Hey everybody,I just joined and need a little help.I have an 03 F350 and have driven Ford Diesels since the old 6.9's.My question is what air intake system do you recommend and have used for yourself. I have a Super Chip , 4" exhaust and that is all the mods I have done.The Truck is used hard and pulls a heavy trailer but I take good care of it.Thanks

 

go to napa and get a part number-6637 air filter, its direct bolt on for your year trucks, all you need is the filter and a very very short 4 inch diameter pipe, check this out

 

oh and the filter is under 40 bucks, for larger pics the link is in my signature

 

Welcome to the site, glad to have you. Have a look here : www.7point3.com/mods and that will get you started. I have the one call 6637 or Kwik along with a few other names. Very popular here and does a great job. Use the search feature in the blue bar above and search 6637. Go to advanced search and only search the 99-03 7.3 forum and get faster results. Here's you pic to get your blood pumping. And yes, I can close my hood.

 

I also recommend the filter mentioned. I have it on my truck and another, i've put them on a few guy's trucks and they are happy. You say you pull a heavy trailer, so i recommend with the $$ you save over another intake ($200-400), you should install a set of gauges, EGT boost and transmission temp. So when you're pulling some hills you know when the truck is getting too hot.

 

Thats what I call a great fourm. Quick answers and save 350 Bucks.Thanks Guys. Another question where should I get my Guages if I put some in?

 

Open element filters that ingest hot under the hood air are not your best choice if you tow in hot weather! An AIS with a cold air intake using the Zoodad mod works much better.

 

It gets really hot here in summer. What about some of you guys from the South input on this.The hot air makes sense.

 

Not to dis, but...I was searching some older threads and I belive it was Gene that said intake air temps/underhood temps were within 10-20 degrees of ambient temps at highway speeds (w the zoodad I believe) There were higher temps when stuck in traffic.
My .02 says that 10-20 degrees cooler is not worth $350.

 

Gene might have said something like the above if you're driving to the local Wal-Mart on a cool day, in an empty truck, operating with a light foot on the throttle, and the engine hasn't been running for more than a half hour or so, but I definitely recall Gene posting on many occasions, that on a hot day, with his 5er in tow, after several hours of operating at an average power level of 65% to 75%, he was seeing under the hood temps that exceeded 205 F which is about the temp when his fan clutch would go into full lockup mode, and that those under the hood temps were more than 100 F hotter than the ambient air temp.

BTW, even a 30 F increase in the air temp into your turbo from say 70 F (294 K) ambient to 100 F (311 K) can reduce your MAF to about (294/311) or 94.5% of its value at the cooler 70 F that you'd be getting with a direct ambient air intake using an air box with a Zoodad inlet. This hotter air makes your turbo work at least 5.5% harder just to flow the additional CFM to try and make up for the lower density of the hotter inlet air. This along with the hotter air itself, increases the turbo operating temp, and helps to wear it out a little bit sooner. If you need to go to near WOT to make a grade, you're nearing the maximum CFM that your turbo can produce, and now the hotter (than necessary) air begins to reduce your MAF, and consequently your HP, by about the ratio of the air temps in Kelvin.

Comparing 90 F (305 K) ambient to a 200F (366 K) turbo inlet air temp gives an 83.3% reduction, so the turbo needs to increase CFM by 16.7% to make up that difference. After many under the hood temp measurements, and much analyses, Gene concluded that the extra $100 or so to get the AIS is a VERY wise investment indeed, especially if you tow heavy in hot weather as calf roper intends to do!

Gene recently posted some thoughts, and references to other links on this thread... https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/641190-new-air-filter-system-4.html#post5028443 and that's a good place to start for anyone interested in more details.

 

I'll buy that.

 

Gene,
So are the "cold air" intakes like AFE Stage 2 worse then the AIS?

 

calf roper, 6637 is the way to go. Millbrook, AL (just north of Montgomery). The AIS is a great filtration system(just more expensive), it is on par in price with the AFE and others. You will not feel any difference in your butt-o-meter from the warmer aircharge.
Gene, who is a number cruncher (no, offense Gene.) has measured, equated, plotted, graphed, and charted, most of the everyday functions of the 7.3, and, while he is correct (and has proof) of the differences of underhood temps, to me and you, the difference in daily driving will be unnoticable.

Now, If you live down a good ole dusty dirt road, or your truck spends alot of time in the fields or the arena, then the AIS may be the perfect solution for you. Or, at the very least a pre-filter cover over the 6637. remember our turbos hate dust and dirt.

 

sflem849

Gene,


So are the "cold air" intakes like AFE Stage 2 worse then the AIS?



AFE stage 2 has a rubber seal around the top of it that seals to the hood when it is closed making it draw in air from driver side grill and fender well..if i took a pic of the underside of my hood..you can see where it seals on the insulation

 

OMG!!!!! has Gene gone off the deep end. He is refering to himself in third person.

Very eccentric Gene,