Mopar’s “Ram Airflow” Cold-Air Intake System For Ram 1500:

[raven_DT]

Lol I’m sure they are more concerned with meeting that “ bonus “ standard but I really could be wrong.

I'm not sure what a "bonus standard" is... but I know that engineers provide design solutions that meet requirements, cost and schedule.

 

[goalieken]

DYNO!!!!

For those of you who are going to DYNO this truck, its not the easiest. The "manual" shift never wants to to stay in gear and the tech has to really work at getting a clean pull without it dropping down. My guys were good and worked at it but it may not always be clean. All of these numbers were done on a Dyno Pack and converted to Dynojet Standard.

Max HP: 350.75 @ 5692 RPM
Max Torque: 377.5 ft/lbs @ 3900 RPM
AFR: Stays at 15 until ~4000-4500 rpm then drops quickly to level out around 10.5. This is where maybe the intake can flatten this curve? Anyone more engine saavy than me want to confirm or deny?

A few things i see on that Dyno. 1- most likely the operator could not go full load until about 4000 rpm as the truck would downshift. That why the truck starts to fuel there. 2. What fuel are you running? The AF is on the rich side and could be from the ecm seeing some knock.

 

[Hallbag]

A few things i see on that Dyno. 1- most likely the operator could not go full load until about 4000 rpm as the truck would downshift. That why the truck starts to fuel there. 2. What fuel are you running? The AF is on the rich side and could be from the ecm seeing some knock.

Always run 89, so knocking shouldn't be a problem as with 87. I suspect you are right about the load management, we had serious issues getting it to not drop gears.

 

[dvdprl]

Sounds like no MPG boost, but has anyone had any true HP/TQ boosts with this being installed?

 

[Trooper4]

Anyone do any timed before and after at the track. If the shifting is a problem getting good dyno readings, the track runs would be helpful for comparisons.

 

[DesertRebel]

Anyone do any timed before and after at the track. If the shifting is a problem getting good dyno readings, the track runs would be helpful for comparisons.

None of the breather mods I've read about report any gains ... everyone details the sounds but nothing about felt gains, dyno gains or better ET at track.

I'm still new hear (but not new to performance mods)... been reading as much as I can from other members here.

 

[Trooper4]

None of the breather mods I've read about report any gains ... everyone details the sounds but nothing about felt gains, dyno gains or better ET at track.

I'm still new hear (but not new to performance mods)... been reading as much as I can from other members here.

Because the engine is just a fancy air pump, air in and air out with the most efficiency is the key to better performance. On my '05 Duramax, I changed the intake to cold air, and the exhaust to duels with larger diameter from the down tube back. Also used a super chip tuner. Saw better MPG on the lower tunes, and scary gains on the performance tunes. Just waiting until the 5th gen has been out for a while longer to see what all the changes will be, and what real gains they make.

 

[raven_DT]

The DT essentially has a cold air intake stock, since its pulling from the wheel well. I was thinking that the Mopar intake would offer a less restrictive flow and possibly slightly better performance. Doesn't look like it so far. Thanks for posting your data.

 

[DesertRebel]

Because the engine is just a fancy air pump, air in and air out with the most efficiency is the key to better performance. On my '05 Duramax, I changed the intake to cold air, and the exhaust to duels with larger diameter from the down tube back. Also used a super chip tuner. Saw better MPG on the lower tunes, and scary gains on the performance tunes. Just waiting until the 5th gen has been out for a while longer to see what all the changes will be, and what real gains they make.

Right. Best gains are to be had with a tune to adjust a/f ratio... cam timing can help too...

But some vehicles respond favorably with intake just from ecm learning... I haven't read any reports indicating this motor benefits in that way.

It seems pretty effictive/efficient even stock.

a blower would be sweet though! By the time the TRX has been out a couple years, I might be tempted to trade up.

 

[RiskReward]

How is the drone and switch into MDS with the Mopar Exhaust? Would assume any of either would be exacerbated by the addition of the CAI?

Also +1 to the question on where the air is pulled from. Is the stock air dam plugged with the Mopar intake?

Sorry, I’ll hang up and listen.

