The Trail Snail: Stock Height Sport on 35s - Mod & Trip Log + BS

[TrailSnail]

Thanks! I'm actually more looking for something to mount a GMRS antenna to in that location and I've been looking at a lot of these cowl light mounts.

Right on! The brackets themselves are nicely made and finished. For the price you really can't go wrong.

Sponsored

 

[TrailSnail]

Anyone want to buy some brand new LCA skids? Lol

 

[TrailSnail]

Intake is on

Diff Skids are on

Cheap RAM grab handle mount is on

 

[TrailSnail]

Dudes weren't kidding about loose fuses!! Holy SHIT half of mine were on the verge of falling out

 

[TrailSnail]

Now that I have time to actually sit and type, here's a few things that I learned this weekend:

- The loose fuse thing is real and just as ridiculous as everyone on here has said

- The LCA skid install being a PITA is no joke! My issues were due to lack of clearance and access rather than just the relatively huge hardware and overcoming 180 lb-ft in those confined spaces. In the back, the (22mm) nut that faces outboard with the (24mm) bolt facing inboard only has a few inches at most between the end of the bolt and the back face of the rear brake assembly so a wrench or very shallow socket is required, neither of which I had on hand. On the front driver's side, I was an idiot and blocked my own access to the nut by installing the diff skid first. Due to the design of the Rancho glide plate, it blocks access to the inboard hardware so I was going to have to take it back off to which I muttered, "f- that." On the passenger side, clearance is even more limited but by this point I had already made the decision to put these on the backburner for now.

The Holley intake is an interesting design, and has very unusual driving characteristics for an aftermarket intake. Cleaning the filter will be a PITA due to the sealed nature and the way in which it connects to the airbox and tube. The vac lines and IAT sensor will have to be pulled each time I clean it to remove the entire tube for filter access. Its sealed design retains the factory "snorkel" inlet location so there is no increased risk of water/dirt intrusion vs. stock. Super easy install (besides the aforementioned filter design which takes some serious finagling until you get it figured out the first time).

So, I took Trail Snail for a quick test drive. Past experience told me to expect a slightly harder pull in the upper RPM range, especially at WOT, after installing an intake... some even bumped the "grunt range" of the engine higher in the RPM band like a manifold with longer runners does to a carbureted engine. Nothing like that is present here. I was also looking for the deep, throaty induction growl most aftermarket intakes produce, even newer ones with helmholtz resonators, but this one sounds completely stock... no growl, no resonance, just "whoosh." It doesn't tickle my pickle the way I wanted it to.

The lack of what I expected to feel on the butt dyno combined with stock-sounding acoustics made my initial impression "well, this was a waste." The next time I jumped in and just went back to my normal driving as opposed to hammering it, though... wtf! Ok, hold on... the Jeep already drove like a dream, but now there is a noticeably increased smoothness in the application of torque from the very bottom of the RPM range through the low-mid range compared to before. Wait, what!? Ok, so now I'm tuned in. From a red dead stop, it just smoothly scoots off with a buttery, linear torque curve instead of being able to distinguish "stages" of boost building as the RPMs climb. It's hard to articulate the difference, but it just feels more responsive and more refined. Everything continues to feel linear throughout the power band until it starts to gas out up high just as it did before. Overall the Jeep just feels "happy." Again, during my morning commute, the minute I pulled out of my neighborhood it surprised me with how quickly and evenly it spooled up and built speed. No drama, no flash or flair, just smooooth power delivery. I've never experienced a bolt-on part make as much improvement in what I'll call "routine drivability characteristics." It'll be easily forgotten with time because it's so natural feeling, quiet, and doesn't seem to make "more power" where you'd expect it to, but I'm obviously blown away by A) Holley's engineering in this case, and B) how the little turbo mill responded.

