CRF300L Snorkel Removed | Any Benefit?

Does removing the snorkel on the CRF300L improve anything? Better sound? Better performance?

[@thumpersquid]

Thanks for sharing! I will try this too. I have a DNA air filter that changed the induction sound already. I also have the 550 reflash ecu tune for stock muffler and noticed a big improvement in throttle response " less jerky on/off" and more power. It just made the bike "feel" better all around. I like the stock muffler because I love a quiet dual sport to sneak around on.

[@Scoottoots]

That DNA filter sure is expensive. K & N haven't produced one yet. If they do they'll be a lot less costly. For now I'm using the stock filter with the backfire screen removed. Glad to hear about your results with the 550 ecu for stock bike. Did you get the 91 octane version with the advanced timing? I agree regarding the stock exhaust. A bit of good sound is great but no way do I want the loud aftermarket sound. Been there done that before.

[@thumpersquid]

@@Scoottoots Yes I got the 91 octane version with advanced timing. Been real happy. When I first installed the ecu I had to heat cycle the engine 3 times to get engine light to go off per the instructions and never a problem. Worth the money in my humble opinion.

[@Scoottoots]

@@thumpersquid Thanks for that information. I appreciate it. I have a feeling I'll go that route also.

[@JohnnyBoy919]

Do any of you guys know if the stock improved map on 87 octane makes much of a difference? Most gas stations here have 92 or 93 octane instead of 91 and with the costs of gas now, not really interested in paying even more.

[@Scoottoots]

@@JohnnyBoy919 I believe they do. Google their web site (550 Performance). I recall they have a drop-down box on the page for the ECU that details the options.

[@craigc.6006]

I highly recommend you upgrading the shock/spring like you originally wanted. I actually ordered the K-Tech rear shock with the 15% stiffer front spring in late September after watching your video. It came in mid November to NJ, USA. It took 20 minutes to replace the rear shock and about an hour to replace the front right spring. With 30+ clicks of dampening adjustment.. makes the bike a whole different animal. You will not regret getting the K-tech. I got the 550 performance stage 1 ECU, Yoshi full with a DNA air filter and it just woke the bike up…actually it’s unbelievable…highly recommend. Great videos… keep them coming. Thank you!

[@Scoottoots]

Thanks Craig. That's great info. I hope to get that resolved one way or another soon.

[@Roboflux]

I have a Thai ecu, and thats it, would i be a benefit to just chang airfilter or must i do the exhaust too, greatings from Norway

[@johngraham8052]

Enjoying your videos. The torque value one also helped greatly when I changed the spring on the front forks on my 300L. Keep up the good work and salutations from Ireland.

[@Scoottoots]

Thank you, John. I appreciate that. Enjoy your rides :-)

[@dickvankoughnett2331]

I am looking forward to seeing what you do with the suspension. I am still waiting for my CRF 300 L to be delivered ,but no word as of yet . Having a factory Super moto being a CRF 230M . I can say if you go that way you will be giving up playing in the dirt .

[@Scoottoots]

I hope your 300L comes sooner than later. Strange times. Enjoy the heck out of it :-)

[@Casey_Schmidt]

I just put in the Ohlins shock on my 250L. I ordered mine from SRC Moto and received it within a few days. They are based out of the Oregon so I'm not sure how the delays would be for shipping across the border. They have parts in stock so at least that part might be faster. Just a thought anyway, happy riding!

[@Scoottoots]

Thanks Casey. Ohlins would be a bit pricey for me though :-)

[@NANA-qn8on]

Yes, it is a good sound with an increase in power. I did this after the break-in period. A friend has the same bike and he noticed such a difference he did the same and loves it. Great vid, thanks. A+

[@Scoottoots]

Thanks for chiming in on that :-)

[@livebyreason]

I often enjoy your ride vids - thank you. I had to give up riding some years ago as distracted driving is huge problem in the US - I could no longer accept the risk and enjoy the ride. Take care.

[@Scoottoots]

I guess you could ride dirt only though. But yes, I get it for sure. Since the addiction to cell phones, distraction from being present and aware is common.