 

[Amazing93]

How is the drone and switch into MDS with the Mopar Exhaust? Would assume any of either would be exacerbated by the addition of the CAI?

Also +1 to the question on where the air is pulled from. Is the stock air dam plugged with the Mopar intake?

Sorry, I’ll hang up and listen.

The hole in the fender is plugged with a rectangular piece of plastic. I have the Borla exhaust and 0 drone with the ram air cai.

 

[Hallbag]

Timeline was pushed a bit and got everything installed yesterday! So, as promised, I will try and make as unbiased a review as possible, and one way to do that is to post all the "before" stats now so there are no fudging with results later. Before I get into that, this thing sounds unreal. Still waiting to see if any neighbors DIDN'T wake up at 4am when I pulled out this morning, but on the road it is absolutely how it should sound from the factory. Now onto the review:

Cost

Mopar Ram Airflow Intake (77072428AB)
$770.39 (moparpartssurplus.com Athens Dodge/Ram)
No Tax
Free Shipping
$130 install Cost

$900.39 Total

Mopar Performance Cat-back Exhaust (77072520AA)
$1076.25 (moparpartssurplus.com Athens Dodge/Ram)
No Tax
Free Shipping
$130 install cost

$1206.25 Total


Sound

I will post the videos side by side later but here are the decibel readings (again done on an iphone XS using Decibel X software and not meant to be accurate as to actual DBs but merely show difference before and after)

Recording 12/16/19
Outside: 80.0 Max (55 degrees, 44% humidity, mic centered 5ft from exhaust at 4ft from ground)
Inside: 68.2 Max (0-50mp, medium acceleration, reached over a specific distance that I will replicate after install)

MPG

My commute is 40 miles round trip. The 20 miles in the morning are 5 miles on side streets, 15 miles on highway, zero traffic, 75 mph using ACC. The 20 miles in the afternoon are 10 miles highway, 10 miles side streets, moderate to heavy traffic (15-30mph highway, stop/start, better flow side streets but lots of lights). Then its all city-ish driving around town with moderate traffic at all times and stops/lights everywhere.

Tank 1: 12.3mpg (Hand) and 12.9mpg (Dash) after 31.2 gallons
Tank 2: 12.2mpg (Hand) and 13.0 (Dash) after 27.0 gallons
Tank 3: 13.9 (Hand) and 14.1 (Dash) after 22.3 gallons

This last tank was higher because I had two highway trips of ~80-100 miles round trip each but I included it 1) Because its fair 2) Because my truck crossed 2k miles so maybe this is not a one off but the engine breaking in? Anyways I wanted to lay it all on the table. I also only included the three most recent tanks to try and keep the sample size somewhat clean as it pertains to break-in, driving style, etc but I have been averaging around 13mpg on the dash since I purchased it.

DYNO!!!!

For those of you who are going to DYNO this truck, its not the easiest. The "manual" shift never wants to to stay in gear and the tech has to really work at getting a clean pull without it dropping down. My guys were good and worked at it but it may not always be clean. All of these numbers were done on a Dyno Pack and converted to Dynojet Standard.

Max HP: 350.75 @ 5692 RPM
Max Torque: 377.5 ft/lbs @ 3900 RPM
AFR: Stays at 15 until ~4000-4500 rpm then drops quickly to level out around 10.5. This is where maybe the intake can flatten this curve? Anyone more engine saavy than me want to confirm or deny?

I want the ECU to adapt to the new intake/exhaust and all the parts to break-in (save the you don't need to/do need to discussion please, its also Christmas so not in a rush to get back on DYNO) so will retest maybe in a couple weeks.

Well I'm not sure if I've added any value with this review or if I'm going to add to the confusion (maybe that's a conclusion in and of itself since there are no definitive results) but here we go. For those of you who don't want to read my incoherent review, here's the summary: 1) Sound? Awesome, lot of fun 2) MPG? I can conclusively say you should expect between 0-1+mpg gains. Why the range? read below. 3) Dyno? Literally no idea but I will say it's something between 7-15hp. Why the ambiguity? read below.