 

[ExpeditionBuilds]

Now that I have time to actually sit and type, here's a few things that I learned this weekend:

- The loose fuse thing is real and just as ridiculous as everyone on here has said

- The LCA skid install being a PITA is no joke! My issues were due to lack of clearance and access rather than just the relatively huge hardware and overcoming 180 lb-ft in those confined spaces. In the back, the (22mm) nut that faces outboard with the (24mm) bolt facing inboard only has a few inches at most between the end of the bolt and the back face of the rear brake assembly so a wrench or very shallow socket is required, neither of which I had on hand. On the front driver's side, I was an idiot and blocked my own access to the nut by installing the diff skid first. Due to the design of the Rancho glide plate, it blocks access to the inboard hardware so I was going to have to take it back off to which I muttered, "f- that." On the passenger side, clearance is even more limited but by this point I had already made the decision to put these on the backburner for now.

The Holley intake is an interesting design, and has very unusual driving characteristics for an aftermarket intake. Cleaning the filter will be a PITA due to the sealed nature and the way in which it connects to the airbox and tube. The vac lines and IAT sensor will have to be pulled each time I clean it to remove the entire tube for filter access. Its sealed design retains the factory "snorkel" inlet location so there is no increased risk of water/dirt intrusion vs. stock. Super easy install (besides the aforementioned filter design which takes some serious finagling until you get it figured out the first time).

So, I took Trail Snail for a quick test drive. Past experience told me to expect a slightly harder pull in the upper RPM range, especially at WOT, after installing an intake... some even bumped the "grunt range" of the engine higher in the RPM band like a manifold with longer runners does to a carbureted engine. Nothing like that is present here. I was also looking for the deep, throaty induction growl most aftermarket intakes produce, even newer ones with helmholtz resonators, but this one sounds completely stock... no growl, no resonance, just "whoosh." It doesn't tickle my pickle the way I wanted it to.

The lack of what I expected to feel on the butt dyno combined with stock-sounding acoustics made my initial impression "well, this was a waste." The next time I jumped in and just went back to my normal driving as opposed to hammering it, though... wtf! Ok, hold on... the Jeep already drove like a dream, but now there is a noticeably increased smoothness in the application of torque from the very bottom of the RPM range through the low-mid range compared to before. Wait, what!? Ok, so now I'm tuned in. From a red dead stop, it just smoothly scoots off with a buttery, linear torque curve instead of being able to distinguish "stages" of boost building as the RPMs climb. It's hard to articulate the difference, but it just feels more responsive and more refined. Everything continues to feel linear throughout the power band until it starts to gas out up high just as it did before. Overall the Jeep just feels "happy." Again, during my morning commute, the minute I pulled out of my neighborhood it surprised me with how quickly and evenly it spooled up and built speed. No drama, no flash or flair, just smooooth power delivery. I've never experienced a bolt-on part make as much improvement in what I'll call "routine drivability characteristics." It'll be easily forgotten with time because it's so natural feeling, quiet, and doesn't seem to make "more power" where you'd expect it to, but I'm obviously blown away by A) Holley's engineering in this case, and B) how the little turbo mill responded.

Nice info on the intake. I've been wondering what, if any kind of performance benefits could be had with a new intake for the 2.0L. I may have missed the info, but is this the Intech #223-37? I was looking for a pic of the actual filter style this intake uses.

How did you end up choosing the Holley intake over say, AFE, Mishimoto, Banks? keep the good info coming.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw


-Steven

 

[TrailSnail]

Nice info on the intake. I've been wondering what, if any kind of performance benefits could be had with a new intake for the 2.0L. I may have missed the info, but is this the Intech #223-37? I was looking for a pic of the actual filter style this intake uses.

How did you end up choosing the Holley intake over say, AFE, Mishimoto, Banks? keep the good info coming.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw


-Steven

Great questions! Yes, that is the correct part number. And honestly, no other intakes appealed to me at all from a design perspective. I used to be an AFE guy, but their Momentum intake caused really bad off-idle stumbles on my 2018 Tacoma and the housing fell apart in two places within 15,000 miles. Their customer service left a bad taste and it was clearly just a bad product. That, and their recent lack of published information for certain products indicates that they're selectively withholding data from consumers in order to offer variety. Offering 3-5 different intakes for popular applications just to flood the market was the nail in the coffin for me... their whole business model seems haphazard and gimmicky.

