DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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UPDATED - See pics at the bottom of this original post for the upgraded pipe work. Details of this setup can be also be seen on page 11.

Hi all,

Some of you may have already seen my thread in the GENIII section for some mods I've done for my air intake pipe, but have decided to add a DIY as there have been a few questions as to what parts I used, how long it took e.t.c.

This DIY will tell you how to remove the OEM air intake pipe and Resonators and replace them with a direct air feed pipe which connects to the OEM air intake and the OEM filter box.

My install was done on the cheap - all up it cost just over $30 and all parts came from Bunnings. However, you can have parts specially fabricated too. It all depends on your hip pocket or how professional a job you need it to be. In either case, whether it be a cheap home DIY or a professionally fabricated job, you will be achieving the same results.

The parts you are removing can be removed all in one red hot go, but before you do that you would be wise to measure up and get the parts required. There is not much point in ripping the old system out and then driving around to look for parts.

As marked in Yellow rings below, this is where the OEM piping gets removed from the front air intake vent and from the intake on the air filter box. I measured the pipe joins as beings 65mm in diameter, so I went on a hunt to find flexi-pipe to match.

I didn't really bother measuring the length of the piping properly at this stage - I knew I needed at least 1 meter, just to make sure I had enough to account for any stuff ups e.t.c. We'll go into proper measurements later.

So after that, I knew I needed the follow:

65mm x 1mtr plus flexi pipe ~ $18
2 x connectors for the front air intake and the rear air filter box ~ $2.50 and only needed to buy one.
2 x 70mm oring clamps ~$2.50 each
1x 40mm x 4m PVC waterproof tape ~ $4

STEP 1: Parts and Fabrication of new pipe

The flexi pipe itself is called NETA POLY DRAIN - Sub Soil Drainage Pipe. The one I got was slotted - i.e. it has drainage holes all through it. You can get un-slotted pipes, but they were all 50mm and I wanted 65mm seeing as though that is the same diameter as the intake pipes on the air filter and front air intake.
It measures 65mm x 10m! They only had it in a 10m role and it cost me about $18.

The blue fittings on either end are from the same manufacturer as the flexi pipe. One of them comes with the role of flexi pipe and the other I had to buy separately for $2.30.
The blue bits fit straight on, although the one that goes onto the air filter box goes on the opposite way from the front one and requires a bit of pushing to get it on, you should be able to wiggle it all the way up and over the little notch on the top of the air filter intake.

The pipe, you'll have 10m of the stuff, so there is a bit of room for you to play around. I just roughly measured it a little bit longer than the stock pipe and cut it with a Stanley Knife - it was a sinch to cut through.

Once I had measured the right length, I then wrapped the flexi pipe in 40mm waterproof PVC tape to make an airtight seal on the pipe. I wasn't sure how this would turn out, but it worked really well and didn't look too dodgy/homemade.

STEP 2: Removal of OEM Pipe and Resonators

Removal of the OEM setup is a sinch.

As marked on the image below, the two red arrows indicate where you will find the two bolts that hold the resonators and piping to the engine bay. There is a support bolt near the front right shocker strut and one down below that supports the ABS control module and the resonators from the old system.
Just undo those bots and replace them afterwards.

The rest of the system should pop off pretty easily! Once it's off, make sure that it's all still assembled and store it in a safe place, just in case you want to restore to the factory setup.

STEP 3: Installing the new pipe

Work the two blue connector end pieces onto your flexi pipe and place the two  o-ring tighteners/clamps over the top.
Stick the blue end pieces onto the intake pipes front and then rear and tightened the clamps...

There you have it! Job done!

I hope the picture references below are OK as a guide. Let me know if you would like any more detailed pics or any further assistance.

If you have even an ounce of DIY skill, you'll find this one a breeze. All up it took about 1 hour to remove, fabricate and install.

After having it installed for a week, I have noticed a dew differences in the cars driving character. It's a bit more willing to rev and take off in the lower RPM range and also it seems to have increased fuel economy a bit. Most importantly, the car sounds tougher now that those restrictive resonators are gone.

One thing to check frequently with this setup is your air filter - just to make sure that there are no big lumps of cr@p clogging up the system.

Original setup with visual reference points
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k67/seesully/IMG_0945a.jpg

OEM setup removed
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k67/seesully/cars/IMG_0947.jpg

New pipe connected to front air intake joint
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k67/seesully/cars/IMG_0955.jpg

New pipe connected to air filter joint
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k67/seesully/cars/IMG_0951.jpg

OEM replaced with new piping
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k67/seesully/cars/IMG_0954.jpg


UPDATE - New pipework upgraded from previous setup as per below:

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k67/seesully/037.jpg

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k67/seesully/036.jpg

WhiteRX
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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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Very nice writeup mate, well done :clapping:

I'm sure a few of the Gen3 folks will find this useful!

