Airbox Performance Modifications

[Toasty]

I've been contemplating which direction to go with my airbox. I like the reliability but it's quite large and ugly compared to pods. Pods look great but are quite finicky. I want to gusset my frame eventually, but that places an X brace behind the carbs which is why I'm considering pods...

This weekend I helped my buddy with his GSXR750 and we had to remove the airbox, and it got me thinking. CV carbs like smooth air to lift the slides which is the main issue with pods... and velocity stacks in theory would work best with CV's but they aren't well suited for the street.

The GS airbox has some small rubber velocity stacks built in, and the newer GSXR has evolved this with nice large bell mouths.

Would replacing the small molded stacks in the stock airbox for some modern bell mouths work? Then it would be possible to tune the length for peak HP/torque as well.


To go a step farther, you could replace the metal airbox with a large cylinder filter for more flow. I've seen a member here who did that successfully. It would look nicer without side covers as well.

 

[Steve]

CV carbs like smooth air to lift the slides which is the main issue with pods.

You are close, but still so far away. :-k

The VM carbs like smooth air, too.

The main issue with pods is not the lack of "smooth air flow", it's the additional air that needs to have additional gas added.

.

 

[Toasty]

Well yea, re-jetting is important but from what I've been reading pods never work all that well on CV's because of the turbulent air. Maybe it doesn't make that much of a difference, I dunno...

 

[evan132]

CVs can run fine with pods, I have them on my 1100 and couldn't really ask for the carbs to be dialed in more. Like Steve said, the main problem is people not jetting them correctly.

 

[salty_monk]

I've run K&N's with CV's & VM no probs.

 

[gearheadE30]

One thing that you will notice about low-end pods versus K&N or some of the better ones is that the better pods actually have a fillet on the inside, basically like a trumpet, to smooth the flow. Cheap ones just have a square edge.

I don't know what your bike is like, but my GS airbox had factory trumpets built into the rubbers between the carbs and the airbox. I would assume they work well, but I got rid of them after they caught on fire due to a backfire out of the carbs. Pods were cheaper than a new airbox, heh.