"These build journal entries are part of a Special Series on the development of the S85 CSL Style Carbon Plenum and S85 CSL Competition Complete Carbon Intake System.

In this entry, we stay levelling up! I test fit the 3D printed prototypes of the upcoming S85 CSL Competition Complete Carbon Intake System and detail the slight changes that will be made for the production version, along with the added installation twists."
- Matt

A refresher. 

The reimagined S85 CSL carbon plenum has a unique installation process due to its modular design. You can rewind and read the process here.

In the previous entry, I chatted about the preliminary specs of the Competition spec upon receiving the 3D printed prototypes. You can read it here.

In this entry, I will build upon those notes as I test fit the larger side inlets and inlet tubes of the sealed carbon intakes. 

Numero uno: get the plenum out! 

First things first, the plenum needed to come out in order to remove the side inlets and install the larger ones. 

The side inlets are mega. 

The easy side, the driver side. Overall, this side was simple enough. We needed to unbolt and move the coolant reservoir out of the way. 

The coolant hoses do touch a limited section of the intakes. Sal is planning something to protect the carbon in this area and fix the hoses.

The sketchy side was the passenger side. The power steering reservoir needed to be unbolted and moved out of the way.

We also had to aim the breather filter upwards just a bit to clear the larger inlet tubes. This was counterintuitive at first, but we made it work.

The vacuum hose fits fine, however the coolant hose coming out of the radiator and into the engine block needed to be bent and zip tied to the AC line. 

These V10 engines are massive and will move ever so slightly on their engine mounts as we dab the throttle. Giving more room here will be useful. 

The oil cap moves with the engine, sure - but the power steering reservoir is bolted to the chassis. Also, it leaks and pisses itself every other day.

Sal and I both felt the passenger side was too close for comfort. The production units will have a slightly narrowed section on the inlet tube by the side inlet, and the side inlets will be slightly narrower. 

Green lit, in production The changes have already been made, validated in CAD and production is on. 

The downtime created the opportunity to finally get my pre-production plenum clear coated in matte finish to match the intakes. I lost the passenger side inlet gasket in the process. Long live AlphaN.

Being the prototype guy has its pluses and minuses.  I get spares so you don't have to.

Now, we wait. 

Up next: I get the short stacks and the first production units of the Competition spec inlets. 

Dyno, sound clips, dragy - you know the drill.