Can sombody who has this setup tell me if the airflow is improved because of larger fresh air intake tubes and increased filter size or is the air chamber volume AFTER the filters much larger too? I think I want to go with this setup but I believe it would be mostly cosmetic if the air hits a restrictive bottleneck right after the filters.

 

Yeah I have it, and cen definately tell a difference, according to Anthony at TVT, they have about the same top end as a CAI and a better low end...the sound is just plain sexy though. mine rubs a TINY TINY bit...but i'm okay with that.

 

Brian, did the mb box just basically fit into the spot of the xf box or is it mounted on by some other means?

 

I have this setup too. It fits without any modifications and bolts on to the same mounting points. Of course you need larger air filters but other than that it's just a simple swap.

 

Any guess as to what sort of gain switching the box creates? I am definitely looking to go with the better flowing MB box and the MB V8 throttle body here soon... Right now I am running K&Ns and the grill mod, but I want more!

 

There is an improvement in throttle response and it revs a bit faster at the top end under full throttle (and the sound changed slightly too). This is for the combination throttle body and airbox.
I'm not as enthusiastic as others were here in the forum but I'm still pleased with the result. However in my opinion you only use the full potential of these mods when you get an ecu mod done too.

 

I definitely want to go with the TVT 250 package along with the aforementioned intake improvements, which brings me to what I have been wondering about along those lines: Oil Catch Can - I know this is a bit off the topic, but when is it necessary to install this horsepower-wise? I understand that upping the power on a high compression engine is adding even more pressure to the seals, so it makes sense to add one, but how much is too much pressure?

 

In my opinion the oil catch can is used to catch the oil gases that are rerouted from the engine to the intake (to get burned). That causes the intake itself to get soaked with oil residues which decreases airflow. Additionally the oil in the intake air lowers the octane of the fuel - the ecu compensates that by changing the timing accordingly - so you may loose a few hp (probably only 2 or 3 but everything helps right? ).
The solution is to use a little filter instead of the rerouting lines or (which is better for the environment and the cleaning of you engine bay) use a catch can.
In short: I haven't heard that you need a catch can if you have a higher compresson. And you wont gain any noticable hp with a catch can but you keep your intake clean and you use the full potential of high octane fuel.