Driver72

iTrader: (1)

Had a question for you guys.
I have a 2002 Maxima and recently (finally) put in a K&N airfilter.
What's the deal with the plastic airbox that leads up to the airfilter housing?
It has that mini "ram air" scoop to it, but for some reason seems to get blocked when you shut the hood.

Has anybody removed this airbox?
Does it add even more performance by doing so, or is there drawbacks?
How about noise levels, is it significantly increased with this airbox removed?

If it's recommended to NOT remove the airbox, has anybody drilled small holes in the inlet side of the air filter housing to allow more air in that way?

One other thing: On top of the air box there's a little "growth" of another plastic part that seems to be attached to the airbox "scoop" by a special triangular allen wrentch type thing. What exactly is this for?

Bottom line: I'd like to remove the airbox that leads up to the air filter housing where I just installed the K&N filter, but only if it doesn't have any major drawbacks and doesn't increase the engine noise by a significant amount.
And if either is the case, I'd like to do what I've done on past cars and drilled numerous really small holes on the inlet side of the airbox to allow more air into the filter and hence the intake that way.

Wondering which to do?

Thanks

Y2KSESteve

iTrader: (22)

The stock scoop isnt really blocked and still brings in cool air when you're driving. You would probably hurt your performance by taking off the scoop.

dblrr900

The boxes that you see are a series of chambers designed to allow air to be brought into the car while cutting the noise from the engine. The 2k2 Motor is very loud at WOT and for a standard market of Dullards that don't want to hear their car they basically choke the motor to aquire this noise dampening effect.

You want that stuff gone? Take it out, but dont cut it or drill holes, just get an aftermarket intake. The two top choices at this time seem to be a short stack intake (Frankencar.com) or the Injen Cold Air Intake (adventon.com). I have had both and ended up sticking with the Frankencar for overall performance. I recommend you read around the site and get input on these units and decide for yourself. Personally would not damage the stock unit as you may want to return the vehicle to a stock mode.

Driver72

iTrader: (1)

Thanks guys for the response so far.
I know the "scoop" isn't really fully blocked by the hood, it's just it seems like there could of been a better placement for it for maximum air intake.

I will look into the aftermarket intakes.
I remember removing my airbox from my Mustang GT many years ago and it noticeably increased the performance. But it also added a noticeably louder (deeper) sucking air sound coming from the engine bay. Didn't mind it on that car, but on the whisper quiet Maxima it might stand out as odd and not sound all that good.

But thanks again, if anybody else has thoughts or ideas, please let me know.

dblrr900

I recommend you hook up with some 2k2 Maxima owners in SoCal and ask for a ride. Most will be happy to show what they have and let you see for yourself what is good and how it sounds/performs.

Trust me, it doesn't sound bad, this motor will supprise you.