[@erichalitsky1285]

I think for the type of riding you do , just a spring change on the shock would do wonders. Great scenery as usual ! 👍

[@Scoottoots]

Yup, it may just be the ticket, though the damping is just as bad as the spring rate. We'll see :-)

[@pugnboots5683]

Hey John, My family and I are heading to Kelowna. I'll be there the whole day on July 13th. Happy to meet up with you, maybe you could show me a couple trials. My wife is driving the car with my daughter, and told me I could have fun ridding around while they go shopping. We will probably stay at the Best Western. Will arrive the night of July 12th. My CRF300L Rally is coming in on June 28th. I was at the Honda dealer today and they confirmed it.

[@Scoottoots]

Hey Rick, Not sure if I'll be in town at that time but use the email on the 'About' page to contact me close to the date. Hopefully we won't be in the midst of wildfire and smoke like we were last year. Fingers crossed :-)

[@armored-clown]

I’m no engineer, but I think it’s common sense that you can’t just pull the snorkel and expect a positive engine improvement. If anything it’ll disrupt the flow of air into your air intake and make your bike run worse. Now replacing it for a less restrictive wider mouthed snorkel boot; that would probably give you a minor gain in engine performance

[@Scoottoots]

Well, it may not seem sensible to you but it does help performance. I have opened the airbox intake further, modified the muffler to allow some of the gasses from the first chamber to exit directly, and I've installed an aftermarket ecu to enrich the mixture, especially in open loop mode. These changes work together to increase performance and allow the engine to run a tad cooler. Longer life, more power at no risk. Nothing extreme, just moderate but definitely noticeable improvements in power, response, and slow speed control. I've also installed a competition quick-turn throttle and still have smoother slow speed throttle response than when it was stock.

[@vlaho1967]

Honda inžinjeri ,najbolji na svijetu u proizvodnji mašina svih vrsta i namjena...ali...mi smo pametniji...

[@donreed1133]

Good for you on the Super Moto decision. I would not want to do that to my CRF300L either. I’m have so much fun riding mine with wheels that came in it.

[@Scoottoots]

Yeah I'm firm on that decision. It is a lot of fun :-)

[@bkay5047]

Zero benefit, don’t do it

[@Scoottoots]

It's done and it's a benefit, especially suited to my other small modifications.

[@2shoestoo]

These bikes run lean enough from the factory with all the emission garbage. There are better ways to improve power that might be a safer way to go in my opinion

[@Scoottoots]

Yes, ideally a bit of enrichment is in order, though I did not set out to gain any power. These changes however are quite minor and pose no danger of running too lean. Side note: I'm surprised at how black and sooty the spark arrestor is on the 300l compared to the 250l. The 250l spark arrestor always stayed whistle clean with only the slightest light grey deposit.

[@2shoestoo]

@@Scoottoots yes these bikes need to be opened up so they can breath but we need to be able to make changes to the tune to compensate for the changes. Without a tuner/Dino or a pre-tune module to install we are guessing. In the old carburetor days we could re-jet to make changes. My comment was to be carful not to run to lean a condition and be caught off guard.

[@Scoottoots]

@@2shoestoo Thanks 2 Shoes, I appreciate what you're saying, and you're right to be cautious. On several past bikes including my current other bike, the cb650f, I have enriched the mixture to balance increased air intake/exhaust, and to counter the factory lean condition to run cooler and increase longevity. The mods to this bike are not putting the engine into a dangerously lean condition, however I plan on enriching the mixture with an ecu flash once I know for sure whether or not I want to do any further modifications.

[@2shoestoo]

@@Scoottoots let me know when you do and how it ends up I have been looking at doing a flash also. Just want to have the exhaust and air box mod ready when I do it. Very interesting because every little bit will help with this bike

[@Scoottoots]

