How to install Vararam

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wildkarde

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Used with no instructions... There's gotta be a PDF somewhere. I'm pretty handy with a tool box but I could use a few pics
 

wildkarde

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I got it in.
Someone mentioned up top about the horn relocation. It was easier just to grind a notch out for the horn as it sits. I reversed them at first and it still sat funny in that area.

Hardest part was getting the sensor out the original plastic tube.
 

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hemiguy93

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I was wanting to put one on my truck with the new 6.4 HEMI, vararam seems to be the only one with an intake for it. does this intake void the warrenty though?
 

GreyBush

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I just installed mine and then I uninstalled it because a couple things troubled me.

It uses a dam system that picks up air flow from the front grill, through the Ram's active shutter system. There are 6 louvers, or shutters, and the dam only extended over the top two.

It may be designed that way, with the rest of the air flow through the other 4 lower louvers for the radiator, but with the 3" body lift I just wasn't sure it was lining up the way it's supposed to (yes, I did use a 3" longer intake hose).

Also, the Ram's active shutter system will almost certainly restrict air flow from getting to the intake when it closes. The Vararam dam is behind the shutters, and the shutter's are designed to close to improve aerodynamics until the engine reaches a certain temp and then it opens to cool the engine.

Doesn't seem right having this thing sitting behind closed shutters, and then only picking up air flow from 2 of the 6 shutters when they are open.

Anybody have any thoughts on this?

I have. Just installed mine this evening. Looking at the louvers there appears to be holes behind them when closed. There HAS to be air coming through regardless of open or close, remember it's not just the engine being cooled through the radiator and/or AC coils. JMO
 

GreyBush

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I'm gonna double post...sorry. As stated above, installed mine tonight on a 2015 Sport CC. It was easy and straight forward, the most interesting issue was the oil breather cap, I had to move it around to put the engine cover back on. There were two critical issues to overcome. The hardest issue was trimming the plastic 'air dam' (not sure what to call it, the vertical part behind the radiator). On my 2015 I had to trim the passenger side to fit around some lines (either trans or A/C), once that was done the system sat flat. The other was the A/C lines running between the engine and radiator, the upper (larger) line interfered with the system sitting flat. I popped both lines from the front hanger, turn the hanger upside down, installed the upper line in the lower grove, made clearance between the lines with some old rubber hose then ziptide them together to keep from chaffing...it ain't pretty but it works and you can't see it under the intake. It took me about an hour and a couple beers to finish this. I'll give it 2 wrenches for difficulty. Tim
 

GreyBush

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UPDATE: After driving to work and back I realized the 'air dam' part' chaffed the louver actuator in the middle of the grill. As soon as I cranked the truck I heard a popping sound, it was intermittent all the way to work...about half way there I figured out what it was...when I got home and researched the issues I found the louver actuator was hitting the air dam. Trimmed the air dam and all is good, I notched the air dam about 2" by 1". Hope this helps. Tim
 

BIGDX

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I just installed mine and then I uninstalled it because a couple things troubled me.

It uses a dam system that picks up air flow from the front grill, through the Ram's active shutter system. There are 6 louvers, or shutters, and the dam only extended over the top two.

It may be designed that way, with the rest of the air flow through the other 4 lower louvers for the radiator, but with the 3" body lift I just wasn't sure it was lining up the way it's supposed to (yes, I did use a 3" longer intake hose).

Also, the Ram's active shutter system will almost certainly restrict air flow from getting to the intake when it closes. The Vararam dam is behind the shutters, and the shutter's are designed to close to improve aerodynamics until the engine reaches a certain temp and then it opens to cool the engine.

Doesn't seem right having this thing sitting behind closed shutters, and then only picking up air flow from 2 of the 6 shutters when they are open.

Anybody have any thoughts on this?


Yeah I figured the same thing.

I'm heavily leaning towards a Volant CAI with the 100,000 mi Donaldson filter and optional Air Snorkel that grabs air from under front of truck

I actually had the same Volant CAI setup on my 2007 Chevy Suburban LT that I traded in for my 14' Ram 1500.
The power gain I got from the Volant in the Chevy was INSTANTLY NOTICEABLE when I pulled out of the driveway. That was the only engine mod I had. Everything else was stock. It really pulled with noticeably more speed and power. Fuel economy stayed about the same. I had the Donaldson 100,000 mile filter on it as well which to my understanding runs RINGS around every other filter out there.

Plus I know my intake air is getting better filtration and the automatic grille shutters can be fully closed and I still get cold air into my intake. Yeah....i'm going with another Volant!! :favorites13:
 

jwheeler

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I got it in.
Someone mentioned up top about the horn relocation. It was easier just to grind a notch out for the horn as it sits. I reversed them at first and it still sat funny in that area.

Hardest part was getting the sensor out the original plastic tube.


There are a couple in this thread that have reinstalled the little cover over the grill. How is any air going to get to the filter?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

BigChief

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Is this item the same part number for all 4th gen Rams? I am seeing one online but it doesn't list my model year, cuts off at 2012.

[Edit] For those of you who have similar a similar question to mine: I called Vararam to order my 4th gen kit, and the gentleman who answered asked me what year I had before going forward with the transaction. I assume it is because there is a difference in the configuration. I also contacted JEGS about their advertised 09-12 air grabber (which was my initial question), and they said that their product does not fit my specific vehicle.
 

jackblackjeet

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I took a ton of pictures from my vararam install today. I'll upload them tomorrow so that we can replace the missing ones from post #1.
 