Sound

From another post:

“The sound is great, the video above gives you a solid listen to the different scenarios but I'll include an outside and inside video with db readings below. Here are my experiences so far: 1) It's a loud exhaust (believe Porboy or someone said if you don't want sound, stay stock). Cold start will feel like you're waking neighbors, get on it and everyone in the vicinity will know you're moving...however, in the cab it's surprisingly "refined." My wife, who hated this truck when I got it and will look for any excuse to mock it, has not complained riding around, she even was defending the sound/volume when I was worried about my early mornings and the neighbors. At radio volume 6, you can hear the exhaust riding around in the cab, at 8 it mostly disappears into the background and you're not sure if it’s a bass line or the exhaust, at 10 its completely gone at normal cruise and even stop/go around town. I have not found any examples of drone and I suspect you won't with the Mopar one since that is probably their biggest concern with an "aftermarket" system under the Mopar name. However, as someone stated above, sound is subjective and maybe someone else will be like "all I hear is this thing in the cab!" or something along those lines.

Lastly, I have not towed with it yet so I'd lean on someone else if anyone plans to do that often. I might be worried about loudness in the cab towing something long distance because if you're stuck at 2500 RPMs for an hour, you'll hear it, but I have zero experience.

Overall, I love it. It makes it so much more fun to drive. I am still worried about the neighbors when I leave at 4am but no one has complained yet so I guess I have that going for me.


Recording (Done on an iphone XS using Decibel X software and not meant to be accurate as to actual DBs but merely show difference before and after)

Before Recording 12/16/19
Outside: 80.0 Max (55 degrees, 44% humidity, mic centered 5ft from exhaust at 4ft from ground)
Inside: 68.2 Max (0-50mph, medium acceleration, no radio or fan speed, windows up)

After Recording 12/21/19
Outside: 97.0 max (52 degrees, 43% humidity, mic centered 5ft from exhaust 4ft from ground)
Inside: 74.2 max (0-50mph, medium acceleration, no radio or fan speed, windows up)

The outside numbers are slightly misleading so I will caveat them here. The max DB is the initial bark of the engine starting. It's loud like I said previously, but it immediately drops lower and then settles at ~70 for the stock, and ~82 for the after.”


MPG

See my original post above about my travel habits so you can get a sense of city/highway combo. Here is where my unscientific nature has come back to haunt me a bit. I truly tried to limit a lot of variables and keep this as straightforward as possible but even with that, I think there were still too many variables simply because there’s no way these results are 100% attributable to the mods. Here’s the other factors I think could be attributed to the gains: 1) I had my first oil change at same time of install 2) As I said previously car passed the 2k miles mark and seemed to be breaking in a bit more. Having said that, I am 100% happy with ~1mpg+ gain in efficiency no matter what it is attributable to, so I am going to say it's the intake and don't you dare go ruining my hopes and dreams.


Before
Tank 1: 12.3mpg (Hand) and 12.9mpg (Dash) after 31.2 gallons
Tank 2: 12.2mpg (Hand) and 13.0 (Dash) after 27.0 gallons
Tank 3: 13.9 (Hand) and 14.1 (Dash) after 22.3 gallons**
**This last tank was higher because I had two highway trips of ~80-100 miles round trip each but I included it anyways.

After
Tank 1: 13.0 (Hand) and 13.7 (Dash) after 29.7 gallons
Tank 2: 13.5 (Hand) and 14.0 (Dash) after 25.6 gallons
Tank 3: 13.8 dash as I pulled into dyno shop

As for driving habits and if those changed, I honestly would say to everyone that I turned off the Fuel Efficiency screen throughout this whole test and tried to be normal with driving (maybe even slightly worse in the “after” test because the sound is so great). I am happy to keep everyone updated if the gains stay or if they drop back down in the case that it was some bias in my driving.


DYNO!!!!
This is where everything goes a little bit up in smoke, especially when I wanted it to be the most scientific part, because detractors are going to say "see! basically nothing!", people who bought them are going to see potential gains and be happy, meanwhile the whole thing feels less conclusive given how hard it was for the "new" guy to get a clean pull. The dyno sheet I attached is going to show 9bps of gains. One of the pulls that was completely not clean showed 13hp gain. Many showed no gain as the speed/rev limiter was getting triggered. I think that given the whole experience we can conclusively say this system isn't giving you 25+hp gains, so if you're expecting/looking for that then you need a tune or go for something else. Can we say it adds between 7-15hp? I think so. Do we know if it takes away from low-end torque like the dyno sheet shows? Inconclusive given the torque charts look like they were drawn by my kid.

