Toyota Tech: Custom Snorkel Installation
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| http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/tech/custom_snorkel/ |
Short Cuts |
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By: Ryan Trickett - 12/2005
Since ARB doesn't make a Safari Snorkel for pre-2000 Toyota Tacomas, I decided to build my own. I built this custom snorkel for my 1998 Toyota Tacoma that works just as well as the Safari version and cost 1/3 the price. In addition, the snorkel works with my aftermarket K&N filter.
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| My custom snorkel |
- (1) 26.5" piece of 3" ABS Pipe
- (1) 45 degree 3" street fitting
- (1) 90 degree 3" street fitting
- (1) 3" to 2" adjustable rubber pipe fitting
- (3) feet of 2" ABS Pipe
- (1) 90 degree 2" rubber fitting
- (1) 45 degree 2" fitting
- (1) Can of ABS Pipe Glue
- (1) 8x4" piece of 16 gauge steel
- (1) 3.5" hole saw
- (1) 2.5" hole saw
- Die Grinder
- Cutoff wheel, jigsaw, or sawzall
- Hand drill and various bits
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Before starting this project, I knew I didn't want to have just a 90-degree pipe fitting on top of my snorkel since that would not give it the professional look I was going for. I was able to get the top ram air vent fitting from ARB which is the same piece used on all the Safari Snorkels. Even though it cost more, about $60 compared to $5 for a 90-degree fitting, I think that the Safari Snorkel piece gives my custom snorkel that professional look.
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| ARB snorkel piece |
After deciding how you want the final product to look, remove the wheel well liner and any fender flare. Remove the plastic liner by pulling out the plastic caps holding it to the side of the engine compartment and the 3 bolts along the fender. Then slide the liner away from you, toward the engine compartment. The 3 clips on the inside of the fender will release as you slide the liner out. With the liner removed you can get an idea of how much room you have to work with for running your piping. After I was able to see behind the fender, I realized that I would not be able to install the snorkel where I originally wanted to because of the radio antenna. Instead, I moved the snorkel to the next best location, which forced me to notch my Bushwacker 3" fender flare. Even after relocating, I also realized I would not be able to make the bend inside the fender to get the piping to the stock air box elbow along the side of the engine compartment. Instead I ran the pipe straight through the rear of the engine compartment. Because of this it will be more difficult for those of you trying to attach the snorkel to your stock air box using its stock engine compartment elbow. Since I will be building an enclosure around my K&N filter, I can plumb the snorkel into the backside of this. Although none of these problems will prevent you from completing the project, they are things you need to be aware of before cutting into your truck.
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| Planning for the cuts |
Cover the area with masking tape to protect the paint around the hole. After measuring, checking, measuring, and checking several times over, mark the hole where the snorkel will enter the truck and cut it out using a 3.5" hole saw. Remember, once you have a 3.5" hole in the side of your rig, you can't go back, so make sure your measurements are perfect and everything is lined up before cutting. Once the hole is cut, clean it up with a die grinder or something similar. You may have to enlarge it slightly in order to fit the elbow in and angle it to match the A-Pillar.
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| Marking where to cut |
After cutting a huge hole in the side of your truck, cut a 2.5" hole through the engine compartment. I decided to step down from the 3" pipe once I got into the fender to a 2" pipe since it would be difficult to get the 3" pipe to fit in the engine compartment. It may be possible to run the 3" pipe through the engine compartment but I was unable too. This bracket was the major problem of getting the bigger pipe through the engine compartment.
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| The problem bracket |
| Snorkel Rough Construction |
At this point mock up the snorkel body. I used a 90-degree street elbow to go from the pipe into the truck, 26.5" of 3" ABS pipe and then a 45-degree street elbow to go at the top of the pipe to mount the Safari vent. Depending on where you wan the top of your snorkel to sit, you may want to change the length of the pipe. With this setup, the top of my snorkel (Safari vent) sits about 5" above the roofline.