BigChief

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I installed mine yesterday too, but I was away from home at my family's house when I got bored enough to tear my Ram apart. :)

The instructions having very little to do with my 2014 besides the common parts. Anyone who got the same kit I did will not need to get out a 15mm socket etc. I needed a slotted and phillips screw driver. I also used a rivet popping tool but a large slotted would have worked fine.

The air sensor just sort of sits in the punched hole made in the silicone tube, but I doubt it's going anywhere considering there is no load or room to move anywhere. Another thing, I found out after taking the radiator cover off that my Ram is equipped with louvers. Can I just unplug those and leave them wide open?
 

jackblackjeet

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I have borrowed the text from Post #1 and have added some annotations from my experience and some pictures from my install.

***Artwork on the Vararam filter lid was done by Tat2hemi, so if you like it, he's your guy***

•Step ONE: Remove the OEM air temp sensor by squeezing and pulling on the wiring harness.

nHOA8Lx.jpg

•STEP TWO: Twist off the oil cap- This will allow you to remove the OEM engine cover. Simply lift up and the cover will come off. Don’t forget to put the oil cap back on after removing the cover.

* on my 2014, I did not need to remove the oil cap to remove the engine cover. Simply lift up and towards the front and it came right out* *Also, I performed this after steps 3 and 4*

C0M0bvS.jpg

•STEP THREE: Remove OEM intake hose using flat head screwdriver

wxeykGe.jpg

•STEP FOUR: Remove the OEM air box- just pull up this will release with a good strong pull straight up.

jQ95Ccg.jpg

*I broke one of my OEM air box tabs by pulling up too strong on this, so be careful*

f6R7MjW.jpg


•STEP FIVE: Remove the front shroud cover. Using your flat head , pry these round plastic push clips "UP". They will release with a stiff pull. Remove this OEM foam cover out of your way. (Optional) You may choose to cut out the center section at a later time , so that it may be reinstalled to give a more OEM look.

N0UiQNV.jpg

•STEP SIX: Move the wiring harness in front of the horn- you will need to clip or pull the wire holders as well as remove the horn bracket screws (10MM) Once the harness is put in front of the horn you will re-attach the horn assembly. This frees up the restriction caused by the harness.

*I did not need to do this for my 2014 so no pictures of this to share. *

•STEP SEVEN: Assembling the VR system. The easiest way to do this is to, attach the front wing to the upper plenum outside of the truck on a nice flat surface, like a kitchen table or workbench.

*I forgot to take pictures of this as well.*

•STEP EIGHT: Install the air temp sensor at this time, push and twist, You may need to use some lube like W/D You will need your 10mm socket wrench and a screwdriver Install the screws and lock nuts as shown here.

* no pictures of this either, I pushed my IAT in until the rubber o-ring was on the inside of the red tube that mounts on the throttle body. It was a perfect fit. Also be sure that you have your IAT in the correct direction, mine had a little lock pin that needed to be pointed straight up to allow air to flow through the sensor correctly.*

•STEP NINE: You are now ready to place the system on the truck as one whole unit.

* I did this after step 10, because once this thing is in place there isn't a lot of room to work on the PCV.*

• STEP TEN: Remove the short 45 deg section of the PCV line, this will become your new PCV line. using this shorter end Simply reinstall this back on to the valve cover and push the chrome breather into the short 45 deg OEM hose, you can
rotate the hose in any position desired

*the PCV line is the the black hose that has black foam cushioning around it. In my picture below it starts just behind the oil cap and goes to the OEM air box. You remove that main length of hose and the short 45 degree piece is sticking up behind the oil cap*

C0M0bvS.jpg

You can see the shiny chrome breather pretty good in this picture

YGlKNG1.jpg


• BONUS STEP 1: Cut a 2" x 2" section out of the upper left of the air dam to improve fitment.

yXIyHUt.jpg

• BONUS STEP 2: Trim the shroud so that it can be reinstalled for OEM look. In my picture I did not cut enough away and ended up going about 1 inch further into the shroud to allow more air. I used a cheap dremel with a plastic cutting disc.

Xi6I0oh.jpg

FINISHED INSTALL PICS

iOA9f1x.jpg

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pile of leftover OEM parts

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TEST MPG Control Course (30 mile roundtrip to my office, low traffic because weekend, tested right before the install)

vXSeLfM.jpg

TEST MPG Vararam Installed (30 mile roundtrip to my office, low traffic because weekend, tested after 2 hours off batter was complete)

JKtaHIC.jpg


The whole install was pretty quick 40 minutes tops. I unhooked my battery before I started the install so that I wouldn't have to wait as long for the computer to reset. I had check engine light on for the rest of the day. I pulled everything apart to double check, eventually gave up and said I'd worry about it the next day and take to O'Reilly's to read codes, but that night the CEL was gone on it's own.
 

DavidRam

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Dude that's an awesome write up! Vararam should pay you for that to replace their ****** pictures and directions. Seriously, send it them...
 

ram5.7hemi

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anyone back up the claims on their website about adding more power? mpg? or torque?

is this mod ok to do under warranty?
 

misuracaf10

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too bad the photos are no longer available for the install :(
 
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