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AirdogII 165 or 100?

3K views 20 replies 8 participants last post by  carter_44 
#1 ·
I bought a AirdogII DF-165 a while back and I'm getting ready to have it installed, when I decided to read a little on the Airdog website. According the the FAQs on their site,the 100 is for up to 500HP, and the 165 is for up to 800 HP. It says the 165 may do damage to a truck having under 500 HP. Now my truck is mostly stock with the basic mods(cold air, exhaust, EFI live), maybe pushin 400 HP on the highest setting. Is the 165 over kill and am I going to damage my injector pump by running it? According to their website I will in time! Anyone heard of any problems running a bigger than needed Airdog system? Also I thought the AirdogII has a adjustable PSI setting to account for this?
 
#2 ·
the 165 for sure then. you'll love it, best thing ive done to my truck, runs so much better with it
 
#3 ·
I dont know how it could, you have a adjustment for your pressure and whatever isnt used by the engine goes back to the tank through the fill spout. I had a 165 in my lly and i didnt notice any fuel system reliability issues.
 
#4 ·
Yeah I've wondered the same thing OP. So a while back I called Airdog to ask about this, and when one of the "engineers" called back all he could tell me was that using too high an application might "blow out a seal or something".

I keep putting off getting a lift pump because I have just a moderate tune and I keep reading about reliability and customer service issues with both Fass and Airdog.
 
#5 ·
Thanks for the input guys. I sent an email to the Airdog tech dept asking them about the comment in their FAQs section. Haven't heard back yet. I'm kinda wondering if they mention that as a disclaimer in case anything does blow up! Still its got me nervous!
 
#6 ·
Yeah, please make sure to let us know their response.
 
#8 ·
Right, but OP's question is he already has the AD 165 and is nervous about installing it because of his moderate (under 500 hp) tuning.
 
#9 ·
Sorry, I ended up going by your last post on "holding off on it" and mistook it for the OP! If you already have it, I would just turn the pressure down on it- if you are down to about 5 lbs, that will help tremendously (I think too that they are trying to be a little over-cautious as the AD's will return whatever isn't needed, so it's not going to run the full 165 gallons per hour through the motor if not needed...). You will still have the filtration, and the positive pressure going to the CP3 and it doesn't have to suck...
 
#10 ·
Thanks K9duramax! I think I'll re-study up on Airdog's website and see if I can satisfy myself that it won't cause problems (I am aware of the benefits).
 
#11 ·
Think of the airdog II as a ball valve attached to your throttle pedal.

at idle, your CP3 doesn't demand as much fuel flowing to it so the AD will keep positive pressure to it.

As you depress the throttle, the CP3 demands more fuel flow So the AD opens up slightly keep the same amount of positive pressure on the cp3. ie the ball valve opens up

At WOT, the cp3 is demanding the most fuel so the AD is fully open to keep exactly the same the pressure there.

Like k9 said, the 165 unit is rated at max flow to pump 165 gallons an hour, but it will only supply a certain amount of positive PSI to the CP3.

Put it this way stanley, K9 supplied me my airdog and advised on the 165 because it allows you to upgrade in the future. It will only supply what your truck demands
 
#12 ·
Like boothybunch says it only supplies the necessary fuel to keep the pressure that it is set at to the cp3, the excess fuel is returned from the AD to the fuel tank. For an extra $15 (ADII 100-$655 vs ADII 165-$670) why not go with the pump that gives you the most versatility.

I don't think you have anything to worry about running the 165.
 
#13 ·
Thanks guys, those were helpful posts. Just to be clear, say you're just cruising on flat road at 50mph with mild tune. Since not much fuel is being called for, the AD 100 and the AD 165 would be delivering the same amount of fuel through the OEM filter head and on to the fuel rail? In other words, the 50 gph max. flow rate of the OEM filter would not be reached with either AD?
 
#14 · (Edited)
you have hit the nail on the head. If both pumps are set for say 7psi positive pressure, then both will supply the same flow because they are flowing thru the same pipes and hoses up until a point. The 165 will more than likely cooler because it's not having to work as hard to maintain flow/pressure

put it this way if the 100 is running a full power 100GPH, the 165 is running at 60% power in theory. If your pumping 50GPH on the 100 units, Your only at 30% power on the 165.

Better to run something at 50% power or less and know you have reserve than to run something balls out and run out of steam.

To be honest, You could pull the stock fuel filter head and just run the AD unit only, BUT a lot of people are running the stock filter head as well as a AD and not had a problem. When it comes time to change the filters, bang on a set of fleetguard units. to delete the stock unit just buy a back to back hose barb and job done
 
#15 ·
That is what I figured, but what has me still confused (and this is back to the OP's original question) is why does AD's FAQ warn against using too high an application, and why did the AD "engineer" tell me "it could blow out a seal or something"?

To take it further, a guy with a 700hp tune slowly cruising along unloaded is calling for approx. the same amount of fuel as a stock tune under the same conditions, so why wouldn't the AD 165 be too high an application for him at that point (based on AD's warning)?
 
#16 ·
Well stanley, I have got a 165 on my truck and not had a problem.

to answer the FAQ

What pump do I need for my truck?

AirDog® and AirDog® II 100 units are recommended for up to 500 horsepower.

AirDog® 150 and AirDog® II 165 units are recommended for horsepower up to 800.

AirDog® II 200 units are recommended for anything that exceeds 1000 horsepower.

I daily drive my truck and it is only 300 horsepower. Will running an AirDog® 150 or AirDog® II 165 hurt anything?

No it will not hurt the pump. But it could cause you headaches down the road. Running way too much fuel to an injection pump that can't handle it can cause an increase in fuel pressure, which on some trucks could cause damage to that injection pump and possibly cause it to fail. Running a pump to fit your horsepower is suggested and will help keep you away from small potential issues.

the word there is COULD. Experience shows you will be ok as long as the pressure is not set too high, max pressure i am sure someone said is 7psi

As they say in the FAQ for the airdog II,

First, the fuel for the engine, passes into the fuel pickup tube and on to the engine. Then, the excess fuel not needed by the engine recycles internally through the pressure regulator back to the water separator.

Which means it will supply the pressure you set it at (unless you leave it a factory setting) to the CP3 and anything over that will recycle internally. It will ONLY flow what is required.
 
#17 ·
Boothy is on the stick and beat me to the punch on this; But I think he explained extremely well!

I think the "cautions" are put out there so that way people don't go with the "bigger is better" theory and everyone runs out and gets the 200, thinking that they are going to get more performance, etc. out of their truck. I think if you run the high volume pumps, and don't pay attention to your pressures (turning it down if not needed) then you will probably create more hassles than you would want.
 
#18 ·
Thanks for all the input guys! Well I finally got an email back from Air Dog about the FAQ. All he said was that " the 165 is a very user freindly unit and I should be fine". So I decided to go for it, and today I got my truck back from a shop that installed it for me. I would have installed it myself, but I have a 45 gallon tank under the truck and all of my hoses have been modified. The shop fabbed up a custom mount bracket and had to use differant fittings, but it turned out really nice. They said they set the PSI at 8. The truck idles a little smoother and seems to start easier. So far I'm really happy with it. I'm adding gauges soon including a fuel rail pressure gauge. I'll report back with any problems, but for now, its golden!
 
#20 ·
Thanks for update!
 
#21 ·
I ran an Airdog 200 on a basic mods type truck and with the pressure on the pump cranked up it would make the truck lope. Turned the pressure down and all was good. Run the 165 just in case you want to add more power down the road.
 
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