Words and photos by Perry Mack
OK, ‘maintenance’ is not my middle name. We finally moved to a condo since the word ‘lawn’ grew to mean ‘allow to return to nature’. But when ‘maintenance’ means ‘make better and save money’, my interest comes around.
Jeep says you should check your air filter at 50,000 km (30,000 mi), which makes sense if you are a pavement hound. I was fearful at 30,000 km given the amount of dust my 2015 Wrangler JKU has seen. But why perform regular maintenance when you have a few hundred bucks the government gave you back at tax time to make your 4x4 better.
These were the only two excuses I needed to order a Volant PowerCore Cold Air Intake with a Donaldson PowerCore G2 filter.
Why better? The short version: air (the oxygen in it) and fuel burn in your engine to create an explosion, which drives the piston and generates power to the wheels. A bigger better explosion means more power. If you can add more air, you can add more fuel and get more power. The reason CAI’s work is two-fold. Cool air is denser than warm air, which means there is more oxygen to burn in every gulp. They also improve airflow. More smooth flowing air into the engine means you can add more fuel and get more power. At the expensive end are turbochargers and superchargers, at the affordable end are cold air intakes. That is my middle name ‘affordable’.
How much more power and torque? Wouldn’t it be great if there was an accurate gauge on the dash to tell you? There isn’t. And the closest answer you’ll ever nail down without putting your truck on a dyno before and after is ‘it depends’. I’m confident that we’ll see some extra power and fuel efficiency but don’t expect installing a CAI to blow your hair back. However if you also add an improved exhaust system and you may actually feel the difference.
A Pre-Filter is essentially a bag of water hating (hydrophobic) polyester with .005 micron openings to reduce the amount of water and grit that can clog your main filter, for instance the MaxFlow 5 oiled filter. I was torn between this and the Donaldson PowerCore G2 filter. The PowerCore has higher filtration (better for dust) and has a 100,000 mi or 4 year NO maintenance warranty - someone is playing my favourite song. Volant recommends cleaning the MaxFlow 5 every 12,000 mi (ugh) or sooner in dirty environments, but it has the best airflow for the best power and fuel efficiency gains, and it’s $42 USD cheaper. In my case ‘Slacker’ trumped ‘Miser’ and I installed the PowerCore G2 filter.
In either case, look at getting the Pre-Filter if you are often on dusty or damp trails. The hydrophobic material will help keep moisture and dirt out of your filter.
It’s a one-hour ‘driveway’ install so let’s get to work.
More info at www.volant.com
MSRP: $335.90 USD with MaxFlow 5 Oiled Filter, $377.90 with PowerCore G2.
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The MaxFlow 5 air filter has the highest rate of airflow with its large, widely spaced pleats.
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The Donaldson PowerCore G2 filter is a great choice for off-road because of its fine filtration performance.
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Complete kit for Wrangler 2013-2018 with MaxFlow 5 filter and Pre-Filter. Check the size of the horizontal slot (pointing forward when installed) to let air in. The vent in the stock airbox is three times smaller. How does your engine feel about that? Close your mouth, pinch one nostril and start running.
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Take off the engine cover by pulling up and out. It doesn’t have screws just the factory push/pins. Then remove the two 10 mm bolts holding the rad overflow hose and stock duct in place.
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Look for the clamp holding the duct to the throttle body and loosen it.
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Do the same to the clamp at the OEM air box.
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Two choices - gently and carefully using a screwdriver, remove the ATS sensor from the duct or from the harness. You have to do both eventually. We unclipped the sensor from the duct first. Make a mental note of the sensor orientation so you can replace it the same way later in the new duct.
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Pull the breather hose from the duct. There’s no clamp so just twist and pull.
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The OEM duct will come out now and you can then remove the factory airbox.
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Now you can access a 10mm bolt in front of the fuse box. Remove and keep it.
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Push the Volant box into place and re-use the 10 mm bolt to tighten it down.
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Install your air filter of choice, in our case the Donaldson PowerCore G2 and tighten the clamp to hold it in place.
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Hopefully you haven’t lost the ATS sensor. Grab it, add a little lubrication the O-ring and press it into place. It takes a little wiggling and twisting. It helps if you can get your fingers into the duct to hold Volant’s rubber grommet in place. Push the sensor in until the O-ring disappears and orient it the same way you found it (see #4).
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Put the hump hose and two clamps at the airbox end, leaving the clamps loose.
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Put the straight sleeve and two clamps at the throttle body. Now tighten all the clamps. Push the breather hose onto the duct. There’s no clamp required.
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Place the cover on top of the airbox, peel back the protective skin and start all the screws before tightening. Admire your new cold air intake system, as it will probably never be this clean again. Snap the engine cover back into place.
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Place the cover on top of the airbox, peel back the protective skin and start all the screws before tightening. Admire your new cold air intake system, as it will probably never be this clean again. Snap the engine cover back into place.
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Take for a test drive and smile like Snoopy at the extra horsepower, torque, better fuel economy and the wonderful new sound.
The intake in the OEM unit is ##% smaller. Pinch one side of your nose closed, close your mouth and start running - see how that feels.
Video on Volant Filters - https://youtu.be/SyoSx3WfXZ8