Throttle body whistle from BajaRons intake system - any tips to reduce the noise?

[woppyvac]

2011 RT 998 engine. I installed the intake system from BajaRon and I now have an inherent whistle at 4,500 RPMs -5,500 RPMs - revs which tend to also be my cruising revs (60-65mph-ish). Before I take the whole darn bike apart, has anyone else battled this? And if so, do they have tips or tricks?! It’s killing me on this 2000 mile trip I’m in the middle of!

Sending an SOS in the event someone had something similar and could post what they did to cure it. I have most of the tools I need with me to strip the bike and am willing to do that at the next hotel if it’s something ‘simple-ish!’

Ty - hitting road. Will check back this evenings. Fingers crossed!

 

[JayBros]

If you purchased the intake system from Ron, why not call him? He stands behind the products he sells.

 

[Peter Aawen]

Which Intake System??

This one maybe:

BajaRon's Performance Air Box Kit 2010-2013 Can-Am Spyder RT 998 Model

BajaRon's Custom Performance Air Box Filter Kit #JTAF-1 Fitment: All 2010-2013 RT 998 Models Will Not Fit: Any 2008-2016 RS/GS/RS-S/ST Models Any 1330 Models Description: To give credit where credit is due, JT is the creator of the this upgraded modification to the OEM Air Box on the 998 Spyder...

bajarons.com

That intake ^ will ALWAYS make more induction noise than the OEM Intake, simply because it's more open and allows the engine to suck in more air! If you haven't already, you can add the 'oil filled foam' band that goes around the outside of the round filter, and reduce the induction noise a little by doing so, but the downside of getting the better air flow is that the greater noise is an inherent and unavoidable part of it! You've either gotta live with it; work out how to throttle it down a bit and lose a little of the extra performance; or go back to the OEM intake system completely and lose all of the additional performance the better air flow from the performance intake kit allows.

Or you can do what many of the rest of us with those Performance intakes do - find a good set of comfortable acoustic earplugs that'll cut the noise to manageable levels and wear them under your helmet, and then learn to like whatever of the noise you're left with. I really don't notice it any more; but then, I have done somewhat more miles than most with one of those intakes; and I've had one of those intakes on my Spyder/daily rider for more years than most; plus, I've got a very good collection of Musicians Ear plugs, amongst which I can always find something to cut the induction noise level under any given conditions. Still, I do sorta like the remnants of induction noise that gets thru now, and I CERTAINLY like the performance & fuel economy gains my 2013 RT with the V-Twin got from that intake kit and the RotaxRacing ECU upgrade I had done about a decade ago!

Good Luck!

 

[Mikey]

I put one on last year, yes it makes a different noise, I find that this year I got used to it! It's like living next to a train track, year down the road you don't even hear it after a while!! I would give it a year before you jump off the ledge! Good luck!

 

[pegasus1300]

I have been running this air cleaner since 2016 and have never noticed a whistle. It does have a louder roar then stock, but barely so. If yours is whistling then I think you have an air leak somewhere and you will have to access the air cleaner and see if you can find it. This is going to be tedious. Move the air cleaner around, test it, move it around, test. Good luck.

 

[woppyvac]

Long day.. 400+ miles. It’s definitely a whistle!

I suspect if I play with the filter’s position and the tension on the lid that holds the filter in place that I can change the air flow or air flow amount to reduce the whistle or at least shift it to a less prominent RPM range... If that makes sense. Ty all!

The foam ring around the filter is a great suggestion. Ty!

 

[Peter Aawen]

After reading @pegasus1300's post, I've given this juuusst a little more thought, and while it might not necessarily apply here; aaand I haven't been able to find the particular thread or any posts at all referring to this (so it might not even have been posted here, maybe it was on the OzSpyderRyders forum??), I do believe I have a vague recollection that a few years back, someone else mentioned that they had a very pronounced and obtrusive 'whistle' that went above & beyond the induction noise.

IIRC, (and that's certainly not guaranteed these days! ) whoever it was told us they spent quite a while (months type 'while'!) trying unsuccessfully to at least reduce the whistling noise, until they finally decided to give up and re-fit the OEM Intake - and it was only when they got down to removing the base plate of the Performance intake that they discovered the bottom plate hadn't ever been tightened down properly onto the engine, and THAT's where the whistle was coming from!! They tightened that down properly, with a little medium strength, oil resistant, thread locker added (so the screws could still be removed on purpose, but wouldn't ever vibrate out); refitted the rest; and no more whistle!

So maybe that might be worth a look too. Can you take enough time out of your trip to look at how well that bottom plate has been tightened down?? If you've got the tools on hand, can get the right thread locker, and have somewhere to work, it might take you as much as a couple of hours to sort it, but it shouldn't take too much more than that. It's really not hard to do, it's just that there's mirrors and a lot of tupperware to take off and then refit once the job is done.

So there's another possible idea. Good Luck!

 

[woppyvac]

If you purchased the intake system from Ron, why not call him? He stands behind the products he sells.

I called when I first put on the system. Was told that a whistle is bound to happen because the inlet to the throttle body isn’t tapered… Or at least that’s the version I heard in my head… Anyways, bc I’m in the mountains, with my wife on board, and with all our gear, the whistle seems to have shifted to where we like to cruise, 55-60. It’s been a game of throttle control to reduce the annoyance this trip. Sigh.

 

[woppyvac]

After reading @pegasus1300's post, I've given this juuusst a little more thought, and while it might not necessarily apply here; aaand I haven't been able to find the particular thread or any posts at all referring to this (so it might not even have been posted here, maybe it was on the OzSpyderRyders forum??), I do believe I have a vague recollection that a few years back, someone else mentioned that they had a very pronounced and obtrusive 'whistle' that went above & beyond the induction noise.

