i have a 2000 WS6 A4 and am putting a lid on it and heard that i should cut out the plasic bar that goes across below the filter. My question is how exactly do i go about that, i mean cutting the plastic piece of of the removable part would be easy, but am i just supposed to try and cut off the bottom piece that isnt removeable?

 

You take out the removable plastic and half of it is plastic and the other half is open.....cut the side that is plastic off and make the entire thing open.
(I hope that made sense) Not very good at write ups.

 

ok i understand what you said, but thats not quite what i was asking, thanks though anyone else?

 

The bottom part comes off. Its like 4 bolts I think, and then just use a dremel or something like that to cut it out.

 

sorry must of misunderstood

 

http://www.installuniversity.com/ins...am_air_mod.htm

 

Installuniversity (above) has a great write up, there are several others. Use Google to locate them.

However this mod FRA (free ram air) is not the best thing to do, depending on you use of the car.

The key is understanding how the car works and what the mod achieves.

Essentially Fbody's are "bottom feeders" this means intake and cooling air is ducted up from underneith the car not from infron of the noise or the car.

If you look under the car you will see a small air dam spoiler. This greates high pressure air and directs it up towards the radiator and airbox.

However for some reason GM have actually blocked the air to the intake and have just left an opening at the front of the air box.

The FRA mod simply opens (cuts) the bottom out of the airbox and opens up an area in the top of the ducting infront of the radiator, this essentially "taps" into this cooler higher pressure air source.


This is good, for two reasons.

1. Higher pressure air has a greater charge densisty
2. Air intake temps are closer to amibiant

But because the air dam requires the car to be moving to work, this mod only helps at speed. Probably highway speed as a sensible starting point. The faster you go the better it works. Although on a stock engine the effect is probably only minimal.

When I performed the mod I only really noticed a 'slight' difference past 120mph. Say on a 120 to 140mph pull.

For drag racing at the strip, this mod is probably a negative attribute. This is because as you are waiting to stage there is a great deal of heat soak from the engine comparment and even the radiator. This all adds up to higher ambiant air intake temps from the start line, which means less potential HP.

It will probably take you to the 1/8th before it really starts to help at all. But considering most stockish Fbody's only trap 100-110mph you never really see any benefit in it.

Roll racing (high speed)
standing mile
top speed runs

= FRA a good thing

1/4 mile
stop light to stop light

=FRA not such a good thing.

There are other "ram air" kits out there which actually direct a duct from the front of the car to the air box. These work pretty well (SLP FLow Pac is a rip though, so stay clear). The are not true "ram air", nothing really is, but they do employ 'cool air ducts' and airbox resonance to great affect.

Hope this helps

 

These cars, like all others, had to pass water intrusion tests...how could water possibly get up there you ask? I've had it happen to me, and damn near lost my motor...I'm not a huge fan of the FRA mod for exactly that reason.

 

If you have a WS6 do NOT cut up the box, debaffle the hood and get creative sealing the box to the nostrals. You'll get cold air 100% of the time.

 

Dal1as: why would i not want to do this, you said id get cold air 100% of the time, isnt that what i want.....unless of course that was a joke...

 

anyone?

 

Not a joke, he was only referring to 300bhp/ton's senario of staging lane heat soak verses road racing. its a good idea as a air scoop that redirects air from under will besumerged in water if you live with flooding as i do . At least the scoops i've seen come down that far. When I movee back to a better place I'll definitly get the scoop 300bhp/ton reforred to. BTW, fra mod helped me a little. My filter doesnt get dirty quicker and throttle responce picked up some. Top end is where its at though. Acceleration is the same. Used the link mentioned in a previous post above and print the pics for quick reference. You wont regret it.

 

I agree water could be an issue, but I don't think that's the reason. I mean the air box is over 2 feet off the ground and the ducting isn't sealed, you would have to either wade very deep water, which wouldn't be advisable and beyond the cars design criteria or hit a decent depth of standing water at high speed, again this isn't advisable.

I know of many cars which have intakes much lower. A few years back a friend lost his motor in his Ford Sierra XR4i, it had an air intake below the front healdight and was sealed ducting, he tried to cross over a section of flooded road and the motor just acted like a water pump and sucked up the water and hydolocked, ripped the gudgen pin out of a piston and push a con rod thru the side of the block.

But I hear what you say

 

 

I don't see the point for someone with a WS6 to do the Free ram air mod. That's what I'm getting at. It's easier and more beneficial to just de-baffle the hood and seal the box to the nostrals using whatever creative method you can.

Sort of like this.

Notice the foam around the airbox. I also have it on the hood. It seals completely.

http://www.carstereo.com/installs/ph...w=1&maxrows=12

 

With the potential for "heat soak" when not moving with the FRA, what about just opening up the bottom of the air box but not cutting the baffle that exposes the radiator/condenser? Wouldn't this help stop the heat issue but also result in more air flow?

 

i dunno good question, but way to resurect my old thread, lol