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| Final-with labels |
Finished-5" above roof |
Next you will need a way to attach the pipe to your A-Pillar. I built a bracket out of 16-gauge sheet metal and mounted it to the bottom of the A-Pillar so that I would have plenty of room to get my bolts to fit. The dimensions for my bracket were 4"W x 2.5"H x ¾"D. The ¾" deep is the width of the base after bending the metal. I used 4-5/16 hex bots and, using a thread cutter, threaded these into the A-Pillar to mount the bracket. To attach the snorkel to the bracket I used 4 self-tapping hex drill screws.
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| A-Pillar bracket |
The rubber pipe adapter holds the bottom of the snorkel in place. This pinches the pipe into the side of the fender and stays with the hose clamp. This was surprisingly effective, so much that when I tried to shake the snorkel, it instead shook the truck and the snorkel didn't budge.
With the pipe in place, along with the pipe adapter clamping the bottom in place, hold the pipe against the A-pillar bracket where you want the snorkel to sit and put a screw through the bracket to temporarily hold the pipe. This will keep everything in place so that you can align the top 45-degree fitting so that your Safari vent sits straight once everything is glued together. To keep the snorkel elevated off of the A-pillar while putting a screw in to hold it in place, I used a wrench as a shim. The final result will be that the snorkel will sit about .5" off the A-Pillar measured from where the shim is at.
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| Aligning the bracket |
Once you have all the pieces aligned, mark their orientation to each other with a permanent marker. Remove the snorkel body from the truck in one piece, disassemble, then reassemble with ABS glue, aligning the marks you made earlier during the test fit stage.
At this point it is up to you how you want the snorkel to look. You can leave it as is and mount it to the truck, paint it solid black, or do what I did and paint it with truck bed liner to match the finish of the Safari snorkel top vent. To paint with truck bed liner, scuff the entire snorkel with either sand paper or scotch brite pad. I also used my die grinder and ground off the labels and chunks that were imprinted in the plastic. Then, use a cleaner; I used Total Prep, to clean the pipe of all oils and contaminants. Remember to use rubber gloves so as to not contaminate the pipe with oils as you handle it.
Follow the instructions on the back of the can. Note that most paints will require a coat of primer before painting. If you are painting with truck bed liner you may not have to prime first, but double check prior to spraying. Make sure to paint the A-Pillar bracket as well or it will rust.
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| The painted pipe |
Once the paint is dry, attach the A-Pillar bracket to the truck, attach the snorkel to the rubber pipe adapter inside the fender and the snorkel body to the A-Pillar bracket using the self tapping hex screws. Finally, install the Safari Snorkel vent and once it is lined up and oriented correctly, attach using the supplied hose clamp.
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| Attach the bracket |
I used marine grade black silicon to seal the hole in the fender. Another, less permanent alternative is to use rubber trim material to line the hole. This will allow you to easily remove the snorkel if you ever need too. Note that you will probably have to enlarge the hole to accommodate the extra thickness of the trim. In addition, I also placed small rubber O-rings between the A-Pillar bracket and the A-Pillar. This will provide a water tight seal and will keep water from leaking into your truck.
All that's left is to run the pipe to your air box. Since I have an aftermarket K&N filter, I will be making a sealed enclosure for it and plumbing my snorkel into it later on. For those of you with a stock air box, you will have to do some modification to it in order to plumb the snorkel into the air box. It may be possible to make the bend inside the fender and connect to the factory pipe already in the side of the engine compartment. Your Tacoma may have more room inside the fender than mine did.
If you have a fender flare like I do, you will have to cut it to accommodate the pipe for the snorkel. I marked out the amount I would need to trim and cut half that. Then, with a die grinder, I grinded no more than 1/8" at a time and went back and forth checking the fit with the snorkel so that it would be perfect. Once I got the fender flare trimmed, I used some rubber trim to go around the cut so that it would all fit perfectly. This will still give you the ability to easily remove the fender flare if you need to ever repair it or replace it.
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| Rubber trim |
Check back in the future for a link to the follow-on article I'm doing that shows how I made a custom airbox for the K&N filter and my snorkel.
