Re: <E36> Snorkel Intake May not Work

[Brian M Kennedy <kennedy@xxxxxx>]

Clint Huff wrote:
> 
> If you have the snorkel intake on your E36 M3, you may want to determine if
> its working like you think.  I've found that the air flowing through
> the brake duct actually creates a vacuum in the snorkel, rather than providing
> air to the air box.  The snorkel is sucking air out of the air box, rather
> than
> providing additional air.  Here's how to test this:

Glad to finally hear from someone who has actually tested this.  
When I read the ad on Korman's site describing how it ties in and saying that 
it does not at all reduce air flow to the brakes, my physics kicked in and 
theorized that it must then be creating a vacuum (air flowing past something 
creates, effectively, a low pressure zone)....

>  To solve this problem, poke some holes in the back of your
> home-make snorkel tube
> so some of the air entering the tube can flow out the back to the brake.
> When you test this with the
> leaf blower, air will be flowing through the tube to the cone filter, and
> some will be going to the
> brakes.  If you want more air to the brake, just poke more holes in the
> back of the tube.

Careful.  At some point, you'll get enough air flow going past the bend in your
tube and you'll recreate the vacuum.

The net of it is this:  to create air pressure from the brake duct into your 
intake, you must necessarily reduce airflow to your brakes.  In a car known
for warping rotors and boiling away pads, this seems highly unwise (IMO).

Question:  why not steal a little air flow from the center grill and direct it
around the radiator?  That would seem to provide much better airflow, much better
"ram" effect, since the flow could be a bit straighter than from the brake duct.
And, unlike the M3 brakes, the M3 engine is not known for overheating -- so I 
doubt a little airflow loss there will matter much.

But I am no BMW mechanic -- so I wonder, what's wrong with this approach?  Why
does nobody do that?


Brian

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