I apologize to everyone for this rambling review and not getting you a solid answer by the end. I talked to the same tech as the first time and thought he said he was going to be in the shop, but was nowhere to be found when I got there. It's enough of a pain to get there and back that I wasn't about to turn around and go another day, but maybe I should have. Anyways, that's my review, I'll keep the thing simply because of the sound and mpg I'm seeing and don't want to jinx it, plus it looks cool. As always, try to be nice to each other in the comments.

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

 

[raven_DT]

Well I'm not sure if I've added any value with this review or if I'm going to add to the confusion (maybe that's a conclusion in and of itself since there are no definitive results) but here we go. For those of you who don't want to read my incoherent review, here's the summary: 1) Sound? Awesome, lot of fun 2) MPG? I can conclusively say you should expect between 0-1+mpg gains. Why the range? read below. 3) Dyno? Literally no idea but I will say it's something between 7-15hp. Why the ambiguity? read below.


Sound

From another post:

“The sound is great, the video above gives you a solid listen to the different scenarios but I'll include an outside and inside video with db readings below. Here are my experiences so far: 1) It's a loud exhaust (believe Porboy or someone said if you don't want sound, stay stock). Cold start will feel like you're waking neighbors, get on it and everyone in the vicinity will know you're moving...however, in the cab it's surprisingly "refined." My wife, who hated this truck when I got it and will look for any excuse to mock it, has not complained riding around, she even was defending the sound/volume when I was worried about my early mornings and the neighbors. At radio volume 6, you can hear the exhaust riding around in the cab, at 8 it mostly disappears into the background and you're not sure if it’s a bass line or the exhaust, at 10 its completely gone at normal cruise and even stop/go around town. I have not found any examples of drone and I suspect you won't with the Mopar one since that is probably their biggest concern with an "aftermarket" system under the Mopar name. However, as someone stated above, sound is subjective and maybe someone else will be like "all I hear is this thing in the cab!" or something along those lines.

Lastly, I have not towed with it yet so I'd lean on someone else if anyone plans to do that often. I might be worried about loudness in the cab towing something long distance because if you're stuck at 2500 RPMs for an hour, you'll hear it, but I have zero experience.

Overall, I love it. It makes it so much more fun to drive. I am still worried about the neighbors when I leave at 4am but no one has complained yet so I guess I have that going for me.


Recording (Done on an iphone XS using Decibel X software and not meant to be accurate as to actual DBs but merely show difference before and after)

Before Recording 12/16/19
Outside: 80.0 Max (55 degrees, 44% humidity, mic centered 5ft from exhaust at 4ft from ground)
Inside: 68.2 Max (0-50mph, medium acceleration, no radio or fan speed, windows up)

After Recording 12/21/19
Outside: 97.0 max (52 degrees, 43% humidity, mic centered 5ft from exhaust 4ft from ground)
Inside: 74.2 max (0-50mph, medium acceleration, no radio or fan speed, windows up)

The outside numbers are slightly misleading so I will caveat them here. The max DB is the initial bark of the engine starting. It's loud like I said previously, but it immediately drops lower and then settles at ~70 for the stock, and ~82 for the after.”


MPG

See my original post above about my travel habits so you can get a sense of city/highway combo. Here is where my unscientific nature has come back to haunt me a bit. I truly tried to limit a lot of variables and keep this as straightforward as possible but even with that, I think there were still too many variables simply because there’s no way these results are 100% attributable to the mods. Here’s the other factors I think could be attributed to the gains: 1) I had my first oil change at same time of install 2) As I said previously car passed the 2k miles mark and seemed to be breaking in a bit more. Having said that, I am 100% happy with ~1mpg+ gain in efficiency no matter what it is attributable to, so I am going to say it's the intake and don't you dare go ruining my hopes and dreams.


