Fuel Injection Envy Cured: IntelAjet Review
We know that electronic fuel injection is the future, but let’s be honest: hundreds of thousands of ATVs around the globe make use of the tried and true mechanical carburetor as the fuel metering option of choice.
A well tuned carb can be every bit as efficient and capable as the more complex (and typically heavier) fuel injection systems. The trouble is that a carburetor perfectly tuned to the conditions of your back yard can find itself drastically out of tune depending on elevation, temperature and even air quality. Until now the solution has been a fairly painful one: Disassemble the carb and replace the air and fuel metering jets with units better suited to the conditions at hand. Even the best mechanics can attest that it is generally a hit or miss experience; proper results often coming only after repeated rounds of trial and error.
Enter the IntelaJet from Thunder Products (the same company responsible for the Dial-a-Jet). Machined from billet aluminum, laser engraved and anodized for great looks and corrosion protection, the IntelaJet mounts on the carburetor with a controller unit that mounts up on the handlebars.
The IntelaJet allows the rider to control fuel flow without having to leave the saddle. It sounds like the stuff of wishful thinking, but the science is solid. The main metering module is a completely sealed unit with the exception of the air inlet port which is supplied with a snorkel kit that meters the incoming air. Not unlike that of the Dial-A-Jet, fuel flow adjustments are made simply by rotating the knob on the main metering module in the appropriate direction (richer or leaner); the difference here is that knob mounts right up on the bars.
Since the carburetor module is a completely sealed unit, mud, water, dirt, dust, sand and debris are kept outside of the fuel system in even the nastiest of conditions.
We picked the system up for $199.95 for our 1996 Kawasaki Mojave 250 and installed it in under an hour. Right off the bat there were two surprises awaiting our eager editors: First the size of the unit. It’s all so much more compact and unobtrusive than anticipated. Second is the ease in which the system installs. Not to suggest it’s as simple as say swapping your handlebar grips, it is no worse than making a jetting swap on a carburetor and Thunder provides some impressive technical support (in addition to thorough step-by-step instructions) for those unsure of their wrench-spinning skills. The most time consuming part of the whole affair may well have been selecting a place to mount the master control/ routing the cables.
Once installed, the IntelaJet performed just as advertised: Turning the small dial to the right richened up the mixture while rotating it toward the left leaned it out. Results were immediate! Concerns of rejetting for elevation or temperature considerations were immediately obsolete. Of course the only downside to such an easily adjustable system is that the possibility exists of going leaner when conditions call for richer and vise versa. Of course getting too off the mark results in a machine that stalls out or runs rough so figuring out the error of your ways is pretty intuitive.
An added bonus to the system is that even once you’ve found your ideal setting for optimal clean running performance, the IntelaJet meters the air and combines it with fuel in its own chamber, delivering a pre-atomized fuel mixture directly into the carb. This fine pre-atomized spray automatically fills in any lean areas within the carburetion circuits providing consistent fuel flow in all conditions. In English, say goodbye to bog when you bury the throttle or hit the ground from a jump.
We have been quite impressed with the IntelaJet’s performance; truly it’s a priceless modification for those stubborn machines that never seem to want to start easily or run clean. It’s also an absolute must for anyone who experiences elevation changes on their way to the riding area (or during the ride). Truly this is a sub $200 cure-all for any carbureted ATV suffering a case of fuel-injection envy.