oneilc

I just installed a Comptech Icebox installed in my 01 CLS. It produces quite an audible whine. Can anyone else with an Icebox comment on this?

mrsteve

iTrader: (1)

At idle, under acceleration.... details please.

A little increase in noise is normal.

oneilc

I notice it at idle but I dont think it decreases at I accelerate (the engine noise probably just covers it up). I would also describe it as a moderate increase in noise.

mrsteve

iTrader: (1)

Check the filter, make sure it is one tight. Other than that it sounds normal.

oneilc

I think you're right. From what I've been reading it seems to be normal. It's just a lot louder than I had expected!

UNCTYPE-S

i edited my post cause i thought u were talking about the actual sound of the icebox, not the whine. i wish the icebox had the sound of aem but kept the same setup. teh sex right there!!

Smitty

you should not get any whine from an ICY BOX...

did you check your turn signal fluid?

take283

I have the Ice Box and there is no whine noise?

cltypeSLOW

turn signal fluid? is that a joke? lol

sxsublime

i also have an ice box and no whine, check all the clamps probly an air leak some where

Dem1K

iTrader: (1)

the ONLY time I have a whine from my Ice Box is in the morning on a COLD start up...when it's like 50 degrees out. It whines for about 2 minutes through light acceleration, but then it just goes away.

Joe5.0

I have noticed zero sound gains from the icebox, and I have had lots of cold starts below 20*.

Double check all the hoses, amke sure they are all on sqaure and no clamps have come loose.

HellaShookOne

mine whines too
especially under idle under I get the rpms up

HellaShookOne

I figured out that mine is a vibration ferom the icebox itself. If it whines in idle in park, pop the hood and put your hand on the icebox. When I did this the whines went away. I was thinking about putting some padding in there to make the high pitched whine stop. It is kinda loud

oneilc

I'm thinking it must be an air leak from what you guys have said. Only weird thing is that when I start the car up it won't make the sound for about 5 seconds. After that it whines until the car is turned off.

I'll double check everything to make sure its all on tight. Man that sound is annoying, I hope I can get rid of it. There's no way I can live with that. It sounds like one of those cars with a belt that is ready to go.

Also when I turn my car off it makes this really weird sound (like a horse whiney). Doh!!!

oneilc

Another possibility for the noise has been brought to my attention. Could it be possible that there is not enough air getting sucked in? Or that the path of the air flow is too restricted (down by the bumper)? The sound stops when I am making a right turn, thus changing the airflow. Is there any need to cut a hole down in the area where the air is sucked in to relieve any restriction that may be occuring?

blackmagiCL_S

I had the whine when I had mine installed and it turned out the the case wasn't screwed down right or tight enough so it was just an air leak. I was so much happier afterward. I thought that my car was always going to sound like a UFO!

VeeralS05

well i know you really hear a hiss when u turn off the car...but i like that hiss

oneilc

I dont hear a hiss when I turn off the car. I hear a loud high pitched whine. The pitch increases as the air flow decreases. I'm hoping its just an air leak somewhere.

oneilc

The noise is a function of heat. The noise will not occur until the icebox is warm enough (doesn't take too long to warm up). This leads me to believe that something is expanding and air is escaping. But what the hell could it be?

Joe5.0

maybe its car dependant, but I put my icebox on last week and have not heard one squeak, rattle, hiss, or whine. I can barely tell that its louder at WOT. I think you guys should double check all connections, cuz even a small air leak will cause noise.

chevyjase

I hear a whole lot of WHINING on this article, seriously if it's too noisy for you take the fucker off.


Just jerking your chain dude

oneilc

Ahhh should've expected that one. Good burn but it's not gonna help me fix this problem!

HellaShookOne

trust me man its your icebox vibrating
its not an air leak or anything like that. Make sure the top is screwed down all the way. You can check the whine by turning your car on and waiting for the whine, which should kick in when your idle. Pop the hood and put your hand on the icebox and listen to the whine magically disappear. You need to screw it down tighter or add some padding.

