Merchant Automotive’s LBZ Resonator Delete
Merchant Automotive’s LBZ Resonator Delete
If you’re looking to clean up the engine bay on your 2004.5-2010 Duramax truck, have a few minutes to spare, and $25 burning a hole in your pocket, the crew at Merchant Automotive in Zeeland, Michigan, have just the product for you. The machined billet aluminum resonator delete plug is available in a machined aluminum finish with or without a stylized “DuraMax” engraving or in a black anodized finish with engraving as shown here.
In reality, installing the resonator delete plug will not free up horsepower or give you a boost in mileage, but it will clean things up under the hood. A lot of folks just head to Home Depot and buy a rubber cap and hose clamp to do the job, but if you want something with a little bling, that fits without looking like a plumbing part, the Merchant Automotive resonator delete plug is a good buy.
“Since the plug is precision machined to very tight tolerances, it’s easiest to install if the engine is at operating temperature and the plug is cold.”
What it does is allow you to remove the huge plastic resonator that sits over the engine and simplify the engine bay. The factory resonator is actually a noise-cancellation part so you will also hear a little more turbo intake noise, which is music to the ears of most diesel enthusiasts who enjoy the sound of a turbo spinning along at high rpm.
The team at Merchant Automotive designed the resonator plug to be a very tight fit with an O-ring seal as well as barbed ridges machined into the base of the plug to prevent it from popping out of the intake. Installing the plug is quite simple and only requires two tools, a T27 Torx bit and a standard screwdriver or 3/8-inch nut driver, and a few minutes of time in the driveway or garage. Since the plug is precision machined to very tight tolerances, it’s easiest to install if the engine is at operating temperature and the plug is cold, so throw it in the freezer before getting the tools out and taking a drive around the block or down the street to warm the engine.
After you warm up the engine, remove the T27 fastener securing the factory resonator in place, then lift it up from the intake tube with a rocking motion to free it from the rubber hose. Then, using a standard screwdriver or 3/8-inch nut driver, completely loosen the hose clamp securing the rubber hose to the base of the intake and pull the hose off the intake. To finish the job, align the billet plug and pop it into place in the intake tube; you may have to strike it with the palm of your hand to fully seat it. Do not use a hammer or heat gun when installing the plug as you could damage the intake tube. DW
SOURCE
Merchant Automotive
Dept. DW
200 N. Fairview Road, Suite 30
Zeeland, MI 49464
866-399-7169
www.merchant-automotive.com
