Good morning fellas, I recently bought a '98 3/4 ton quadcab with a 5.9 magnum, I was servicing it yesterday and found the engine has been dusted, the inside of the air filter housing going into the TB (filtered side) was covered in dirt. I got a new gasket (the old one was torn and siliconed) and clamped the housing back on to the TB, but it never really tightened down, I can move the housing side to side on top of the TB. It doesn't seem like it would seal very well. Does anyone make an upgrade? Or is there a better air cleaner assembly out there? Thanks in advance guys, your help is appreciated.

 

welcome to df. the stock air intake clamp is pretty good, but very tricky to get it right. try again on the stock unit. loosen is up a lot and rotate it around and around and find the ONE spot where it seats right. i think? its where the clamp is in the rear, with the screw head pointed to the drivers side. then tighten it down with a nut driver. there should be a little round TB/intake tube gasket, available anywhere for $2.

edit - note how the slots in the clamp fit over the nubs in the tube, and it wraps around under the TB lip.

edit again - your original factory clamp may be lost, and replaced by a standard worm gear clamp. that won't work well at all.

there's a lot of cold air intakes available, but i think they're a huge waste of money.

some people do the round air cleaner mod. it looks nice but its reported that it makes a loud sucking noise all the time.

 

What dvaughan said. The stock clamp should sit just as he described it for a proper fit, and with a gasket under the air box it should sit rock solid. But I respectfully disagree on one point:

I'm quite pleased with my K&N FIPK. It certainly flows more air than the stock unit, and because the stock unit was cracked under the filter when I bought the truck I was in the market anyway. AutoAnything's "we will not be undersold on K&N" guarantee got me a nice new FIPK II for $242.23 so I couldn't complain at all.

Because the filter element on the FIPK is isolated, I don't have to worry that I'll be replacing another engine due to splashed water getting past the filter element. The peace of mind is worth at least what I spent so I'm just sitting here being happy.

 

Yeah i agree with this guy^^ When i got my K&N FIPK i noticed a big difference in the high end power. Especially around 3000 rpm and higher. Some people tell me they make the truck sound different but i didn't notice anything different.

 

I would defintely get rid of the stock set up. At first i bought the edlebrock pro flow for 20 bucks, and that maid it run better! But then got the air raid and thats the way to go. Also, those clamps can be tricky to get to seat right. Just keep moving it side to side and moving it around it it will eventually fall into place, you will know when it does.

 

+1 on the air raid, love it and never had a problem with it.

 

I can hear mine breathing under moderate to heavy acceleration. The exhaust note is just perceptibly deeper under load, but it's only noticeable when it echoes off of a rock face or block wall.

 

I think the reason i didn't notice a difference is cause i had both the K&N and my exhaust put on at the same time.