Up next From Mattel Matchbox Design to Full-Size Truck Published on May 27, 2017 Author Chris Tobin Tags Chevy, Diesel, diesel performance, diesel power, dmax, Duaramax, GMC, sierra, Silverado, Share article Facebook 0 Twitter 0 Mail 0 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.”Subscribe Our Weekly Newsletter 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. BEFORE AFTER 1A & 1B The Merchant Automotive resonator delete plug features a black anodized finish with engraved accents as well as an O-ring seal and barbs to prevent it from backing out of the intake tube. 2 After driving the truck for a while to bring it up to operating temperature, Clayton Putt used a T27 Torx bit to loosen the retaining fastener for the resonator. 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 3 Putt then simply pulled the resonator away from the engine with a rocking motion to loosen it from the turbo intake tube. 4 To remove the rubber hose from the turbo intake tube Putt fully loosened the hose clamp so that it can easily slide over the flange molded into the end of the intake tube seen here. 5 Taking the billet resonator plug from the freezer to the truck, Putt aligned it, then pressed it into place. He did have to swat it with the palm of his hand to fully seat it into the tube. 6 Merchant Automotive’s billet aluminum resonator delete plug looks much better than the cheap plastic resonator. SOURCE Merchant Automotive Dept. DW 200 N. Fairview Road, Suite 30 Zeeland, MI 49464 866-399-7169 www.merchant-automotive.com Total 0 Shares Share 0 Tweet 0 Pin it 0 Share 0
