I know Joe from Fabspeed monitors this board, maybe he'll weigh in on this subject.

 

Maybe, maybe not... My car feels a bit more "cammy" after the install. Hard to tell whether its a bit stronger on top or weaker at low rpm´s. Could be less efficient cylinder filling at low rpm´s due to the loss of the resonance box. Or better high rpm air flow in the (now roomier) air box. Speculations only.
Anyway - I like it!

:-)

Ps. Joe F, feel free to chime in if you are here!

 

The 996 version had the same issue. I found a household plumbing leftover gasket that fit perfectly and filled the gap. You might look in your old parts around the house or swing by HD. It looks to be about 1 to 1 1/4 around and needs to be about a 1/4 wide.
ps. I had no leaks at all after I put it in.
Good luck,
RB

 

I got curious and did a little checking .
Actually, the air intakes on the 996 and 997 are pretty much alike.
The only difference being that in the 996 apparently the resonator
is installed inside the filter box with screws and therefore removable, whereas in the 997's it is molded in permanently.

Personally, I would not bother removing it from the 996 as long as it does not either obstruct part of the filter or affect the airflow to the filter box outlet transition into the engine intake hose.
And since it does neither , I really doubt it's presence in the plenum downstream of the filter is of any consequence whatsoever.

I am an Engineer by profession and have designed air systems for many clean rooms , engine testing faclilities, wind tunnels etc. and am somewhat familiar with high performance filters, their associated plenums ,air flows and static pressures thru equipment .

Let me just say that any gains worth mentioning and attributable to air flow resistance thru a ~ 6" long rubber elbow would be a bit "optimistic" and leave it at that.
Your impression of any performance changes may be based more on the change in the sound than actuality. We are all conditioned to equating more noise with more power ( if my Porsche would sound like a Harley, I probably would think I have 750 HP under the cover)

If Mr. Fabiani reads this and wishes to opine, please note that a resonator and a muffler are two entirely different animals. So for starters ,he may want to revise the instructions telling customers to remove the "mufflers" from their air intakes . Lol

 

What I did was use the o ring that was around the resonator and placed it on the cap and mounted it that way, it looks like the o ring seals off the hole. I will check this wkend to see if any dirt got in, if not i'm going to use a pvc threaded fitting w/ a gasket, saw that on a thread or use a gasket oo some kind. If sellers of this product have any advice please tell us, I think for the price compared to the schnell, fabspeed should have better construction, personally it cheaply made and not worth the price, go w/schnell.

 

Talked to the guy at Fabspeed, he said to use the gasket that is around the resonator neck and put it over the plastic piece that screw in. So the way I have it is correct, but I'm still not convinced that the seal is tight, so I will check and maybe replace it with a pvc fitting.