@@2shoestoo After writing my last reply, I got to thinking, and I definitely will not go to an aftermarket exhaust or cams, so I ordered the 550 performance ECU, 'stock improved 87 octane.' I'm sure the 91 octane would give an extra snap being as they can advance the timing further than on 87 octane, but I object so strongly to the gas prices I can't bring myself to run 91, even though on this bike it's not a big cost difference. The added fueling and altered fueling zones both in closed and open loop, as well as the timing advance, should nicely take care of the intake and exhaust mods I've done and provide a bit more snap. They even sell a modified intake cover to vastly increase the intake and it is compatible with their stock improved tune, so my more modest mods will be covered fine. A bit pricey, but if it improves the response on this bike and enriches the mixture a tad, then over it's life it is well worth it. I intend to keep the bike forever. I will of course do a complete review once I've had it running for a while. Thanks for the nudge :-)

[@benconverse6158]

I did the Pomey Biker double snorkel mod on my Rally. (linked below). That added a lot of induction noise, but also the very quick ride I took had no air filter, so Im sure that contributed to the noise as well. It definitely felt smoother through the power band with more air coming in. I also cut the snorkel that connects to the throttle body down to reduce the pumping losses. Also it was a free mod vs doing the CBR intake boot mod. Overall I think its an improvement. I am going to have to keep an eye on the leanness. kzbin.info/www/bejne/qpSWfmdofr2Vd8U

[@Scoottoots]

The stock improved 550 Performance ECU is a good idea, especially with moderate mods like that. I also removed the backfire screen from the air filter (not recommended but we do these things anyway) and I opened the exhaust out a bit. Interesting idea to shorten the throttle body snorkel. It's always fun to mess around with these small bikes to get more out of them :-)

[@s.l.6736]

are you still satisfied with this mod ? I just put the first 200km on mine and I have the same comments as you. is the screen you placed on the end of the pipe necessary?( i currently dot have one laying around) should I also remove the snorkel from the air filter on top of that? thanks in advance

[@s.l.6736]

my mistake wrong video, this was meant on the video where you adjust the pipe

[@Scoottoots]

Yes I am still happy with the modification to the spark arrestor and also with removing the snorkel. So I still have the modified exhaust, snorkel removed, air box intake hole enlarged, and backfire screen removed from air filter (at your own risk of course). The screen at the end of the spark arrestor where I drilled out the end plate is necessary if you ride in forest fire prone areas as I do, and/or where forestry regs require it. The combination of improved intake and exhaust coupled with the 550 stock improved ECU gives the bike a bit better grunt and of course better sound. I also installed a G2 Quick turn competition throttle.

[@stephtraveler7378]

See Taco Moto. He did some extensive testing...and it made zero difference.

[@Scoottoots]

So did Patched Bandit. He even used a clip of my video (with my permission). He neglected to carefully watch my video though. I stated in my video that I had also modified the exhaust which improves the results of removing the snorkel. I also have a tuned ECU and further modified intake. To remove just the snorkel may not give any boost, however it would be almost impossible without a dyno to check for how the torque is applied through the lower to mid range. Acceleration tests won't paint the complete picture. I always do things in combination but I may start with one or two mods, then I tweak it with further changes to bring the kind of power characteristics out that I want from the bike. Works well for me :-)

[@doobielawson702]

Supermoto looks superlame to me, but I'm an offroad guy 100%

[@Scoottoots]

I think supermotos are a blast to ride; even more nimble, but I'm keeping it this way.

[@doobielawson702]

@@Scoottoots hey Scoot do you know if the catalytic converter can be removed on the 300L? If it can, will it harm the motor? I want to keep the stock exhaust as we use Cardo comms so I want to keep the bike quiet.

[@Scoottoots]

@@doobielawson702 No harm will come from removing the CAT. Most aftermarket exhausts are CAT free. I may be wrong, but I believe it is positioned just before the entrance to the muffler. It may require some cutting and welding. It also may increase the sound volume somewhat. If you do remove the cat, you can then remove or disable the PAIR system as it would not be needed anymore. It functions to provide heat to the CAT and to raise the exhaust temp to burn residual fuel in the headers. You can either completely remove the system or simply plug the hose from the air box that feeds it. You can insert a plug in the hose then reattach the hose to the nipple on the air box. To my knowledge, If you just plug the hose, leave everything else as is and do not disconnect the electrical connector. If you remove the CAT and do not disable the PAIR you might get exhaust popping on deceleration. Hope that helps.

[@doobielawson702]

@@Scoottoots excellent info Scoot, thank you for your time!