Air Cleaners

[absolutepressure]

Ok, I've been lookin all over and can't find what I'm looking for. I've got an air horn (velocity stack) on the top of the throttle body, so a typical cone type K&N won't do. Last year I used the precleaner from a lawmmower filter, but it was the ugliest fuckin color of green I've ever seen. I'm looking for a precleaner, that being said, like something that would go over a K&N and just put that over the VS. I saw one at comp in detroit. Can someone help me out?

Edit: It was black and looked like it was made of of nylon or something. Definately wasn't homemade, I don't know how well nylon lets air through, though.

[absolutepressure]

Ok, I've been lookin all over and can't find what I'm looking for. I've got an air horn (velocity stack) on the top of the throttle body, so a typical cone type K&N won't do. Last year I used the precleaner from a lawmmower filter, but it was the ugliest fuckin color of green I've ever seen. I'm looking for a precleaner, that being said, like something that would go over a K&N and just put that over the VS. I saw one at comp in detroit. Can someone help me out?

Edit: It was black and looked like it was made of of nylon or something. Definately wasn't homemade, I don't know how well nylon lets air through, though.

[57JoeFoMoPar]

pantyhose underneath the velocity stack.

[absolutepressure]

The butterfly of the tb is taller than the hight of the tb. (nice and short 30mm tall)

[Dan G]

google searched "K&N prefilter"...

http://www.knfilters.com/search/product.aspx?Prod=22-8022PK

http://kandn.com/images/m/22-8022PK.JPG

[absolutepressure]

Thanks, man. Would have never thought of calling them "filter wraps," or "precharger" and "prefilter" just doesn't make any sense as a name for an object. Much appreciated.

[Dan G]

I was an induction system guy for a while, thats where I got the nifty lingo. We ran some tests on prefilters.

[absolutepressure]

Cool. You think it will be effective enough? It is in my mind, but I've never taken a close look at them. Who did you work for? It would be great to get one custom made to fit over the V.S.

[David M]

We ran a dome type filter from Kinser that comes with the pre-filter. That may be what you saw last year at comp. Their website is www.kinserairfilters.com (http://www.kinserairfilters.com) I believe the site gives some info as to drag created by the pre-filter. Hope this helps

David Mills
University of Evansville Formula SAE
Chassis Designer '05-'07

[drivetrainUW-Platt]

this isn't minibaja's dust hole we are running in.....my socks wored good for cockpit padding last year, an air filter this year?

Serously thou:
I have a small KnN we might be able to use, its probably a 3" hole, otherwise we have the one from a few years back.

[Kirk Feldkamp]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by absolutepressure:
Cool. You think it will be effective enough? It is in my mind, but I've never taken a close look at them. Who did you work for? It would be great to get one custom made to fit over the V.S. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

From what I can tell, prefilters are used on almost every sandrail out there. I would bet they're prevalent on dirt-track roundy-rounder engines too. Anyway, they work great! It's really for keeping the bulk of the sand/dirt junkus that gets tossed up from getting a chance to attach to the filter element. Whether or not you need one on an FSAE car...? My opinion would be no, but that's just me. Try it out and see what you come up with!

-Kirk

[Cody the Genius]

Maybe we just got lucky but our team has never really run a true air filter and haven't experienced any problems. We don't run in the mud, dirt, desert, or rain so our team has never considered it a big necesity. We have never seen any problems with valve seat or cylinder wall pitting and our plemums and TBs are usually spotless. I think that filters are nice if easily packaged and keep the motor happy but I would rather use a proper bell-horn even if it meant no filter.


as a great anecdote- when we won the australia comp in 2003 the wind was starting to kick up and throw sand everywhere so we wrapped a piece of fiberglass home airfiler sandwiched between two pieces of door screen over the beel-horn and sinched it down with a zip-tie to hold it on. There was our air filer - kept the small rocks out and we didn't have any problems. Simple, Light , Quick.

[Bill Kunst]

use the proper bell horn, just mount the air filter in the plenum section after the restrictor.

[Bill Kunst]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Bill Kunst:
use the proper bell horn, just mount the air filter in the plenum section after the restrictor. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

this will also keep the pressur differential higher, more flow through the restrictor.

[absolutepressure]

That's a good idea, Bill. I'd just have to put some silicone over the seam, because I'm sure the judges would catch onto the "breathable gasket" pretty soon. http://fsae.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_wink.gif

[Bill Kunst]

Okay, not sure if you are talking about putting an air filter down stream of the restrictor, it which case I am confused, or just making breathable gaskets so your engine idles at 6krpm and has 10hp extra. The second I get the joke. The first is completely feasible by the rules, and would aid the air flow into the system versus sucking through the filter prior to the TB and restrictor.

[absolutepressure]

I meant that if I were to sandwich a filter element inbetween the exit end of the restrictor and the plenum, air might get sucked in, since well...it's a filter, not an o-ring.

[Parker]

We were thinking of doing this. Our plan was to cut a circular section out of an existing filter element, and make a circular "mold" to make a polyurethane or RTV rubber gasket to hold the filter element. this way, it will be secured, and there should be no leaks

[drivetrainUW-Platt]

wow, not of this makes sense. Just find a filter that slides over that "horn" and can be clamped onto the TB.

[Bill Kunst]

Duwe,
That is what most teams do. BUT, look at a restricted racecar and the location of the restrictor compared to the air filter. By putting the air filter on the restritoc, or air horn, your are dropping the inlet pressure and lowering mass air flow.