Air intake heat shields

[gran racing]

I've looked around the paddock at quite a few cars that have fabricated air intake heat shields. I looked through the GCR and can not determine if this is something I can legally do. (I ask because I would like to do it as well.)

Any thoughts about its legality?

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Dave Gran
NER ITB #13
'87 Honda Prelude si

[racer14itc]

Make it part of your "exhaust system" as those are free. Weld some tabs to the header and bolt your heat shield to those and you're legal. IMHO.

MC

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Mark Coffin
#14 GP BSI Racing/Airborn Coatings/Krispy Kreme/Tristram's Garage VW Scirocco
http://pages.prodigy.net/Scirocco14gp

[Geo]

Or attach it to your intake.

The intake before the air metering device is free so long as the source of air is under the hood or the stock location.


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George Roffe
Houston, TX
84 944 ITS car under construction
92 ITS Sentra SE-R occasionally borrowed
http://www.nissport.com

[ITSRX7]

George is right, it is easy to attach to the neck of the filter outlet.

Dave, bring that thing by our shop, we will help you design something. I need to get some sheet aluminum anyway to 'seal' up all 4 of our Miata bulkheads.

AB

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Andy Bettencourt
Spec Miata 1.6 (ITA project)
New England Region R188967
www.flatout-motorsports.com

[This message has been edited by ITSRX7 (edited January 04, 2005).]

[Grumpa]

George/Andy,
I have a '79 ITC Rabbit with Bosch CIS injection. The factory air inlet is behind the radiator, so in an effort to get cooler ambient air I fabricated a "snorkel" tube out of 2" PVC that extends the inlet below the horizontal radiator mounting panel. The "snorkel" extends into a cold air box that is mounted below the radiator's horizontal level. The cold air box does not source air from the air dam on front of the car, air is from the low pressure area behind the dam. The way I read the rules, this setup is legal. Is my interpretation correct? Also, is a splitter legal? I am wanting to do some work on the air dam and I haven't seen splitters come up on any strings.

Jim Sexton
ITC Rabbit
CenDiv

[ITANorm]

Jim,

I'm not George or Andy, but . . .

If the air box extends forward of the plane of the radiator, I'd say it's illegal. Splitters, per se, are not illegal - but they must fully conform to all the rules that apply to spoilers as far as clearance and location in relation to body components.

[ITSRX7]

Jim,

As Norm eluded to, this is a grey area. You must draw air from inside the engine bay per the rules. Run with that how you want. Read the rules carefully.

As far as the splitter, there are specific guidlines in the GCR for legality.

AB

[racer-025]

....but the CRX Si has 2 air inlet tubes. The long one extends along the upper radiator and enters past the rad cap picking up the warm air. The short one goes down thru a hole in front of the wheel and picks up the underside cooler air. So, as I read it the air inlet does not have to be inside the engine bay ("except stock location") in this case. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. But I would like to know if I can have the air filter at this location too.

[Gregg]

Oh uh...here we go again with the intake tract of the CRX/EF Civic. <shudder>

What is on the other side of that hole in front of the wheel does not pick up "underside cooler air." It leads to a resonator box that effectively increases the volume of the air box (and makes the street car quieter). It is a closed system with the only inlet being inside the engine bay along the top of the radiator as you described.

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Gregg Ginsberg
http://www.ginsberg.org
'89 CRX Si -- MARRS ITA / ECHC H4 #72
WDCR-SCCA Rookie of the Year 2003

[Jeremy Billiel]

The intake rules always seems to be a hot topic... I am still building my car and when I was researching what people are running last year (NorthEast - LimeRock) I saw a TON of cars using what I thought were illegal intakes. I saw intakes that had 3" brake ducts running air to the filter (very illegal), I saw comptech ice box setups (questionable) and others that fall in the grey area. Is the Northeast perhaps more leniant than other regions?

[apr67]

What keeps you from having a radiator with a 8" x 8" hole in it, and having your air intake right behind that hole?

[This message has been edited by apr67 (edited January 04, 2005).]

[RSTPerformance]

Originally posted by Jeremy Billiel:
I saw a TON of cars using what I thought were illegal intakes. I saw intakes that had 3" brake ducts running air to the filter (very illegal),

Why is this illegal? If it is on front of the air metering device and it doesn't leave the engine bay you cna do whatever you like. Why can't you use a ten inch tube if one will fit?