Before
Tank 1: 12.3mpg (Hand) and 12.9mpg (Dash) after 31.2 gallons
Tank 2: 12.2mpg (Hand) and 13.0 (Dash) after 27.0 gallons
Tank 3: 13.9 (Hand) and 14.1 (Dash) after 22.3 gallons**
**This last tank was higher because I had two highway trips of ~80-100 miles round trip each but I included it anyways.

After
Tank 1: 13.0 (Hand) and 13.7 (Dash) after 29.7 gallons
Tank 2: 13.5 (Hand) and 14.0 (Dash) after 25.6 gallons
Tank 3: 13.8 dash as I pulled into dyno shop

As for driving habits and if those changed, I honestly would say to everyone that I turned off the Fuel Efficiency screen throughout this whole test and tried to be normal with driving (maybe even slightly worse in the “after” test because the sound is so great). I am happy to keep everyone updated if the gains stay or if they drop back down in the case that it was some bias in my driving.


DYNO!!!!
This is where everything goes a little bit up in smoke, especially when I wanted it to be the most scientific part, because detractors are going to say "see! basically nothing!", people who bought them are going to see potential gains and be happy, meanwhile the whole thing feels less conclusive given how hard it was for the "new" guy to get a clean pull. The dyno sheet I attached is going to show 9bps of gains. One of the pulls that was completely not clean showed 13hp gain. Many showed no gain as the speed/rev limiter was getting triggered. I think that given the whole experience we can conclusively say this system isn't giving you 25+hp gains, so if you're expecting/looking for that then you need a tune or go for something else. Can we say it adds between 7-15hp? I think so. Do we know if it takes away from low-end torque like the dyno sheet shows? Inconclusive given the torque charts look like they were drawn by my kid.

I apologize to everyone for this rambling review and not getting you a solid answer by the end. I talked to the same tech as the first time and thought he said he was going to be in the shop, but was nowhere to be found when I got there. It's enough of a pain to get there and back that I wasn't about to turn around and go another day, but maybe I should have. Anyways, that's my review, I'll keep the thing simply because of the sound and mpg I'm seeing and don't want to jinx it, plus it looks cool. As always, try to be nice to each other in the comments.

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

Thanks for the write up. Losing low end torque is a net loss for the people who tow...

 

[Nails]

Great write up!! Much appreciated on non biased reports.

 

[BPA5150]

Inconclusive given the torque charts look like they were drawn by my kid.

Hahaha that’s a fact! Nice choice of crayon colors!

That really took a lot of time and effort though, thank you!

 

[Blueraptor]

Just curious but what is it that makes it so difficult to get a good Dyno pull with these trucks? The Ford and GM trucks don't seem to have these issues.

 

[Hallbag]

Just curious but what is it that makes it so difficult to get a good Dyno pull with these trucks? The Ford and GM trucks don't seem to have these issues.

The “manual” transmission will not lock gears and is extremely sensitive to downshifting. Pulling in 6th is impossible though I believe that’s the optimal gear. Even 4th continuously drops unless you feather the throttle correctly. Hence why a bad pulls throw that torque chart way off.

 

[LamboMitch]

looks like its a good mod to get. anyone try the new ram air intake with a tune ?

 

[Fordication]

Mopar’s “Ram Airflow” Cold-Air Intake System For Ram 1500:
Ram's All New Intake, Where Is It?

Mopar's “Ram Airflow” Cold-Air Intake System For Ram 1500:

Back in February 2018, the Mopar brand released a bunch of aftermarket parts for the 2019 Ram 1500 at the Chicago Auto Show. Most of those parts were showcased on their Mopar-modified 2019 Ram 1500 Big Horn Sport 4×4. One of those parts shown was the “Ram Airflow” cold-air intake system. The new...

5thgenrams.com

I think it looks real nice but its a bit much. Back in the early 2000s Camaro sold similar kit with much more engineering for $250 and it actually added a good deal of HP. I cannot see how this is any different.

 

[Horizon88]

Has anyone had an oil change after the ram airflow was installed? I’m at a dealership right now and they told me they had to remove the intake to perform the oil change. He said that there was no way to get the oil in without removing. Still waiting on my oil change price lol.