Modern direct injected engines are not something you can just pop a big filter on with a pipe and call it good, as I'm sure you know, so a lack of Helmholtz chambers and a real airbox are red flags for me. S&B, K&N, Injen, Airaid, Volant, Flowmaster and Corsa's offerings all vary between aluminum piping, open designs, oiled filters, no resonators, and in some instances all of the above like something you'd see under the hood of a Civic in 1998.

Finally, Morimoto's got a big following here but their blog-like development process seemed like an pig and a poke. I understand they're a smaller outfit, but the entire 2-year R&D process was akin to something I'd do in my garage rather than coming out of a professional shop. "Hey, let's try this and see if it works..." There didn't seem to be any real engineering going on, just trial and error. And, in the end, they themselves said there was nothing really to be gained from their intake.

I was set on getting a snorkel, and may still switch to one down the road, but Holley's CAI seemed well thought out enough to give it a shot. It wasn't rushed to market. The resonator is in a more natural position than some where its closer to the turbo inlet. The shape and angle of the main tube just makes sense, and it retains the OEM inlet and mounting points. A flash sale at Quadratec for a hair over $300 made it an impulse buy, but the Jeep seems happier and that makes me happy.

 

[ExpeditionBuilds]

Great questions! Yes, that is the correct part number. And honestly, no other intakes appealed to me at all from a design perspective. I used to be an AFE guy, but their Momentum intake caused really bad off-idle stumbles on my 2018 Tacoma and the housing fell apart in two places within 15,000 miles. Their customer service left a bad taste and it was clearly just a bad product. That, and their recent lack of published information for certain products indicates that they're selectively withholding data from consumers in order to offer variety. Offering 3-5 different intakes for popular applications just to flood the market was the nail in the coffin for me... their whole business model seems haphazard and gimmicky.

Modern direct injected engines are not something you can just pop a big filter on with a pipe and call it good, as I'm sure you know, so a lack of Helmholtz chambers and a real airbox are red flags for me. S&B, K&N, Injen, Airaid, Volant, Flowmaster and Corsa's offerings all vary between aluminum piping, open designs, oiled filters, no resonators, and in some instances all of the above like something you'd see under the hood of a Civic in 1998.

Finally, Morimoto's got a big following here but their blog-like development process seemed like an pig and a poke. I understand they're a smaller outfit, but the entire 2-year R&D process was akin to something I'd do in my garage rather than coming out of a professional shop. "Hey, let's try this and see if it works..." There didn't seem to be any real engineering going on, just trial and error. And, in the end, they themselves said there was nothing really to be gained from their intake.

I was set on getting a snorkel, and may still switch to one down the road, but Holley's CAI seemed well thought out enough to give it a shot. It wasn't rushed to market. The resonator is in a more natural position than some where its closer to the turbo inlet. The shape and angle of the main tube just makes sense, and it retains the OEM inlet and mounting points. A flash sale at Quadratec for a hair over $300 made it an impulse buy, but the Jeep seems happier and that makes me happy.

Hey Josh, I appreciate you taking the time to succinctly post your thoughts regarding my questions and your own personal experience.

I agree with you regarding AFE, no numbers, no go for me as well. Modern engines have been so thoroughly engineered for the performance characteristics the engineers were after that we need to careful not to 'un-engineer' the way they are set-up...maybe especially so with the direct injected turbo 2.0L.

I feel the same about the Mishimoto...after all that they did, no performance increase with their intake as stated by them.

The dyno sheet looks good on the Holley.

I also like the fact that the Holley is engineered with the Helmholtz resonator and runs quiet like stock. I think I've outgrown noise. Speaking of noise, if there was something we could do about cold idle on the 2.0L

Lastly, what type of filter design is the Holley running? I could find nothing on their website. Appreciate you Amigo!

EDIT I found the filter shape looking at the install instructions.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw


-Steven

 

[TrailSnail]

Hey Josh, I appreciate you taking the time to succinctly post your thoughts regarding my questions and your own personal experience.

