How-to: 5th gen FWI
 

Alright so I guess Ill do a write-up on my FWI for anyone interested. Ill start with what you will need before you start.

-(2) 3" rubber/silicone couplers (I used APC rubber couplers. They are black and come with two hose clamps each)
-(4) 3.5" hose clamps (mine came with the couplers but I needed to use 1 3.5" hose clamp on the MAF)
-(1) 3" diameter tubing, 9" in length
-(1) 3" diameter tubing, 3" in length
-(1) Cone filter element with a 3" opening. The filter must be shorter than 3.5" or it will hit the fender (I used an APC filter element. It was short and it was cheaper than K&N and was pretty decent quality)

You will notice when you open the hood that there are two problems that surface. For one, the washer fluid bottle is totally in the way. Here is a thread I posted on what I did about that problem:
Tomorrow's Project: Washer bottle relocation - Monte Carlo Forum - Monte Carlo Enthusiast Forums
I used a 1989 astro van washer bottle and pump
I lengthened the wire to the fluid pump and spliced the astro van plug onto it
I got a longer hose to go from the new washer bottle to the firewall plug
Everything else and pictures are in that thread

Now you need to remove the old air box. Start by removing the black cross brace. There is a black bracket that is right next to the throttle body that two "throttle" cables clip into. Unsnap the cables from that bracket, but leave them attached to the throttle body.
http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/b...90/bracket.jpg

Now, unscrew the lid of the airbox and unplug the MAF and IAT sensors. They are the two plugs on the intake tube. Loosen the clamp that holds the intake tube to the throttle body. Now remove the lid, MAF and intake tube all as one unit. Take the lid off of the MAF by loosening the clamp that attaches them and pulling them apart. Now take the bottom of the intake box off. There is a 10mm bolt that holds it to the battery hold down bracket. Remove it and lift up on the box. Slide the box back so the air inlet will slide out of the rad support. It will be a tight fit to get the box completely out, but it fits no problem. Lift up on the cables you unclipped earlier to give yourself more room.

Now you need to solve your second problem. The battery blocks the hole that you will need to use for your new intake. You will need to turn the battery sideways so that the terminals face back. Remove the bracket that holds down the battery. 1 13mm bolt on the bottom and 1 10mm bolt on the apron and the bracket is out. Now remove the negative cable from the battery, followed by the positive. Remove the battery. Both cables have one main wire and one smaller wire. The small wire on the negative cable is bolted to the rad support and the small cable on the positive is bolted to the BCM. You will need to unbolt both these cables. The positive uses a 5/8" nut and the negative was a 10mm nut I believe. Take a look at this photo below.
http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/b...390/acline.jpg
The battery cables will need to be routed up over top the line coming out of the accumulator that I have a red line drawn over. They are under it stock so you will need to fish the cables back down under and then pull it overtop the line. Now you need to reattach the two small cables on the battery cables. Negative on the rad support and positive back on the BCM.

Ok so since you have the battery out and have complete access to the hole into the fender you can now make a block off plate for the hole. Now this is where it will get tricky since I made mine in a sheet-metalworking shop with access to a tig welder and other metal working tools. You can skip this step and not use a filler piece in the fender if you dont have access to metalworking tools. You can substitute the two pieces of tubing for one 12-13" piece of tubing I made a cardboard templace of the area I wanted to block off and then traced a 3" circle onto the template. The circle is for where I will slide the 3" piece of tubing through. I put the tubing as far back and high as the hole in the fender would allow. I cut the hole out of the template and then traced the template onto 20 gauge sheetmetal. I cut out the template and drilled out the hole in the center. I slide the 3" piece of tubing halfway through the hole. I then brazed the sheetmetal to the tube by laying a bead of silicon bronze around the tube where the sheetmetal meets it. I then sprayed the piece with black spray paint after it cooled and I cleaned it. I attached the cone filter to the fender side of the filler piece. I used High Tack sealant to get the filler piece to stick to the fender and I used electrical tape to hold it in place while it dried. Dont worry about getting it to stick well, the intake itself will hold it up against the hole.

Now you can start assembling your intake. Take the stock intake tube/MAF assembly and reattach it to the throttle body. Install it so the black box on the side of the MAF faces upward. Reconnect the plugs on the MAF and IAT sensors.
http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/bb266/mrl390/MAF.jpg

Now attach one of the rubber couplers to the MAF and the other to the engine compartment side of the fender filler. Take your long piece of tubing and put the other two clamps on it. Then put the tube in both couplers between the MAF and the fender filler. You will need to turn the MAF sensor toward the fender to do so. Now its a matter of finding the proper positioning of the couplers and clamps to secure the tubing and keep it sealed.

Now take your battery and turn it sideways and put it back down in, being sure the terminals are facing towards the back of the vehicle. My battery is a bit smaller than average and will actually slide right down in between the rad support, the ac accumulator and the apron. If you are running a larger battery, you will need to find a way to secure it so it doesnt slide around. I lucked out on mine.
http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/b...90/battery.jpg

You can now reconnect the battery cables starting with the positive.

The only thing really left to do now is reinstall the black brace bar you removed earlier and clip the two throttle cables back onto the bracket.

Here are some pics of the finished product:
http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/b...0/100_0129.jpg
http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/b...0/100_0130.jpg

You dont need to follow these instructions to a T. You can do what is easiest and works best for you, this is just how I did it.

Sorry, I know this is really long but its not as complicated as it sounds. Im real happy with how the intake turned out. Its loud and I can definately feel a difference in how the car responds. It doesnt seem to struggle as hard getting the RPMs up and really lets the car scream at the high RPMs like it likes.

Very kewl How-To Matt. I'm going to sticky it.

Sweet, thanks man, I'll probably use this as a guide whenever I get around to doing mine.

Very nice! Where did you get your flex tubing coupler at? That's the only thing left I need to build mine.

I got them from advance auto. They were a hassle to get tho. They only had one and it took forever to get the other. I had to talk to managment and have them order it for me from Keystone. They were like 13 dollars a piece too. I definately would have just ordered them off ebay if I had thought ahead. Would have been cheaper too.

Thanks for the heads up. This is just what i need- http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/3-TO-...s#ht_764wt_928

hey guys im back lol nice matt can u post a pic of inside the fender

Yeah those couplers look like they would do the trick. Ill try and get a pic of inside the fender once I get around to pulling the splash liner back out.

Matt. The filter is BEHIND the inner splash guard?

Of course. It sits almost straight above the vacuum canister inside the splash liner.