Fleece is a nicely packaged stock intake.
The Fleece intake manifold kit for the 2007-2024 RAM 6.7L is a competently engineered product that solves the grid heater problem. If that’s the only box you need checked, and you’re not seeking improved throttle response, boost, increased power potential or fuel efficiency, and you don’t live in a CARB state, the Fleece option will get the job done.
But that’s a whole lot of conditions. And by its own marketing language, it’s “factory appearing.” In the performance parts world, that’s just a nice way of saying: you paid aftermarket money for a stock result.
The Killer Bolt Problem
Here’s the crux of the matter: If you’re driving a 2007–2024 Ram 2500 or 3500 with the 6.7L Cummins, you’re carrying a ticking time bomb under your hood. I’m not typing this to be dramatic; it’s a literal fact.
The factory grid heater is a hair drier on steroids bolted into your intake. Heat. Vibration. Time. Put those three together and the stud and nut holding it in place come loose or just burn clean off.
When they do, that hardware doesn’t just sit there. Your engine has a 5° rake so the nut and bolt roll straight down into cylinder #6.
Bam. Bent valves. Damaged pistons. A head you can throw away. We’re talking about a full engine rebuild or a full replacement.
I can promise you that it’s not a scare tactic. With nearly 1.6 million RAMs on the road, if only 2% fail, that’s 32,000 damaged Cummins.
Fleece: A Clone with a Logo
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Fleece’s new intake manifold for 2007.5–2024 Cummins 6.7L RAMs will cost you $628.95.
Here’s the thing: it’s a direct clone of a stock cab-chassis Cummins intake originally built for 2007.5–2018 trucks.
Don’t take my word for it. Go look up stock part numbers 4981803 or 4939566. A used OEM unit runs as low as $20. A new one, $240. Google it. Check eBay. Then go look at the Fleece part. The only difference? A Fleece logo and two ports for the heater coil.
Even Fleece calls it what it is on their own site: a “direct replacement, factory appearing intake horn.” Same geometry. Same flow characteristics as stock.
And here’s what they don’t publish: Airflow numbers. No lbs/min figures. No flow bench data. No pressure drop charts. Nothing.
Why? Because when a product flows the same as stock, there’s nothing to advertise. No magic. No engineering. No performance. No imagination went into this Xerox copy.
Oh, and it’s not legal in California or the 17 states that adopted California’s emissions standards.
One more thing to file away: if you want to add more power down the road, this intake will be your performance bottleneck.
Cold Weather Ready?
Fleece has gotten more specific about their own cold-start claim lately, but they still won’t show you the methodology behind it. They provide two ports for heater coils, one 700 W included with the kit and the other available for purchase.
Banks Monster-Ram on the other hand includes with a 750 W heater and has provisions for two more. They also did their cold-start testing homework in a controlled climate chamber with lab-grade equipment, not just a claim on a website. See for yourself here.
Fleece Vs Banks Monster-Ram
The Monster-Ram runs $718 off the website for a comparable natural aluminum (raw) finish (powder coat available for a bit more). That’s $89 more than Fleece, and both products eliminate the grid heater risk. That’s the minimum bar for anyone playing in this space. But Banks buys you a completely different story:
Airflow gain over stock: Monster-Ram is 88.3%. Fleece publishes no data because “factory appearing” means the number would be embarrassing.
Mass air flow: Monster-Ram flows 72.7 lbs/min vs stock’s 38.6 lbs/min. Fleece offers no equivalent figure.
Boost effect: Monster-Ram raises boost without raising turbine drive pressure. Fleece makes no such claim.
Fuel line engineering: Monster-Ram uses an upgraded fuel line that eliminates the #1 fuel line obstruction. Look at the Fleece intake. The outlet size is constrained by the stock #1 fuel line.
NPT sensor ports: Monster-Ram has four. Fleece has one.
Cold weather heating (base kit): Monster-Ram ships with 750W. Fleece ships with 700W.
Peak cold weather wattage: Monster-Ram reaches 2,250W with optional add-ons. Fleece tops out at 1,400W with its cold weather upgrade kit.
50-state emissions compliance: Monster-Ram holds a CARB EO. Fleece is pending.
Price for full cold-weather capability: Monster-Ram is $718 — fully engineered and cold-chamber tested, with room to add more heaters if you need them. Fleece is $628.95, with no proof testing was ever done. That $89 difference? That’s your fully engineered cold-weather insurance.
The Bottom Line
The Banks Monster-Ram doesn’t just solve the grid heater problem for $89 more. It solves the airflow problem, the boost problem, the fuel efficiency problem, and the cold start problem. And it does it with 50-state legal hardware tested in a lab and the real world.