Stephen.... I have 2 three inch brake duct hoses!

I was going to ask someone but knowone has an answer. The only way to get an answer is to protest yourself and spend a shitload of money.

[ITSRX7]

VERY protestable. The air source must come from within the engine bay. If you are ducting air into the engine bay at or toward the intake, you are walking a THIN line - and frankly, your intent is to break the rule.

Where does it say you can run ducting into the engine bay at all? Ducting is specifically called out for brakes...

AB

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Andy Bettencourt
Spec Miata 1.6 (ITA project)
New England Region R188967
www.flatout-motorsports.com

[Geo]

Originally posted by apr67:
What keeps you from having a radiator with a 8" x 8" hole in it, and having your air intake right behind that hole?

Knock yourself out.


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George Roffe
Houston, TX
84 944 ITS car under construction
92 ITS Sentra SE-R occasionally borrowed
http://www.nissport.com

[RSTPerformance]

Originally posted by ITSRX7:
VERY protestable. The air source must come from within the engine bay. If you are ducting air into the engine bay at or toward the intake, you are walking a THIN line - and frankly, your intent is to break the rule.

Where does it say you can run ducting into the engine bay at all? Ducting is specifically called out for brakes...

AB

I was thinking that when he refered to brake ducting he was refering to the actual ducting (Like a Dryer vent hose) not holes in the front of the car taking air from outside the engine bay. (edit) That is why above I said as long as the ducting doesn't leave the engine bay. (Edit)

I think you are agreeing that if you use brake ducting (the Hose) inside the engine bay and if and only if it dosn't leave the engine bay then it is legal. (the air source comes from within the engine bay the ducting just gets it form a cooler source like behind the headlights for example instead of off the header)

Correct?

[This message has been edited by RSTPerformance (edited January 05, 2005).]

[lateapex911]

Definitions are key here. It's not what you think the rule should say, but what the definitions of the words in the rule are.

You have a tube. It has an opening. Define the source, as it relates to the tube.

You have a volume. Lets say it is a box with six sides, to be simple. Define "within".

Source of air. Is the source in front of the car? Down the straightaway? A mile west in the prevailing breeze? The rule must define the answer, as the judgement is way too open otherwise.

I think the rule has defined what we can do, and as Geo says, "If it says you can, you bloody well can" (regardless of the supposed 'intent')

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Jake Gulick
CarriageHouse Motorsports
ITA 57 RX-7
New England Region
[email protected]

[dickita15]

Originally posted by apr67:
What keeps you from having a radiator with a 8" x 8" hole in it, and having your air intake right behind that hole?

itcs 17.1.4.4.3.a
... No new openings created by fitting an alternate radiator may be used for the purpose of ducting air to the engine.

[Bill Miller]

Originally posted by dickita15:
itcs 17.1.4.4.3.a
... No new openings created by fitting an alternate radiator may be used for the purpose of ducting air to the engine.

Dick,

While I appreciate what you mean, I think that refers to any new openings in the bodywork. I certainly don't think the 'hole in the radiator' idea will work, but I don't see how it violates the rule that you cited.

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MARRS #25 ITB Rabbit GTI (sold) | MARRS #25 HProd Rabbit
SCCA 279608

[Jeremy Billiel]

"Why is this illegal? If it is on front of the air metering device and it doesn't leave the engine bay you cna do whatever you like. Why can't you use a ten inch tube if one will fit?"

Here is another interesting question. When I look at this rule, what happens if you car does not have a meetering device in the intake. For example: Honda/Acura's do not use mass airflow sensors in the piping. I believe they use a map sensor instead, but its in the TB. Does this mean my intake is open to do whatever I want?

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Coming Soon: 1995 ITS Acura Integra

[downingracing]

I've got a 94 Civic EX (now an ITA car!). I run a short ram intake. (legal since the end of it is within the engine bay) I also have ducting running from the bottom of the car up to the existing hole into the engine bay.

Loose quotes from the GCR: Intakes are 'free' before the metering device. The air pickup location must be in the stock location.

These two sentences are each a rule. You must source air from the original location. You can do anything you want before the metering device. No additional holes can be created to funnel air to the location, but existing holes are OK.

just my 2¢

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Matt Downing
ITS Honda Civic EX (soon to be ITA!)
Ohio Valley Region, SCCA
www.downingracing.com