IIRC, (and that's certainly not guaranteed these days! ) whoever it was told us they spent quite a while (months type 'while'!) trying unsuccessfully to at least reduce the whistling noise, until they finally decided to give up and re-fit the OEM Intake - and it was only when they got down to removing the base plate of the Performance intake that they discovered the bottom plate hadn't ever been tightened down properly onto the engine, and THAT's where the whistle was coming from!! They tightened that down properly, with a little medium strength, oil resistant, thread locker added (so the screws could still be removed on purpose, but wouldn't ever vibrate out); refitted the rest; and no more whistle!

So maybe that might be worth a look too. Can you take enough time out of your trip to look at how well that bottom plate has been tightened down?? If you've got the tools on hand, can get the right thread locker, and have somewhere to work, it might take you as much as a couple of hours to sort it, but it shouldn't take too much more than that. It's really not hard to do, it's just that there's mirrors and a lot of tupperware to take off and then refit once the job is done.

So there's another possible idea. Good Luck!

Excellent heads up! I have a cat-delete coming in. Will be stripping the bike when it does. I will definitely be looking into the throttle body plate suggestion! Ty!

 

[bikerbillone]

Silicone ear plugs, as Pegasus mentioned, could be a solution, but riding two up comm would be problem.

 

[BajaRon]

You say you called the shop. Do you remember who you spoke to?

There will certainly be increased induction sound, but there should be no whistle. Something is up with that. We've installed several of these kits at the shop and have not experienced this sound. It would be excellent if you could find the source. I don't suppose you are located anywhere near Greeneville, Tennessee. I would love to take a look at your install. Not that you did anything wrong. But there should be no whistle.

On another note. Here is what I did to my GS just for fun. It did reduce the induction sound level some and theoretically increased airflow as well. I just cut the velocity stacks off the OEM air box and adapted them to the JT1 air intake system.

 

[Mikey]

I am with Pete, if it's a whistle sound it sounds like a leak! I would reinstall it and see if it is loose at the base. Granted it will have a throatier intake sound, but mine don't whistle!

 

[woppyvac]

You say you called the shop. Do you remember who you spoke to?

There will certainly be increased induction sound, but there should be no whistle. Something is up with that. We've installed several of these kits at the shop and have not experienced this sound. It would be excellent if you could find the source. I don't suppose you are located anywhere near Greeneville, Tennessee. I would love to take a look at your install. Not that you did anything wrong. But there should be no whistle.

On another note. Here is what I did to my GS just for fun. It did reduce the induction sound level some and theoretically increased airflow as well. I just cut the velocity stacks off the OEM air box and adapted them to the JT1 air intake system.

Hi BajaRon! I’m not intending any negativity. I was recounting as best I could. My call in was about a month+ ago? I bought the kit maybe 2-3 months ago and after I installed it and noticed the whistle I called in to see if there was a thing. The call wasn’t long. Quickly wrapped up and my take away was that some of these suckers just have a chirp and increased sound. I assumed it was made more prominent with the added air flow. I've been riding with it and just accepting it’s a minor wince for increase airflow… But with the extra load and us being in the mountains, it became too much. Came here to see how others dealt with it…

Sigh. Now I’m suspecting I royally botched the install… And I probably didn’t explain my issue properly when I called.

Will now DM you!

 

[pegasus1300]

I am sorry I expressed myself so badly, but Peter's discription is what I was refering to, move the whole thing not just the paper element but everything. Look at the whole installation. I do have an increased intake roar, but not that much and at cruising you can't really hear it. But no whistle

 

[woppyvac]

You say you called the shop. Do you remember who you spoke to?

There will certainly be increased induction sound, but there should be no whistle. Something is up with that. We've installed several of these kits at the shop and have not experienced this sound. It would be excellent if you could find the source. I don't suppose you are located anywhere near Greeneville, Tennessee. I would love to take a look at your install. Not that you did anything wrong. But there should be no whistle.

On another note. Here is what I did to my GS just for fun. It did reduce the induction sound level some and theoretically increased airflow as well. I just cut the velocity stacks off the OEM air box and adapted them to the JT1 air intake system.

Holy S$@T! Well... I don’t need to DM you. I see my issue just from the photo... I’ll eat my humiliation pie on this one... FML, I know what I did and I must have been half asleep when I did it. Crap.

 

[pegasus1300]

You would be rolling on the floor laughing yourself silly if you could see some of the mistakes the rest of us have made. Glad you saw yours so quickly.

 

[Mikey]

Glad you found the answer!!

 

[woppyvac]

I forgot about that nut when I did the install. Found it as you see it. Pretty sure that’s the whistle I’ve been hearing!!!

I don’t think that nut is really needed to hold the screw into the lid. I elected to go without it being in there and put it all back together. It is, of course, raining now... so I’ll test it when it clears.

1,500 miles of that damn whistle.

 

[woppyvac]

Whistle Solved. Used Ron’s idea above!

Inside the intake there is lip that can create a whistle at certain throttle positions depending speed, air flow, etc. Decided to just add a liner to negate the lip. Photos included.

Just went to Lowe’s and bought a rubber coupling from the plumbing dept. that had the correct circumference - (56mm). Got home, cut it down to be flush with the throttle body plate, gave it a little kiss of high temp adhesive (for peace of mind) and bingo. Bye bye whistle!

I can’t express how happy I am!

- -

 

[WRCLVR]

Good job !!! one of my pet peeves is installing performance mufflers and realizing at cruise speed there is a loud drone FTBTL..DIY IS sometimes needed