The Oldsmobile Connection

[majikdragon]

Okay let me start with this - please, constructive criticism only!

So me and my buddy bob decided we were gonna go ahead with the hood scoop idea and take it one step farther. I am making a whole ram air system for cheap. Now i know what your thinking (it will never work), but i'm gonna make it work. bob and i are master engineers and we've done crazier stuff.

How it works -

I am installing a hood scoop on the top of the hood near the back, theres plenty of room to work with ducting in the rear of the engine compartment (twards the back of the car). The hood scoop will feed a hole in the hood that is connected with flexible aluminum duct (3").
The hood will have a rubber flushing pvc mount "sender" that stays connected to the hood. A second flushing pvc mount will be stationary inside the engine compartment for "recieving", the two mounts will make an excellent seal and i will still be able to open the hood without screwing everything up. the stationary flushing mount "reciever" will be directly glued on a rubber coupling that will connect to the flexible aluminum ducting and mounted securely to the engine block or fire wall with stiff wire or other bracing. the aluminum ducting will run along the firewall, under the master cylinder and twards where the stock airbox would be. The stock airbox will be removed. more aluminum ducting or 3" thinwall pvc will be used to go from the air intake on the top of the engine over to the new 3" cone filter. here comes the brilliant part - I couldnt think of anything to use for the "ram air box" that would keep pressure but after looking around menards for a while i found a rubbermaid "tupperware" box that would be fairly air tight and openable. after some silicone calk around the rim it should be nearly air tight. the rubbermaid box i found should fit quite nicely where the old stock airbox was and it should easily fit the new air filter inside it. so the air filter and the "pressurized air line" will be running inside the new rubbermaid air box. as another thought i considered making a "diaphram" on the air box so that when theres vaccum it opens slightly to let air in (during idle) and clises when theres "boost". it would consist of a hole in the front of the airbox "twards the headlights" and a rubber flap on the inside of the box that covers the hole with an ajustible spring on the outside so avoid the "equilibrium" of pressure that would keep the diaphram from neither opening nor closing. everything will be made air tight with silicone calk and after a bit of adjustment it should be working like a charm. That temp sensor in the bottom of the stock air box should probably be tapped and installed into the new rubbermaid airbox also. not sure how the ecm would take it if i make over 2 lbs of "boost". Thats basically the entirity of it!

The parts -

disclaimer:(prices do not include tax or shipping and handeling)
2 rubber pvc roof flushing mounts 4.00 each.
1 3" 5' thin wall pvc - 6.00
1 3" 8' flexible aluminum ducting - 3.50
1 black abs hood scoop - 10.00 on ebay
1 3" rechargable cone air filter - .99c on ebay
1 drainage rubber 3" coupling 3.50
1 silicone calk - 3.00
1 rubbermaid keepsake box - 4.00
1 hole in my hood - free
1 superglue 2 part epoxy - 1.69
1 maybe coathanger or scrap metal for bracing - free

2 much time on my hands - priceless

The blueprints -
http://home.comcast.net/~jimbomanx/masterplan.jpg
the parts -
http://www.oldsconnection.com/forum/album_pic.php?pic_id=447

MORE TO COME SOON!

[88delta88]

sounds good... should let me know how it turns out... I dont think you'll get close to 2lbs of boost though... Just a better air flow.

there isnt a lot of room under the hood of our cars... It'll be interesting to see what your end product looks like!

[OldsGuy]

Sounds like the O.A.I. on early 442s and "W" machines. The Firebird "shaker" hood scoop worked that way too. Just make sure you provide a way for rainwater to drain out from your system; as 88delta88 said, I don't think you will get true boost so don't worry about making everything air tight with silicone. Besides, if you do that, how will you change the air filter? The fresh air you get should help your system but I am not sure if your car's computer will be able to compensate for the increased air flow. It sounds like you put a lot of thought into your idea and I say try it, see what happens.

[Brando]

Hmmmm....what happened with this, I wonder....

TOC Admin
Brando

[88 Coupe]

Hi Brando, hello everyone,

I was looking forward to seeing WTF he was talking about.

From what I understood, he was making a simple thing complicated. Probably gave up trying to keep it together after he opened and closed the hood a few times.

Regards, Norm

[88delta88]

Funny, but no one has brought up in the past the effect of altitude on an engine's performance. From what I've heard and principles I've learned, WHERE you race your car can make a big impact on how it performs.

At sea level air is much denser than up in the rocky mountains, where it is much less dense. How come we never hear about this phenomenon? How pronounced is this effect?

[88 Coupe]

Hi 88delta88, all,

Quote: Funny, but no one has brought up in the past the effect of altitude on an engine's performance .........
No reason to. It only affects one TOC member that I know of, and he has it under control. Under normal circumstances, if two cars are racing each other, they will be at the same altitude.

Quote: ........ WHERE you race your car can make a big impact on how it performs ........ At sea level air is much denser than up in the rocky mountains ........
More dense means more oxygen in a given amount of air. Not only altitude, but temp, barometric pressure, and relative humidity determine the density of the air. Vary any of these and you change the oxygen content in the air. Less oxygen=less power.

Quote: ........ How come we never hear about this phenomenon? ........
Because you never asked?

The information isn't needed unless one needs to run a specific number, or is able to rejet to compensate for any changes.

Pros use portable weather stations to make needed adjustments between passes.

Quote: ........ How pronounced is this effect?
At sea level, my Grey Coupe ran 11.9xx. At 3000 ft, it ran 12.5xx in early morning and evening. Mid day is a different story. At that same strip, I've seen weather conditions equal to 5500 ft and higher. Made the same setup run 13.xxx.

Difference is less with a blown or squeezed car.

FWIW: Exhaust driven superchargers were developed during WW II to enable piston engines to run at 30,000 ft altitudes.

Regards, Norm

[88delta88]

Cool norm... Info much appreciated... Its amazing how the time of day with temps and humidity levels and such will give you that big of a performance difference. (at least I find it so).

Tidbit about superchargers is quite interesting also! World 'o Physics!

[88 Coupe]

HI 88delta88, all,

8)

I remember, one of the alcohol guys (9 second, 455 powered, Henry J), saying his times weren't affected as much, as with gasoline.

Also, the military experimented with nitrous oxide on aircraft during WW2, partially, for the same reasons.

Regards, Norm