Drilling holes in air box?

[JH32]

I've heard that some RS Liberty owners drill holes in their air boxes, or maybe it was their air filters? :confused:

Could I do this on an R32 to increase air into the box?

Also, are the standard air boxes better than a pod on an R32? I remember seeing somewhere once that someone recommended leaving the panel filter in. Is this baloney?

Cheers!

[blind_elk]

What a load of baloney!

Leave the standard air box standard. Otherwise you are pulling hot air into the engine, and hot air in the intake leads to detonation. Even more so when you rip out the airbox and replace it with a pod filter. It gets only hot air then.

What I did with mine was to remove the stupid little duct that feeds air from the front of the car to the airbox (it runs under the LH headlamp). Replace that with a piece of 3" flexible tube that drops down behind the headlight into the area just in front of the normal IC location.

Let Subaru owners drill holes in their filters, but I don't want to ingest anything bigger than a bacterium into my engine.

[Guest Boxhead]

then here is my question, on a turbo car, why shoudl it matter where the air is coming from, if its going through an intercooler?

surely if you have a nice big front mount that shouldnt make a difference.. :S

just make a partition if you put a pod on, and make a cold air intake..

[rev210]

Originally posted by JiMiH

I've heard that some RS Liberty owners drill holes in their air boxes, or maybe it was their air filters? :confused:

Could I do this on an R32 to increase air into the box?

Also, are the standard air boxes better than a pod on an R32? I remember seeing somewhere once that someone recommended leaving the panel filter in. Is this baloney?

Cheers!

I used my dremel cutting tool to cut a hole in the front facing panel. I have the K&N panel replacement filter.

Boxhead : it matters a great deal if you are sucking hot air. On the dyno you will see the power drop across the rev range without a cold air partition.

[2rismo]

then here is my question, on a turbo car, why shoudl it matter where the air is coming from, if its going through an intercooler?

Follow the math:

Colder air = Better everything

If the intercooler is dropping the inlet air-temp 20 degrees C, wouldn't you rather have the temp drop from 40 to 20 than from 70 to 50?

Makes sense to me. I have a digital inlet air temp/ambient air temp and can definitely feel and SHOW the difference a hot day makes. So hot engine bay air is bad, m'kay...

[macka]

Hey JimiH

Forget the holes in your airbox those days are gone! the standard scoop is better flow than that,

Pod and partition like the other guys said.

The hotter the air in the hotter the intercooler temp will be as a certain intercooler might drop 30degrees rather than keep the temp at say 30 odd..

[JH32]

If I make up a big box out of tin, and then rivet the whole thing together, and contain a pod filter inside it, and then feed the cold air into the front of this tin box, will this work ok?

Is tin good for keeping hot air out?

Or should I insulate the inside of the box somehow?

Cheers!

[predator]

Apparently, with the R31 at least, the airbox design is really crappy (there is a comparison article somewhere) and chokes proper airflow to the engine. I'd say that carries across into any standard R32, R33, etc. Anything is going to be better than the standard thing, even if it slightly hotter air. Its gotta be volume and coldness of the air - they are the two goals.

But colder air is of course better if you want to spend the money/effort riging up a front intake to take directly from outside. Make sure its well insulated as well or you're still going to have the problem of the pipe in turn heating the air from the engine bay.

[JH32]

you know that silver air conditioning tubing ..... could you cut that open to give silver sheets, and then line the tin on the inside of the cold air box, or maybe put it on the outside?

Just a bit extra to keep the heat out?

Or thermowrap the box?

[ix9]

Originally posted by JiMiH

you know that silver air conditioning tubing ..... could you cut that open to give silver sheets, and then line the tin on the inside of the cold air box, or maybe put it on the outside?

Just a bit extra to keep the heat out?

Or thermowrap the box?

correct me if i'm wrong, but aren't those aircon pipes for keeping the cold inside getting out, and not the other way around ?

i thought those mats (thin, blue one side, silver the other) they use in wood-framed 2 storey houses would be the stuff you're after.... keep the HEAT OUT ? not cold IN ?

Or am I dribbling faeces again ? anyone ?

if so, my gf works at an aircon place.... free ducting for all!

[GTS-t VSPEC]

Strich9ine,

If a pipe can keep cold getting out then it will stop hot getting in. The pipes are reflective, therefore stopping heat transfer via radiative heating. A custom airbox with a cold air supply feed is a good idea, you can make the box out of whatever, aluminum/carbonfibre etc, but it is worth insulating the inside to stop the heat from the metal warming the intake air.

In a factory airbox I wouldn't bother with the extra insulation, the airbox is made of plastic and therefore doesn't transfer that heat very well, but at the same time it can't hurt, so why not.

See'ya:burnout:

[JH32]

Maybe you could line the inside of the box with the air con stuff, and then put the blue wood building stuff on the outside, and that would keep all cold air in and hot air out!

sweet!

now .... where's this air con place ur gf works at kym .... :lol: :lol:

[GTS-t VSPEC]

Maybe we can get some of those pink bats and tie them around the engine, to stop the heat getting out, plus it would look really cool.:bahaha:

See'ya:burnout:

[ix9]

Originally posted by JiMiH

now .... where's this air con place ur gf works at kym .... :lol: :lol:

I'll be looking at getting a POD early next year hey, and I'll need some of that reflective aircon stuff... when I grab some for me I'm sure I could hook you up with some hey i'll see how it goes..

....gotta actually have a car in my possesion first hey!

[rev210]

keep the factory airbox its not too bad at all with a K&N inside and an extra hole in the front.

[ix9]

Originally posted by rev210

keep the factory airbox its not too bad at all with a K&N inside and an extra hole in the front.

do ya get the pssssht sound with the K&N Panel filter still ?

That'd be the only reason i'll go for a POD

[rev210]

Originally posted by Strich9ine

do ya get the pssssht sound with the K&N Panel filter still ?

That'd be the only reason i'll go for a POD

yes, you rice boy it goes pssssht.

[JH32]

hahahaha :lol: Kym

how good is induction noise!

I think I'll get a K&N pod, and make a nice box up for it with some heat resistant stuff ... that'd be swweeeeet if you could find me some offcuts as well

cheers dood!

[Guest GR33DyMANGO]

haha.. this is way off topic but this reminds me of the time when homer from the simpsons puts 'speed holds' in the bonnet of his car with a pitch fork.. haha...... :bahaha:

ps. i luv the induction sound.

[ix9]

hehe, wat can I say... I love the pssshhht.. but my blitz bov is ghey

K&N POD it is i think.. with some heatshielding aircon crap DONE.

When I start construction i'll let you know james