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I'm 16. That means I'm broke and stupid, and want to mess around with my vehicle. That's inevitable. Now before you all say how useless this 'mod' will be in the end...I know. I just wanna mess around with my little truck! Not that it matters entirely, but I drive a 1994 Ranger XL with the 3.0L V6. My plan is to simply cut a circular hole in the air box and then fit a funnel in the hole, the open end pointing toward the bumper. Will this add much, if any power at all? Probably not. My only real concern is that the larger opening may let rocks and such in. I do not need to hear how useless this mod will be, just if it will harm my truck much. Thanks!!
Yes, there is an air tube that runs from a hole in the rad support plate to the air cleaner box called a CAI(cold air intake) it provides better power/performance, the air pre-heater is also on that air tube
Air pre-heater is used when engine is cold, vacuum valve/flap opens to pull in warmer air from around exhaust manifolds to warm up engine faster, less stumbling on very cold mornings, also lowers cold engine emissions faster
Not really needed in most areas so feel free to delete it unless it is require for emissions testing in your area
CAI's were first used by hot rodders on carbureted engines, cooler air from outside the engine bay is denser so more fuel can be added, so better power/performance, it ain't much but ain't 0 either, and its FREE, well pretty much free
When car makers switch to fuel injection they had to add air filter boxes and air tubes, the old sit on the carb air filters wouldn't work, lol
So they also added CAI since it didn't cost anything extra for them
I just did this mod today on my 2008 XLT 3.0 and have a question. What is the purpose of removing the baffle from the headlight area? My thinking is this: the air flow into the airbox is restricted only by the smallest diameter of the intake route, as well as any turns the air has to make to get there (extra turns = extra turbulence = extra restriction). By removing the silencer I understand it opens up the diameter for the air to flow in, but the baffle opening is larger than the opening of the airbox, so it should not impede any air flow.
I left my baffle in and used the narrow space between the airbox and the baffle to push in some pipe insulation, the flexible rubber kind, to restrict the air flow from the engine compartment. Doing this with the filter out I was able to feel through the airbox and baffle to ensure the pipe insulation tubing was not obstructing the airway. I will have to check to see if the tubing stays in place by it's own expansion pressure or vibrates into the airway later.
My thinking is that this will keep more of the engine compartment hot air out and pull more air from behind the headlight, which theoretically is cooler.
Also... I broke the side pegs when removing the air box! I sprayed WD-40, but those suckers did not want to let go. Ended up pulling too hard and *SNAP*!!! I used some bolts and drilled holes to pass them through the box and grommets and all is well (I hope?).
It does sound a little beefier (not much, but I am not too interested in that). We'll see if anything changes MPG or performance wise - I have a lengthy drive next week to test it out.
Change to an electric radiator fan and dump the mechanical fan
This will, for sure, 100%, increase power and MPG, ain't much but ain't 0 either
Mechanical fan runs when engine runs whether extra cooling is needed or not, and while not a big horse power draw it IS a horse power draw.
When you are driving above, say 20mph, the air flow thru the radiator is enough for good cooling, mechanical fan is not really doing much but drawing horse power, it is there for when you are stopped or driving very slowly, i.e. stop and go traffic
The electric fan does use alternator power so does create a draw on horse power via alternator, but............only when it is on, like when driving slowly or stopped, and you really don't need extra horse power then, lol.
When you are "at speed" e-fan is usually off and you have the extra power as needed and for sure better MPG
Took another look at the baffle and realized my earlier post was inaccurate - the baffle is smaller than the airbox opening. So I took it out, dropped in a new Fram air filter (read somewhere that the difference from one type to the next is neglible), put a bottle of injector cleaner in the tank, filled up with 91 octane (usually use lower), then made my long trip.
Hum feedback shows 23 mpg for this week. I expected a little better, since my previous long trip before mod was 23....
NO MPG CHANGE
10-09-2018
