Anyone installed one on an 04 or 05 5.4? If so what do you think. Is it worth the money in performance.

 

Since it was so in-expensive, i figured "What they hay.. why not" With that and a simple drop in K&N i HAVE noticed a difference. More responsive, and has added some low to mid-level power. Only took about 15 minutes to install too. At first i was skeptical about it, because i got about 75 miles LESS on a full tank of gas, now im back to my usual (if not better) mpg. Hope this helps.

 

Blazin have you noticed the whistling that some others have reported?And if so just how bad is that noise?

 

Yeah, there is a whistle, but i think i noticed it after i installed the K&N filter. I kinda think its cool though . I dont think mine is as loud, probably because of my "factory air box" still in place. If i had the aftermarket intake (open air) it would probably be alot louder. Its not through-out the whole RPM range either, mostly lower - to mid. When my windows closed, i cant even hear it, unless i "look" for it.

Blazin

 

I can understand the advantage of a hi flow air filter, but how is a throttle body spacer suppose to acheive increase in power

 

Well, i dont know if this info is accurate, go to EBAY and put in this item number (Item number, 7993661483) this is the one that i put on the truck. ITs not a heck of alot of difference, but there IS a difference. I dont know if the whole "produce an turbulent spinning action as it passes through the throttle body" is entirely true, if someone else has more info, im all ears..

Blazin.

 

I put the Airaid throttle body spacer on my '05 5.4L, as well as the MIT. There's definitely an increase in power - it's noticeable. I have a K&N airfilter on the way, also. Since I didn't install them separately, I don't know which is responsible for the increase in power. I suspect they both contribute somewhat.

As for the "whistle", Airaid's web site says "the whistle means it's working" .
You can't hear it with the radio on and the windows up. You CAN hear it with the windows down and the radio off or low. You can't hear it at all speeds. It seems like if you're accelerating, you don't hear it, but with the pedal in a stationary position, you typically do. It's not that loud.

It doesn't seem to get louder or quieter - it's either there or it's not.
For the $200 or so bucks for the spacer and MIT, well worth it.

I've only checked my mileage twice since I got it the truck. The first time I got 15.5 with mixed driving (no MIT or spacer). Last night I checked it again (after a full tank with the MIT and spacer). I got 15.9. That may be attributed to different driving conditions, but It sure didn't hurt. I also just put on a hard tonneau so there are too many "new" variables just added.


Rick

 

Just turn up your radio :-)

Seriously, I have the Airaid TBS and it does whistle but I don't notice it anymore. And it only makes noise when your foot is on the gas.

 

Ha! No. The whistle means it's stealing energy from the air flow. Changing kinetic energy into noise.

Carb spacers are older than dirt, and they work, on CARBED motors, (or TBI/CFI motors). They work by allowing the aircharge to develop to a somewhat more organized flow before dropping straight down to the manifold, generating torque (same theory behind long tube headers, established flow = air momentum = torque). Swirlies where added later to help fuel atomization. On MPFI motors, adding a spacer ahead of the plenum accomplishes nothing. Spinning the air into the plenum does nothing. The plenum is an air box that each runner draws from individually. "spinning" 500 cfm of air down the plenum doesn't magically translate into 60 something CFM twirling down an intake runner. You also don't need help atomizing fuel from an injector.

The air also doesn't follow the screw thread pattern, it's moving fast. It just skips over it like any other obstruction that creates noise.

 

Wow, anyone else agree with that?

 

Our trucks are not MPFI (Milti-port Fuel Injection). They are throttle body injection - not very unlike a carburetor. Also, carb spacers were used more to insulate the carburetor from the heat of the intake manifold than anything else on carbureted cars. That's why they're usually made out laminated woods (go figure) or some type of plastic.
Cooler air/fuel mixture into the intake = denser charge = more power.

So - I'm not saying the TB spacer is providing a cooler charge either, but regardless of whether the "swirled" air is the difference, or it is a cooler charge, or the air/fuel is atomized better - there is more power. That can't be disputed.

I also disagree with the whistle means it's stealing energy from the air flow. I seriously doubt Airaid would intentionally make a product that degrades the airflow and power of your engine. If they discovered the "swirl" took power from the engine, they could have made a spacer with flat surface (similar to a carb spacer) and nothing more.

I think we need an engineer here to explain.

Rick

 

That's exactly what I was doing. It's just an upscale 'tornado' intake. It's a gimmick.

As far as TBI goes, I'm not too familiar with the new ford products, or overhead cammed motors in general, but I believe it's a sequential mpfi. All the ohc motors are. By that, I mean it has 8 injectors. Even chevy has to have MPFI by now on their trucks right?

 

You said it's not disputable that it produces power? Has anyone dyno'd with these on a MPFI truck? I would like to see that. I don't see any hp claims from the spacer.

I see a dyno graph listed on their site, but that's for the intake tube, not the spacer.

Also, how does it space the TB out 1" when it's flange is only 1/4" thick? It looks like it slips 3/4" of the 'coil' inside the intake tract, if that's the case, this reduces the diameter.

 

Coaster,

The TB spacer doesn't separate the throttle body by 1". The flange is about 1/4".
What you said about the rest lying inside the intake is correct. The spacer on the web page is not the one for the '04-05 F150 5.4L.

** I stand corrected **
The spacer pictured for the 5.4L is the one I received. I was looking at the page for the 4.6L - which looks like a 1" thick block.


I don't have a dyno handy, but maybe I'll take the spacer off and see how noticeable it is in a "seat of the pants" dyno.

Rick

 

I agree with CentralCoaster - I think its a gimmick too. Throttle body injection? I think that was basically what the original fuel injection system was about 25 years ago. There's no way that would work with the regulations we have today - poor fuel control, fuel economy and potential for very high emissions. You've got 8 injectors - one for each cylinder.

Think about it - the air travels through the throttle and then into the intake manifold, then each cylinder pulls its air from the manifold, so it flows through the runner and then into the cylinder. I find it hard to believe that a slight turbulence induced up by the throttle would have a positive impact on the air charge in the cylinder. The idea that increasing turbulence or swirl of the air in the cylinder can provide more power is true, but that has to be induced as the air flows into the cylinder - not way up stream. There are systems where there is a little actuator in the runner that at a certain engine speed will move to divert the air flow to increase turbulence - but again that is right at the runner.

Just my opinion.