You want it to be functional?
Edward
Of course I want it to be functional. Just like the old ones and like the new ones. ...
I had to ask. This has gone around on several boards several times over the years. Sometimes people just want the 'look' and there's a big difference between just getting the 'look' and actually getting a functioning system.
I'm well aware of how exterior induction works. GM cowl induction, Pontiac Ram Air, etc. I grew up with muscle cars. My dad used to restore Chevys and Pontiacs and some of the family and friends still race muscle cars.
I agree with the poser part.
I don't see much point if it doesn't work.
The non-US version had a cold air induction positioned over the air box. The difference is we don't have carburetors centered on an intake. You're not going to get an old style centered like the 'Cuda to work. First, there isn't enough room between the engine intake and hood. Second, the intake is pointed horizontally to the passenger side. Even if you could fit a scoop, routing the air in a giant U turn would be silly to say the least.
There was some argument about how effective the JP version was/is. Towards the front of the hood of a car is usually a bad place as that is a low pressure area. If you've looked at aerodynamics tests, usually you'll see how the air flows up the face of the vehicle and over the front in a 'hump' then swoops back down towards the hood to the base of the windshield and then up the windshield and over the top. Everywhere you see a 'hump' like that, underneath is a low pressure area which is a very bad place to position something like you're talking about.
If I remember correctly - and I'm going back a ways here - the two best locations was the grill area (something like the GN conversion) and the base of the windshield. Even then the only one that REALLY works as far as a ram affect is the grill area. It was proven repeatedly that the actual measurable improvement of the Cowl Induction came from the intake of cooler air NOT any kind of ram affect. The center location for Chrysler - while not as bad as the completely retarded Pontiac Gen I f-body locations - was still located in a not optimal location.
Wherever the induction inlet is positioned on the outside, it needs to be in a high pressure area. Just sticking it anywhere on the hood won't work. I remember Car Craft articles from the '70s and '80s addressing this.
That's why the Chevy Cowl Induction was positioned where it was. The base of the windshield was a high pressure area, thereby forcing air ram style into the intake (allegedly). If the intake is located in a low pressure location you can actually go backwards in performance by creating a vacuum in the intake which really is the LAST thing you want to do (this is NOT allegedly).
Vacuum in the exhaust good - vacuum in the intake bad.
I like the look but I question the functionality of old style external forced inductions. I KNOW because I was there that a lot of the stuff that came out of the manufactures didn't work or didn't work nearly as well as they wanted everyone to believe. There's a ton of mythology wrapped around stuff like shaker hood scoops, ram air, 'Fuely Heads', etc. And that's all it is - mythology. Most of it never did what people convinced themselves it did and it never worked as well as people thought.
If you really want to do something like this and you really want it to be functional and I'm not saying don't 'cause it'd be an interesting project, I'd do it the right way. Get a temperature and barometric presser sensor monitoring tool with remote sensors. Tape the sensors in various locations on the hood, cowl, wherever and take it for a spin on the highway and log where the highest pressure and lowest temperature location(s) are. Obviously, you want highest pressure and lowest temperature in the same location.
That's where you want your intake to come in at.
Now for the technical part. After two years of surfing the turbo 3G/GT3000/Eclipse/etc. boards, my experiences with the Sport ECM/PCMs and MAF units, I'm not so sure how well this'll work from an electronics standpoint if you really do get a good ram effect. Our MAF isn't quite up to the quality/capability of the Evo's.
Its not super responsive - both the IAT and the MAF pieces. I don't see any problem with fuel delivery as even with a ram this is still NA, but I can see where you might run into fuel delivery QUALITY issues which would affect driveability. Anyway, I'm not saying you will have issues, but its something to think about.
LOL! I'm almost there. Just don't have the D60s and 44"s. No glaciers but I have done 18' snow banks and drifts.
Edward