Interesting. Seems like it would work well since the airbox does fit without issue.

With the .1 air box could you pull the mesh out? Then remove the MAF and make a bolt on block off plate to cover the hole for the MAF in the tube. Or epoxy the roof of the tube and smooth it out for less turbulence. Since that MAF section seems to bolt onto the rest of the airbox it would seem removing the mesh and making the modifications would be easy enough.

Or do you think that even with those kinds of modifications do you think the .2 box would flow better?

 

They could be gutted and blocked but I didnt really like how my .1 box fit with the silicone inlets. The drivers side is a bit short and it was twisting the airbox. With the .2 I can customize the fit by adding what I need.

 

 

What inlets do you have? I have the Torque Solutions inlets and thought they fit very well. Especially considering the limited space.

I guess I will keep an eye out for a spare .1 or .2 airbox or .1 MAF tubes for possible future use. Just in case I want to get goofy and push the 68's more. Which, since I know myself, will happen. I am interested to see the results M3 Maestro has. As you know he will share a lot of data showing if it works or not.

 

I don't recommend removing any mesh from ACTIVE MAFs, we need the mesh to produce the laminar flow needed to read correctly. They are so sensitive that you can rotate this mesh and get different readings. Tests have been done on other MAFs where removing the mesh produced I think 1% flow gain? I would have to find that study again to be 100% sure, but was no more than 3% flow gain. Yes the sensor element itself does take up area, this is one of the advantages of placing them in a bigger body.

For the airbox I use the ECS one, see some pics below. I liked the design because its sealed like the factory one but *should* have less losses than the factory one. The flow entering the meters and end tank look to be a gain. ECS did release back to back dyno information showing gains. I never tried it back to back, I installed mine at the same time as multiple parts so hard to say. I can say my combination of parts does show very good performance, how much the airbox contributes is up for debate. You can find dyno information on ECS's site, you can read thru it and draw your own conclusions. I also like I can run either a BMC filter or 997.2 factory filter, that was smart for ECS to offer this flexibility.

I have seen another kit on the market that uses a modified 997.2 airbox, that one also seems to have promise.

 

Yes, removing the mesh would be only in conjunction with removing the MAF sensors. The mesh is there to help reduce turbulence in front of the MAF sensor. Or something to that effect.

That ECS airbox looks like it definitely looks like it has smoother transitions into the tubes. Especially on the short side radius on the longer tube. Perhaps even larger surface area before the taper down into the MAF tube flange. Their website sure shows some impressive gains. But is it marketing? lol It isn't cheap, but extracting every little bit of efficiency and power out of a combo never is. And what would that box gain over modifying either of the stock airboxes? So many questions. haha

 

Update 8/19/19

Pretty happy to report this boring update...it just runs

For those interested in reliability/durability and E85 here is at least 1 data point (my car). I have logged close to 20k miles most of which have been at 800hp+ flywheel and using E85. Everything I have done to it has been documented in this thread. The only thing I do over winter is store it with non-ethanol gasoline, oil change, clean air filter, plugs etc, thats it. Sure one day I will need to change components, fuel pumps, but I would say they are fairly reliable at high power (for street car). I attribute the car's consistency to going through it thoroughly when I bought it, good set of aftermarket parts, and solid tuning (thank you Sam for putting up with me over the years and optimizing it to my liking...safely ). Appreciate the tons of help / advice I have gotten on the forum and from vendors. Hoping one day I could do a equally reliable build up to 1khp, for now I'll deal with the power it has

 

Great results and hope you're enjoying it!!

 

Nice update. It's good to hear people modding and using their cars. And that they stay together that those power levels. Even when pushed more than some tuners might do for the average person. haha

Whatever became of the ECS airbox modifications and tuning? I was interested to see what you found out in testing. Even though it is a moot point since they do not offer it anymore. At least the last time I checked.

 

I was wondering if you locked yourself in the frunk or something Maestro. This forum has been awfully quiet this summer - hope that means people are enjoying their cars. I was going to post an update to my own thread and will do so soon once a couple of minor things have been sorted.

 

Never tried the back to back testing, I installed mine on back in 2016 when I did multiple tweaks at once. In my opinion the biggest bottle neck in the compressor inlet areas are the inlet pipe themselves. Yes we have some options like the do88 ones however even they start to become restrictive at higher airflows as shown by their own flow bench testing (data is public). There aren't many great options for these cars when it comes to getting air into the turbos because of the packaging and engine layout as power increases (over 800hp). I would likely change the setup if I ever try to build something for 1khp, otherwise it will stay as is.

 

Always interested in updates with your Xona setup

 

550-560 grams/sec airflow, 2.50sec 60-100mph...yeah I'm happy

 

Me too. And this thread since the car is MB. It has been really quiet lately. I haven't put 300kms on my car in the past 2 years.

 

One of the greatest threads on here. Glad she's still running like a top!