ChadT

Did you get your icebox new? Did you notice if the resonator box was attached to the intake tube? It will make one hell of a whine if that box is missing or loose. The box is right under the plastic tube and looks like a small plastic oil bottle. There should be no noticable sound increase with the icebox. Sounds like you have a problem with the resonator.

oneilc

I did buy it new and the resonator box is definitely there. I appreciate the suggestion and will look more closely at that part.

mrblorry

My resonator came from Comptech with a broken vacuum tube post. Acura of Escondido did an incredible job of shipping out a replacement part within two days. Their ebay store rocks, BTW. My acura dealer had jury rigged some glue to seal the cracked tube until the new part arrived, and I just installed this afternoon. Seems to be a shade quieter, but the tech did a good job of sealing the leak, so I didn't expect there to be much difference anyway. Yeah, if any of those tubes aren't sealing properly, or there is a faulty resonator, you may get some really strange sounds.

Comptech's packing job was awful. There wasn't enough packing material, and that vacuum hose post was pushing against the inside of the box. It was a disaster waiting to happen.

oneilc

Update:

I took some time this afternoon and figured out where the whining sound was coming from. I've attached some pictures below to illustrate. Having the Icebox installed for me which was the mistake. The tech who performed the installation failed to remove the stock coolant/breather hose assembly. This caused them to route the breather hose incorrectly causing a kink. The noise was from the air restriction caused by this kink. The kink is located underneath the icebox tubing (next to the resonance chamber) so you can't see it on these pictures. You can however see where it goes under the tubing.

The stock coolant/breather hose assembly is basically two hoses in one for a brief section of metal piping. The way to install the icebox is to remove this component and replace it with two separate hoses. The air hose is supposed to be re-routed beneath the battery. You'll see from my pictures that the air hose was instead bent back up so that it could be attached to the stock breather hose. I really don't know why they didn't replace the stock coolant/breather hose assembly. It's clearly in the instructions to do so: check out http://www.comptechusa.com/instructions/ins105.pdf for the complete instructions. The instructions will make it clear what I'm talking about if I haven't explained it well enough.

The solution seems to be simple. I just need to buy two hoses (one 26 inch 5/16" diameter coolant hose and one 19 inch 1/2" diameter breather hose) and replace the stock coolant/breather hose assembly.

Pics:

I used my ghetto ms paint skills to label the parts I was talking about above. The part labeled breather hose should actually be a longer hose which goes under the battery (see the instructions for a picture of what it should look like).


The next couple of pictures show different views of the intake.

mattg

yeah, the metal tube is supposed to go bye bye after you install an intake

mrblorry

Let's clarify something here. Your first several posts indicate that you were the one who installed the box, but now it's a tech who did it? Unless you are you the mystery tech himself, I'm guessing you didn't do it yourself? OK. Neither did I. It looked too complicated to finish in an afternoon, and since I have no other means of transporation, I took it to the dealer to install.
My question: Where did you have it installed? A dealer, or a reputable speed shop? Or was it a sketchy place that does things for cheap? I took mine to my local Acura dealer that installs and supports Comptech stuff, and also charges exorbitant prices so I'm a little secure in knowing that if it screws up, I may have something to fall back on, even though that can't be my now grossly deflated wallet.

Oddly enough, those goons asked me for the Comptech instruction manual that came with the parts, and that really freaked me out. They had no internet access at the store, so I had to pull the instructions from the comptech site and FAX the pages over to them. Not the slightest bit confidence inspiring, I must say. However, it looks like they did a pretty good job, and they left me with all the old parts, one of which is a body colored bracket that came from somewhere I'd like to know! Hope it ain't critical!

oneilc

Yeah sorry about that. I guess I wasn't clear about who installed it. The current place I take my car to for service recommended a place called Thirteen Twenty motor sports which specializes in Acura aftermarket parts. This place is supposedly a reputable speed shop like you mentioned but I wouldn't recommend taking your car there after this little incident . I really don't know why they didn't take out the coolant/breather assembly but they seemed to get everything else right.

I did call the Acura dealer to inquire about the Icebox installation but they didn't seem to even know what the part was or how long it would take to install so I went elsewhere.

Rather than do it myself, I had it installed for the same reasons you did. Well, lesson learned. If you want it done right do it yourself.