Drilled or cut out air box

[wallygetsit]

Has anyone who cut holes into or drilled out their air boxes seen any benefit to performance or economy? To me it would seem that engine would run better from air channeled in from the outside where the air is cooler than the hotter air surrounding the engine.

 

[yob_yeknom]

I have drilled mine. I'm not sure of any noticeable improvements, but it does make the engine a little louder as it can breath much easier.
The big benefit for me is that I can now go through deeper water since the air is being drawn in through up where the filter is instead of down at the bumper. That's the main reason I did it.

 

[wallygetsit]

Sounds good. Thanks for the reply. The extra sound just might be worth it. Another use for a Dremel tool.

 

[leenjen]

i did mine about 2 weeks ago. i used a 3" holsaw. i did notice a difference in mpg. i dont know the actual mpg, but i now get about almost 400 miles from one tank of gas.

 

[wallygetsit]

Do you run a K+N drop in air filter or a stock style air filter?

 

[leenjen]

actually right now i just have a regular Fram air filter.
i want to get a KKM. and put a hood scoop that sucks in the cold air, but i cant figure out how to prevent rain from coming in,

 

[wallygetsit]

I was wondering the same thing about a hood scoop and a KKM. Still with a KKM, you're still pulling in hot air from the engine compartment.

As with any car I've owned, I notice that the colder, heavier air in the spring and fall makes the vehicle run better.

 

[leenjen]

yeah cooler air is much better. if i can figure out a way to make a functional hoodscoop without the rain problem, i will build something to block the engine heat from entering the filter. and i'll wrap the pipe with the insulation that keeps intakes cool. if i had access to a ram air firebird, i could get an idea of how they stop the rain.

 

[CoreyP]

On my '99 I was looking into drilling the box, but I found that there is a cone shaped thing in the front of the box that draws the air in. It just snaps in. I took it out and looked at it and was surprised. The cone part narrows the air inlet down to about a 2" diameter. The hole the cone snaps into is about 4" in diameter. I just left the cone out and have been running that way for a couple months. I noticed a difference in engine noise- it got a little louder a times, and has a little meatier sound. I also noticed an improvement in acceleration. No noticable change in MPG, but I didn't expect any.

Has anyone else done this? It's extra easy- only took 5 minutes, and that's because I have to compress the air line from the box to the manifold to get the filter box open. I can also put it back if I'd want to for some reason.

 

[Robert]

Yes, that is a common inexpensive way to add a couple more horsepower. What you removed is commonly referred to as the air-silencer. It is common on Ford air-boxes.

 

[<<MONOCHROMOUS>>]

this is going to be long, but it will answer any questions

first, let me say i am the king of cheap induction

that thing you removed from your 99 was a silencer, it quiets the air as it comes in, removing it will make it louder and give you some more air.

the whole point of drilling or cutting is to get more air into the engine. i have been through every single option:

ALWAYS use a K&N or similar air filter, normal ones will NOT hold out water and grime.

First i drilled, it worked well

then i cut huge holes, it was ever better, louder, but lagged in higher rpms

then i took off the whole box and strapped the filter up to the intake. much loud, must fast, but again lagged in higher rpms

now, i run cold air, took out the stock foglight, and ran a 3 inch dryer pipe, the aluminum one, from that opening to right underneath the filter (no airbox) MAN DOES IT MOVE AIR. if you blow lightly into the front, you feel it all up top.

the good thing is that you get cold air, and almost RAM AIR, but the pipe is not sealed to the intake, so all the extra air on the highway will not go into the intake. now it does not lag in high rpms, but it gets MANY MANY bugs up there. also, the ridges in the pipe will prevent SOME water from reaching the intake

this is why i would ONLY use a K&N filter with this setup, the paper elements cant hold up to the bugs and water. i wrapped my K&N with a piece of screen so the bugs would be easier to remove

I LOVE MY $5 COLD AIR INTAKE!!!

if you guys want pics or have ANY other questions, i will know the answer!!

 

[DarkMan]

I like the drier hose idea, but I'd have to find somewhere else to mount it.

My '94 runs a bit better with the K&N filter. I have drilled half a dozen 1/2 inch holes in the bottom of my filter box strickly to evacuate water faster. I do lots of wheeling up in the mountains here in CO, and do plenty of deep streams. I found that the water was pooling pretty bad in my box. Thus the holes. I've also thought about adding a baffle to the box to keep water from splashing up to the filter, but that is still in the paper-napkin phase.

I never really paid attention to the performance boost, but I'd say there was some increase in power. I've considered ideas like the drier hose before and I'm convinced (even before I heard Mono's story) that it would increase power.

 

[wallygetsit]

I think these ideas are great.
I believe I will try one item at a time to see what works and track each stage. Sounds like a fun little project.

 

[<<MONOCHROMOUS>>]

it is fun to try all the different things and keep track, thats what i did, and now i know what its like each stage, and can notice each performance increase (or decrease)

its a simple thing to do, and is very advantageous, so have fun!!

 

[jt1970m]

Hey Corey I was wondering how did you get the air box out of the engine bay? Just pull straight up on it? Also I tried to get that little air silnecer out and it seems to be one piece. Any suggestions I would appreciate it.

 

[black crowe]

I was wondering same thing(drill or cut airbox). Is this "silencer" also on 92's?

 

[expo5.0]

i have twin dryer ducts on mine and it worked great. i sealed my k and n fipk off from the engine heat with plastic and tinfoil on two sides so i have a large cold air "box" when you take those two sides and the sides of the engine bay. then i took two pieces of dryer hose and ran them both up from the hole in the center of my x dam with some gutter mesh as a grill over them down there. it works great.

 

[black crowe]

I forgot to ask, what is best drill bit to use?

 

[leenjen]

Originally posted by black crowe
I forgot to ask, what is best drill bit to use?

a hole saw. i used a 3" hole saw, but i think you might be able to use a 4"