Intake System Information Page
DISCLAIMER
The information provided here is for general guidance purposes only. It is a combination of manufacturer guidance, first- and second-hand experience, and personal opinion. It may me inaccurate, incomplete, or outdated.
The engine air intake systems ("intake systems” for short) used in Gaydon-era Aston Martins are all fairly similar. They have inlets at the front of the car that route air into a pair of air boxes, an air filter in each air box cleans air that then gets metered and either goes into a pair of throttle bodies (V12 cars) or is joined back together before passing through a single throttle body (V8 cars). While there are lots of similarities, there are also a few key differences in the intake systems used on these cars.
The intake systems on these cars are actually quite good, but there are some things to know when it comes to maintenance and modifications. Also keep in mind that even though I might refer to something being “the same” conceptually, it might actually have physical differences that prevent it from being interchangeable from one model to another.
To start this off, here’s a super old video I made ages ago discussing the V8 Vantage intake system.
Wow… my video production quality has come a long way since then lol.
Anyway, I’ve divided this Information Page into sections, each covering a different part of the intake systems.
Return to Information Pages index
Jump to Section
Air Boxes and Inlets
Gaydon-era Aston Martins have a pair of air boxes - one is located under each of the headlights. An inlet feeds air from the front of the car into each air box and there’s an air filter inside of each one.
The air inlets are a bit different depending on what engine is in the car. A central air inlet is positioned in the middle of the main front grille of the V8 Vantage, which then drops down and splits into two to feed each of the air boxes. The V12 cars have a pair of inlets, each of which is positioned to draw air from the outer corners of the grille.
Cold Air Intakes
Because the air boxes are positions in the nose of the car, outside of the engine bay, and are fed by air that’s drawn from the front of the car, the intake system used by Aston Martin is a true “cold air intake.” I wanted to point that out because every once in a while I’ll get an email from someone new to Astons that wants to do the typical modification path that’s often done with other types of cars without quite realizing what they’re modifying. Cold air intake has become something of a snake oil product for certain “tuning communities” and, while such a thing can make a huge difference on certain cars, it’s meaningless on an Aston Martin because it comes with one from the factory.
Power Pack Air Boxes
The air boxes used for all of these cars are very similar, except for a key variation: the valved Power Pack air boxes.
In 2008, Aston Martin introduced an up-rated version of the V8 Vantage called the N400. The limited-edition car featured the same 4.3L V8 as the standard car, but put out up to 400 bhp (hence the name) and 310 lb-ft. The additional 20 hp and 8 lb-ft came from new air boxes and a revised engine tune. The N400 intake and tune package was later offered as a dealer retrofit to all 4.3L V8 Vantages - this was called the Aston Martin Power Pack. The modest bump in power output came with a hefty price: It often cost around $5,000 installed.
The package was re-used again with the introduction of the V8 Vantage S, this time bumping the 4.7L engine's power from 420 hp to 430 and from 350 lb-ft to 361 lb-ft. The same configuration is used on the V8 Vantage GT, which carries over those (and other) components from the V8 Vantage S.
Power Pack style intake boxes were also used on V12 cars, helping bump power up in those beyond the original 450 bhp of the early DB9 until those engines were putting out 600 bhp at the end of the Gaydon era.
While the same in concept, there are differences between the air boxes used on different cars.
The valved (Power Pack) intake boxes themselves are essentially the same as the standard ones but modified to allow extra air into the air box when a valve opened. The valve was controlled by a solenoid, which was attached to the side of the air box.
When activated, the solenoid will open a flap in the air box and allow extra air in to feed the engine.
Removing the Air Boxes
Air boxes are used to protect intake filters, reduce intake noise, and sometimes control air flow. Given where the air boxes are located in Gaydon-era Aston Martins, sound reduction isn't too important and removing them makes a negligible difference inside the cabin.
The critical function of the air boxes in these cars is the protection of the intake filters. While removing the air boxes is safe for most situations, it's critical to know the risk involved.
Warning: Removing the air boxes will increase the risk of damage to the intake filters, MAF sensors, and the engine itself.
The risk is that the filters will be more exposed to debris that may damage or dislodge them and allow unfiltered air into the intake system. Even more concerning is that there will be nothing stopping water from getting through the filters if the car is driven through water deep enough to reach the filters. If water gets through the filters, it can hydro-lock the engine or cause other serious damage. This may sound far-fetched, but it can happen. It nearly happened to me during a rainstorm in Florida!
I've heard race teams may gain as much as 10 bhp by removing the air boxes on their race cars along with adding venting to allow high-pressure air from under the car to reach the exposed intake filters. But again, there's a risk of damage to the exposed filters, or even the chance of water getting sucked into the intake and potentially hydro-locking the engine.
If you still want to remove the air boxes, I sell air box delete brackets that do the job. I’ve been using them myself for years, but again you need to understand the risks involved.
