How do i get my $%&# airbox out?

1981 xj750rh, don't want to remove the engine or carbs, just want to pull off the airbox (to clean it, and know how in case I go pods or want to mod it).

Haynes manual is very vague. It looks like maybe the tubes connecting the airbox to the carbs can come free? I loosened them at the carb and pulled the whole unit (tubes and box) off, and there was nothing LIKE enough space to work it out of the frame...

 

have to pull the engine to get the airbox out without cutting/deforming/breaking it.

 

Like Mav said, the prescribed way is to pull the engine.

Now, some people have had success with just pulling all the mounting bolts, and slide the engine front and down, and with a lot of cursing and swearing you MIGHT get the box to slide out. Then you still have to get the engine back and up so that you can get the mounting bolts back in.

What I find works best, is my trusty friend, Mr. Hot Air Gun. Warm up the sides and bottom of the square part of the box and when it's warm enough you can fold it right together, pull the box out quick and then either straighten it back out now, or leave it folded up if you are going to put it back in. Go methodically with the heat gun, and don't stay in one place too long. Keep moving and keep the heat even.

Good luck,

dave f

 

That's plain NUTS. How did they end up deciding the air box should be harder to remove than the engine itself? Can you at least get the CARBS of without removing the engine? Was looking at that, seems like the bolts holding them on are really hard to get at with the engine in place.

 

The idea is that there generally isn't any reason to pull the airbox on any sort of regular basis so it doesn't matter that it is trapped in the frame by the motor.

The carbs can be a little tight sliding the carbs in and out but no big deal. don't know what bolts you are looking at that are hard to get to though. loosen the bolts on the airbox to give you a little wiggle room, pull the throttle and choke cables off and loosen the clamps on both sides of the carbs and they should slide right out

 

It's not nuts at all when you consider that there's no good reason to ever completely remove the airbox.

The carbs are held into the rubber intake manifolds by clamps; the manifolds stay put.

You remove the rack of carbs to perform maintenance, the airbox likewise stays put.

What the manual skims over/leaves out is that there is a provision on nearly all XJs to allow the airbox to slide rearward slightly to facilitate carb removal. I can't give you detailed specifics because each model is slightly different but you should be able to remove the mounting screws (not always easy to find them all) and move the airbox back.

Then you either extract the carb-to-box boots or push them back into the airbox; and rotate the whole rack upward to the rear and extract it out the RH side.

 

Like the others have said already......

There's no need to remove the airbox, and there's no need to add pods. either way is asking for a hassle.

The only reason that I have removed airboxes is because someone has asked for asked for an airbox (because of realizing that pods weren't the answer) and I'd pull one from a parts bike.

 

OK, that's making sense. I think I was looking at the bolts that hold the carb runners to the engine, and not the ones holding the carbs to the runners.

Only reason I'd be removing / modifying the airbox would be cosmetic; since the under-seat area is otherwise totally empty, the but that sticks back from the airbox to hold the filter is visually intrusive. But yeah, given the changes to jetting and possible negative performance impact, that's probably best avoided.

 

i got pissed off and used my sawzall lol but i was going with pod filters

 

hmm...sawzall and XJ and pissed off...sounds like a reciipe for Oh NO!

 

Lol it actually turned out great.

 

well.... not prove the experts wrong (but I'm going to..) I WAS able to remove the airbox from my 82 xj750...without breaking/cutting anything and without removing or loosening the engine...but then again I'm a stubborn cuss, and the most sure-bet way of getting me to do something is tell me it can't be done...



I will be the first to admit that I probably got lucky that I got it out w/o breaking anything. It was a biotch getting it out. There was a lot of twisting and contorting...plus some contorting of the airbox too... oh and probably some cussing, think IK raised my BP a few points getting it done as well. Best bet if you MUST get it out, do it when you pull the motor..

 

Yea buddy i worked at it for maybe 10 minutes then broke out the saw lol with the way i built my frame it never woulda fit again so i said to hell with it and cut it up which btw i had to make little pieces of it. Now my next bike i build which might be an xj550 im gonna pull the motor first thing and punch it out along with powder coating the motor so idk what ill do, maybe cafe racer or hardtail with a springer front end who knows. Btw nice toys in the back ground

 

I was working in a sub-freezing garage, so just removing the tubes between the airbox and carbs was hard enough. I don't think the airbox would have flexed that much.

Don't want to put it back in, can't decide if I want to go pods, or build a replacement airbpox that has the same tuning properties but a different form factor (better looking, nicer filter, easily removed, same or variable resonance).

 

Heat gun as previously said. Or pull the engine.

 

I was looking for a post where someone removed theirs by taking off the carbs,intake boots, airbox boots and starter. And without moving the motor forward or out, or using a heat gun. But I would keep a heat gun handy.
BTW, Some people on this site have been able to put pods on their XJ's with success.

 

I put them on mine with no problems my bike runs like a champ too

 

Don't get confused by "Some".

It's more like "A limited number".

Don't hack-up that Airbox.
You might get frustrated trying to Dial-in those Pods.
The least you should do is offer it to someone who has Pods and is looking for an Airbox and Boots.

 

+1 on Mad B. I was able to install mine on my 83 750 Maxim without too much effort. Carbs and manifolds off and when right in. Note: it went in from the right side of the bikes.
Also there was a you tube video on how to do it.
MN

 

I never said pods were easy, but if " A Limited Number" can do it. Then others can do it too.