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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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Is it possible to buy that intake scoop thing aftermarket through subaru?

EDIT:

also are you spark plug leads on backwards??

Soop
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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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Suprauc wrote:

Is it possible to buy that intake scoop thing aftermarket through subaru?
EDIT:
also are you spark plug leads on backwards??
I suppose you can buy the intake thing aftermarket - I've hear of people fabricating a bit of tin that they bolt on directly under the intake that wraps doen the front of the radiator that acts as a bit of a scoop too...

I don't think my leads are on backwards considering that the car starts and runs. What makes you say that?

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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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only reason i say about the leads, is that the subaru dealership put the long ends on my spark plugs, so that boot filled the little shaft surounding the plug, also thats what the diagram on the TopGun box said.

there prolly different leads, but the  plug ends on mine look the same as the ends on your coil.

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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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Suprauc wrote:

only reason i say about the leads, is that the subaru dealership put the long ends on my spark plugs, so that boot filled the little shaft surounding the plug, also thats what the diagram on the TopGun box said.
there prolly different leads, but the  plug ends on mine look the same as the ends on your coil.
Fair enough mate. To tell you the truth - I've got no idea!

WhiteRX
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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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great write up Chris! :clapping:

Im gonna print this out and use it to help me this weekend.

One question though, did you wrap the pipe with the tape BEFORE or AFTER you fitted the pipe to the intake?

suberty
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Cheers Shav
Dammit, why cant I have boost!!!! :mda:

Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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suberty wrote:

great write up Chris! :clapping:

Im gonna print this out and use it to help me this weekend.

One question though, did you wrap the pipe with the tape BEFORE or AFTER you fitted the pipe to the intake?
Glad you likey....

I wrapped the pipe before fitting. It's just too tricky to wrap it after it's already fitted.
Wrapping it before fitting also beans that you can take off the blue bits and wrap it all the way to the ends of the pipe.

Even though it might look a bit dodgy, I'm thinking about using some more tape to create a full seal on both ends.

WhiteRX
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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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Great write up whiteRX.

Thanks for the great DIY!

-Mickey

Off-topic:

Suprauc wrote:

also are you spark plug leads on backwards??
Your kidding right?

Those plugs are perfect, I think you need to think, and maybe do some research before you post!
Some of your posts are...well... substandard!

rxliberty2000
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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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WhiteRX wrote:

Glad you likey....
I wrapped the pipe before fitting. It's just too tricky to wrap it after it's already fitted.
Wrapping it before fitting also beans that you can take off the blue bits and wrap it all the way to the ends of the pipe.
Even though it might look a bit dodgy, I'm thinking about using some more tape to create a full seal on both ends.
oh very good. so you didnt have issues of the tape wanting to seperate while bending the pipe into position?

suberty
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Cheers Shav
Dammit, why cant I have boost!!!! :mda:

Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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suberty wrote:

oh very good. so you didnt have issues of the tape wanting to seperate while bending the pipe into position?
No mate, no issues at all. I was quite surprised as I didn't think the taped pipe was going to look very good, I also thought that the tape would crinkle or come away when I bent the pipe.

I did however, tape it pretty tightly, so that might've had something to do with the way it turned out.

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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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rxliberty2000 wrote:

Great write up whiteRX.
Thanks for the great DIY!
-Mickey
Off-topic:
Your kidding right?
Those plugs are perfect, I think you need to think, and maybe do some research before you post!
Some of your posts are...well... substandard!
Thanks Mickey - It's all for the fans mate!

I'll be writing up another when my new headers arrive...

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going to do this to my mates car this weekend whiteRX, so thnx for the DIY, im going to print it out.


rxliberty2000 wrote:


Off-topic:
Your kidding right?
Those plugs are perfect, I think you need to think, and maybe do some research before you post!
Some of your posts are...well... substandard!
yeah i know :blush2:  i just saw it and thought wtf??

my attribute my stupidity to 10hrs of inhaling paint solvents per day. :victory:
sometimes my brain has a flip-out.

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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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Ok chris,

I went an bought the stuff noted in your list of ingredients however, I encountered the following issues.

1. The poly pipe I got thoroughly ripped off with and was charged $27 for a full length.
2. They didnt sell the blue fittings seperately so I had to improvise and use a PVC plumbing pipe connector.
3. With not having another blue thingy to connect the pipe with as per your instructions, I had to think outside the square.

I plan to join up the pipe with the blue connector as indicated. But with the other connection, I will use the PVC connector, liquid nails the flexi pipe end so it is permanent, then I will duct tape the other end as neatly as possible so that it seals and wont come off. I doubt very much that it will look as neat as your setup, but it should do the job.

The other option is to go to autobarn or somewhere and get a blue 65mm pipe connector from there instead, but that I know will blow the budget out. It will look neater though. I'll see how it looks when I fit it all. If it looks dodgy, I'll bite the bullet and get matching pipe connections elsewhere.

suberty
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Cheers Shav
Dammit, why cant I have boost!!!! :mda:

Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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Bummer Shav!