Intake Air Filters
Each of the air boxes contains an intake filter which is used to clean air that enters the engine. The factory intake filters are made of a paper filtration element and are press-fit in place inside the air boxes (meaning, there’s no clamp holding them on). Despite being made of paper, the factory filters are pretty good thanks to their size and surface area. Case in point, the exact same filters are used on everything from a 380 bhp V8 to a 600 bhp V12.
When it comes to options for air filters, there are three main types to pick from. First are those made from a paper filtration media, which is common for OEM intake filters. Second are dry cloth intake filters, which tend to flow better than paper but offer less protection for the engine. Third are oiled cloth intake filters, which tend to flow the best but offer the least protection.
I am personally not a fan of oiled intake filters but started offering them because my customers kept asking for them. I use my dry filters, though, as I’ve lost a few MAF sensors to oiled filters in the past and prefer dry filters anyway.
Regardless of what intake filters you use, if you choose aftermarket filters you need to make sure they fit properly. Since the intake filters are pressed into place without the use of a clamp, a filter that doesn’t fit well will unfiltered air to bypass the filter, potentially contaminating the MAF sensor behind it or even damaging the engine. If you remove your air boxes, the lack of an air box cover could let the intake filter fall off.
MAF Sensors
Mass air flow (MAF) sensors are used to measure air as it travels from the air box to the throttle body. This is pretty common to any modern car so feel free to scour the internet for more information if you want, otherwise I’ll carry on with the Aston-specific stuff.
Gaydon-era Aston Martins use two MAF sensors - there’s one positioned in the ducting immediately after each of the air boxes. The engine management system takes readings from both to see if there’s an issue on one side of the engine. If one MAF sensor is flowing differently than the other, a check engine light (CEL) and MAF Correlation Error will be displayed on the gauge cluster. Differences in air flow from one side to the other can be caused by a loose intake filter, cracked air box, or misplaced air box cover gasket.
The MAF Correlation Error can also be caused by a damaged MAF sensor, so that’s a place to look if you can’t see anything physically wrong with any of the intake system components. Most of the time I’ve seen a damaged MAF sensor was due to contamination caused either by a woefully out of service intake filter, or from oil from an aftermarket oiled intake filter.
Replacing a MAF sensor isn’t too hard, so long as you know what to look for.
Throttle Bodies
After passing through the MAF sensor, air travels through ducting toward the engine.
The intake ducting of a V8 Vantage joins together before entering a single throttle body. The V8 Vantage throttle body is supplied by Bosch and, from what I can tell, is a bespoke variation of the one used for the Porsche Cayenne.
Each of the intake ducts of a V12 car stays separate from the air boxes until each enters its own throttle body. The throttle bodies used for the V12 engine changed around 2013 so it’s important to know which one you have. I supply throttle body O-rings with my V12 Engine Oil Change Packages and they do vary depending on which throttle body you have as the early V12 needs a smaller throttle body O-ring than is used on the later V12.
The throttle bodies used on a V12 engine are different than the one used on the V8 engines, so there are a few throttle bodies available for Gaydon-era Aston Martins and they are not interchangeable.
Throttle Body Cleaning
One of the strange things that sometimes needs to be done to maintain an Aston Martin is cleaning the throttle bodies. This is because of oil from the intake manifold getting into the throttle body and gunking it up over time. Cleaning the throttle body is really easy to do and I’ve got a DIY Guide showing it.
When you remove a throttle body, you’ll want to replace the gasket (V8) or O-ring (V12) that seals the mounting surface between the throttle body and intake manifold (I also sell these on their own in the Redpants Online Store). It’s also a good idea to clean the electrical connectors at the same time, as this can also cause issues for the throttle body.
Intake Manifolds
The final section of the intake system before air enters the engine is the intake manifolds.
V8 Intake Manifolds
There are two intake manifolds available for the V8 Vantage and they are nearly the same.
The standard intake manifold is the grey one found on most V8 Vantages. It has a single throttle body, which is made by Bosch and is similar - but not the same - as the one used on the Porsche Cayenne.
The other intake manifold is the black one used on the V8 Vantage S, N430, GT, and cars fitted with Power Pack air boxes.
The only physical difference between the standard grey intake manifold and the black one is that the black one has an extra port for the vacuum hose that goes to the control solenoids on the Power Pack air boxes. Other than accommodating that vacuum hose and having a black finish, the intake manifolds are the same. If you eliminate the air boxes and cap off the vacuum line - like I had done on my grey 2007 V8 Vantage - there is no difference between the grey and black intake manifolds other than the color.
V12 Intake Manifolds
It may not be too obvious but there are a few intake manifolds available for the V12 engines. The first was used on the early DB9. The DBS featured different intake manifolds that had be redesigned slightly to give more top-end performance by changing the intake runner length. These redesigned intake manifolds were continued over to other models including the updated MY13+ DB9.
Then there’s the magnesium intake manifolds that were introduced at the end of the Gaydon era. These were introduced as part of the AMR Power Pack for the V12 Vantage S, both increasing power and reducing weight. The added power was marketed as “up to 30 bhp” but that’s in conjunction with a revised exhaust so the difference from the intake manifold on its own is unknown. The weight reduction was said to be 1.6 kg (3.5 lb).