I agree with you regarding AFE, no numbers, no go for me as well. Modern engines have been so thoroughly engineered for the performance characteristics the engineers were after that we need to careful not to 'un-engineer' the way they are set-up...maybe especially so with the direct injected turbo 2.0L.

I feel the same about the Mishimoto...after all that they did, no performance increase with their intake as stated by them.

The dyno sheet looks good on the Holley.

I also like the fact that the Holley is engineered with the Helmholtz resonator and runs quiet like stock. I think I've outgrown noise. Speaking of noise, if there was something we could do about cold idle on the 2.0L

Lastly, what type of filter design is the Holley running? I could find nothing on their website. Appreciate you Amigo!

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw


-Steven

LOL, you're not wrong! Cold starts are downright embarrassing sometimes, especially with the muffler delete! It's the one and only time it sounds legitimately awful. "Fart! Blaaa*pop*aaat..."

I'll have to get the part number off my filter because the website doesn't list a replacement for this kit yet, but visually it's just like this one linked here (click). It seems very well made and is an interesting double-flanged, slip-fit design that snugly hooks over a lip on the airbox and creates a wedge-like tension seal on the outside of the main tube. The cleverness of its hardware-free installation is also what makes it a pain in the butt to install though. I found that just barely starting the filter over the lip of the airbox while simultaneously starting the bell end of the tube into the filter and pushing both pieces into the airbox slowly was the only way to get them to cooperate.

 

[ExpeditionBuilds]

I was just looking at the install instructions and it included this note.

ECU learning the new airflow characteristics? It would explain you not noticing anything at first drive?

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw


-Steven

 

[TrailSnail]

I was just looking at the install instructions and it included this note.

ECU learning the new airflow characteristics? It would explain you not noticing anything at first drive?

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw


-Steven

Quite possible, especially since I did not disconnect the negative battery terminal as they say to do in the instructions because I'm a rebel like that.

I still don't think I was looking for improvements where there were any to be found on that first little spin around the block, either. This intake surprised me with its subtlety, lending to my thoughts about it being thoughtfully designed for real-world use rather than the instant gratification of cool noises and high-RPM grunt.

It's only been on my Jeep for 4 days / ~60 miles / ~7 startup cycles, so the PCM is likely still re-learning at this point. The computer's learning process makes it hard to objectively identify, let alone quantify, incremental gains from adjustments over time but indeed, it should only get better.

 

[ExpeditionBuilds]

Quite possible, especially since I did not disconnect the negative battery terminal as they say to do in the instructions because I'm a rebel like that.

I still don't think I was looking for improvements where there were any to be found on that first little spin around the block, either. This intake surprised me with its subtlety, lending to my thoughts about it being thoughtfully designed for real-world use rather than the instant gratification of cool noises and high-RPM grunt.

It's only been on my Jeep for 4 days / ~60 miles / ~7 startup cycles, so the PCM is likely still re-learning at this point. The computer's learning process makes it hard to objectively identify, let alone quantify, incremental gains from adjustments over time but indeed, it should only get better.

Keep us posted as you spend more time with it. I might be down for one in the near future.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HJ5REOo6XbFuakJem6TTw


-Steven

 

[TrailSnail]

At just 8 years old, I am already able to embarrass my kid in public doing stupid dad shit

Little does she know the years to come will only get progressively more humiliating

 

[JL MADDOG]

LOL...that's awesome, Josh!

But watch out, Dad. Little girls grow up and they learn things, especially from their parents. The are able to put together schemes and plans, then execute them.

You may be on the receiving end of some of those "humiliating" moments as well.

 

[hiimmike]

At just 8 years old, I am already able to embarrass my kid in public doing stupid dad shit

Little does she know the years to come will only get progressively more humiliating

Make sure to save the pictures for a slide show at her wedding hahah

I got all sorts of embarrassing pictures from my in-laws of my wife when she was growing up and I surprised her with a cool slide show during dinner, our lives, up until now. It was pretty cool and we had some good laughs.

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