It sucks that you were ripped on the price of the pipe and the lack of extra accessories! What kind of sub standard Bunnings Warehouse was this???:girl_devi

You could always venture out to a Clark Rubber store or something like that too. If you end up looking for an end cap to match, remember that it'll need to be a bit bigger than 65mm so it'll fit over the intake pipe.  Or, if worse comes to worst, I'll head over to where I got my gear and get a little blue cap thingy and post it up to you...

Let me know how you go.

Chris.....

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Ok, here is a picture of the finished product.

I decided to go to autobarn and buy 2 turbosmart intercooler pipe fittings as bunning were too skimp to give me another blue fitting from the poly pipe.

The intercooler fittings were a perfect fit, and frankly I am glad I spent the extra to get them rather than just settling on a duct tape finish.

The intercooler fittings cost me and extra $12 each, so yes it did blow the budget. But I think it acheived a neater look than the alternative I had in mind. I dont think its as neat as yours Chris, but it does the job ok.

As far as extra power is concerned, its negligible so far. I cant really notice anything just yet, but I will give it some time for the ecu to adjust and see what I find economy wise. 

I apologise for the dirtiyness of my engine bay too. tongue

http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g194/suberty/liberty/intake.jpg

suberty
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Cheers Shav
Dammit, why cant I have boost!!!! :mda:

Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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Don't drive in the rain..

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I guess a proper in guard CAI has the advantage of having to go up hill, which means the likelihood of sucking rain up would be much lower... Still, this is a nice simple alternative :victory:

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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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I really dont think I will have a problem with water entering into my standard air induction snorkel. But of course if there was a torrential front on down pour I could be up for a bit of trouble.

suberty
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Cheers Shav
Dammit, why cant I have boost!!!! :mda:

Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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you'd have to be unlucky IMO to get alot of water in there. dosent it have to pull the air under the bonnet? or from behind the headlight?

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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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Suprauc wrote:

you'd have to be unlucky IMO to get alot of water in there. dosent it have to pull the air under the bonnet? or from behind the headlight?
Spot on with there. You won't have any issues with water getting sucked in there.

Looks like you've done a good job there Shav, well done mate!

Your car's a 2.0 isn't it? Don't know what sort of difference it'll make to yours. Any difference it makes in power gain will be ever so slight, give it a week or two to determine how it's treating your fuel economy.

But, the best gain of all is the noise!

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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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WhiteRX wrote:

Spot on with there. You won't have any issues with water getting sucked in there.
Looks like you've done a good job there Shav, well done mate!
Your car's a 2.0 isn't it? Don't know what sort of difference it'll make to yours. Any difference it makes in power gain will be ever so slight, give it a week or two to determine how it's treating your fuel economy.
But, the best gain of all is the noise!
Cheers Chris. Yes its definitely a bit louder with the induction noise. Im not expecting mind blowing power, but an improvement in throttle response would be nice to see. The job wasn't difficult. Just a bit fiddly. Its opened up the engine bay at least. The OEM intake was an utter mess thats for sure. Just hoping now, with the addition of the headers, and perhaps a chip, I can get something a bit better than standard.

suberty
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Cheers Shav
Dammit, why cant I have boost!!!! :mda:

Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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sup i did the DIY to my car, cant tell the diff in power, dunno about economy yet but it took me 15 minutes to install, i got the agi pipe wit out the slots it, thats the only reason u's taped ur piping wasnt it? does putting K&N filter in it make it sound better or do anything better then the stock filter, any other cheap DIY projects out there would like to know, all up it cost me $15 from bunning the lot, got 20m agi pipe $15 cause it had cut in it, left me wit 19 m and the hose clamps and blue connecters i just put on the pipe and forgot to pay

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Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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Fat Steve 02 Liberty RX wrote:

sup i did the DIY to my car, cant tell the diff in power, dunno about economy yet but it took me 15 minutes to install, i got the agi pipe wit out the slots it, thats the only reason u's taped ur piping wasnt it? does putting K&N filter in it make it sound better or do anything better then the stock filter, any other cheap DIY projects out there would like to know, all up it cost me $15 from bunning the lot, got 20m agi pipe $15 cause it had cut in it, left me wit 19 m and the hose clamps and blue connecters i just put on the pipe and forgot to pay
Yes we taped our pipes up to cover the holes.

got pics?

suberty
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Cheers Shav
Dammit, why cant I have boost!!!! :mda:

Re: DIY Gen3: Install of NA Direct Air Feed

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great how-to mate im keen to try it now.
One question, this may sound stupid... not it probly will sound really stupid, but why would ur car perform any better because u got rid of the original OEM piping?
is there something in there that restricts the air flow?
i cant think of y this'd make any difference

Cheers Tim.

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