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xj builders guide, cowl air intake

d-rail

d-rail

NAXJA Forum User
Location
lovington NM
found an article in the (HIGH PERFORMANCE JEEP CHEROKEE XJ BUILDERS GUIDE), Eric Zappe. the article from bryan vetrano's xj about re-locating the air filter behind the firewall in the cowl seems like the best damn idea in that book!! by the way is an awesome book! did a search , no luck , just wondering if anyone has done this conversion?? seems like the way to go.
thanks:skull1:
 
We've seen it here before. I've always worried about suckin in a bunch of crap right there. I don't know
 
Did he move the whole air filter behind the cowl? I sealed my air box and ran some dryer vent hose to draw from the cowl at the base of the windshield. One of my favorite mods.
 
that sounds like a worthy mod! he cut about a 3" hole in the firewall and ran a 3" snorkle through the hole and had a cone style k&n inside the cowl. i removed the cowl vent and there is plenty of room in there. my only concern is alot of dust being accumulated in there, but im sure you could seal it up and fab some kind of deflective shield to protect the filter. should be cold clean air.
 
smccollamjr said:
I would worry about water from rain or washing also.
Click to expand...

i wouldnt worry bout that for a min..i ran mine thru the firewall bout a yr ago.. havnt had any problems yet ... burried it once and water poured in the vent.. my intake pipe is pointed down at 45 degs the water just fell past it.. that being said i was probably pretty lucky there .. i never thought about moving the filter there too ..that sounds like a good idea .
 
jwtrapper said:
Coloradoraptor is trying this, last time I talked with him it wasnt working out well. I bet he chimes in here and will let us know how it turned out.



Well..... Turd....?:gee:
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yea i would like to here how it turned out. i know on the 96 model the passenger side cowl is sperate from the driver side. and you would have to access it from the driver side. i am pretty much determined to make this work, :us:
 
d-rail said:
yea i would like to here how it turned out. i know on the 96 model the passenger side cowl is sperate from the driver side. and you would have to access it from the driver side. i am pretty much determined to make this work, :us:
Click to expand...


His is a 98 so its going to be different than yours, (just thought of that) but he is having some problems getting his filter in the cowl.
 
Yes, it is a pain!! I have run into several problems......The best place to go through the firewall is as mentioned in the XJ builders guide. There you have the passenger wiper arm in the way(while in operation) and the climate system intake far passenger side(a high angled lip). I took many measurements and thought I could get the smallest K&N conocal filter in there!!...........Cut all the holes bought the tubing and fittings and I'll be damned if the filter ($48 later) would not work?!?!?!? Well, as of right now I have 2 holes in my jeep, 1 in the firewall and the other in the top of the cowl. I am planning on getting this to work as I too love the setup from the XJ builders guide BUT I have bigger fish to fry at the moment. Firewall hole ducktaped for the time being. Updates will follow early '08.
 
jwtrapper said:
Coloradoraptor is trying this, last time I talked with him it wasnt working out well. I bet he chimes in here and will let us know how it turned out.



Well..... Turd....?:gee:
Click to expand...
It's all laughs and chuckles until someone get they eye poked out:laugh3:
 
I know ILLXJ is running a setup similar to this, and I plan to copy it soon. It's simply blocking the factory intake in the airbox and running a hose (rv sewer line for us) just like sgtmack described. Yeah the flow pattern isn't exactly great, but it is truly a cold air intake. Leave the factory filter alone, I'd be too worried about rain/snow/dust/mud clogging up an external filter quickly.
 
TellicoReadyXJ said:
I know ILLXJ is running a setup similar to this, and I plan to copy it soon. It's simply blocking the factory intake in the airbox and running a hose (rv sewer line for us) just like sgtmack described. Yeah the flow pattern isn't exactly great, but it is truly a cold air intake. Leave the factory filter alone, I'd be too worried about rain/snow/dust/mud clogging up an external filter quickly.
Click to expand...

That works good but I want to scrap the factory airbox so I can use that space for some other goodies! When I get my new digital camera I will get a few pics on here. For now I am revising plan A.............:repair:
 
ColoradoRaptor said:
That works good but I want to scrap the factory airbox so I can use that space for some other goodies! When I get my new digital camera I will get a few pics on here. For now I am revising plan A.............:repair:
Click to expand...


yes as i do too want to scrap the factory air box to make way for an extra batt......not sure on your year model design, but the 96...you would have to access it from top of the driver side.....what if you put a 90' bend and mout the filter horizontaly towards the driver side, there would be plenty of room, if you do some hacking, then you could fab up some kind of deflective shield around it.....hell i dont know...seems logical!!:thumbup:
 
d-rail said:
yes as i do too want to scrap the factory air box to make way for an extra batt......not sure on your year model design, but the 96...you would have to access it from top of the driver side.....what if you put a 90' bend and mout the filter horizontaly towards the driver side, there would be plenty of room, if you do some hacking, then you could fab up some kind of deflective shield around it.....hell i dont know...seems logical!!:thumbup:
Click to expand...

Driver side is out....Wiper linkage in the way!?!? Passenger side it is! Tried the 90 on the passenger side......the filter I bought to BIG?!!?!? When I find a solution I will post it!NAXJA
 
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I'll be watching this thread, since snorkle just moved up on my list after swamping this weekend in a big puddle. I want to drop the stock airbox and go through the cowl on the drivers side. Hadn't noticed the wipers being an issue (89), but wasn't looking to hard either.
 
I did this mod to my 98 xj. Works great. I have a K&N cone filter in the cowl. Has saved me ass a few times. Do a search for "Cowl Snorkel" and you should see a post from me where I have some pictures of it.
 
I'm planning on doing this as well. In place of the stock air box, I'm using a K&N Apollo closed cone running the tube to the cowl. In the cowl, I'm putting a down turned intake as well as a baffle. Here is a link to the K&N Apollo:
http://www.knfilters.com/universal/apollo.htm
 
The driver's side is fine if you use somewhat flexible material. Mine's been in for a couple/few years now. No problems with rain or washing it or anything--there are drains in the cowl area. Just make sure the bottom of your "tube" is a bit higher than the bottom of the cowl area and you'll be fine.
 
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