Cutting out nostrils on hood....

[firebird99]

I did a search on cutting out the nostrils on my hood and I've decided I'm gonna do it this weekend. I've already done the FRA and air box lift mods on my bird so my question is do I need to undo any of these mods if I'm gonna cut out the nostrils. I've heard I might need to close off the FRA mod for it to work right, is this true? Or is it better to leave it the way it is so it gets more air in there? Can anyone who has done this give me a few pointers? I just want to get the best results. Any help is greatly appreciated.

[Devilboy28]

I have the FRA done with my nostrils cut out. No problems at all. My only advise is: BE CAREFUL where you cut. Mark it off with a pencil first and try to stick with your plan. It's easy to make cuts where you don't want/need them! GOOD LUCK!

[WickEdSix9838]

the only downside to the FRA is it could pick up hotter air than the nostrils would..

[firebird99]

Ok well I'm gonna try it with the FRA and see how it works if not then I guess I can remove the whole airbox and seal it off from the bottom. Will I have any problems w/ rain getting in?(Not that it ever rains that much out here anyways) Also I was planning on using a small grinder to cut it but I keep reading about people using a dremmel tool Which one is better? And is it expensive?

[Everglades W68]

I used:

A big-*** circular saw. It very quick , but clumsy and not at all precise. Also, hard to manipulate on the back side cuts).

AND

One of those hand held grinder tools. It was cheap ($25-30 bucks at Home Depot or Walmart). It was almost as strong as the circular saw and much more controllable.

I definitely recommend the hand-held grinder. Get the metal cutting blades and you'll be set. Someone once wrote that you need an enormous amount of blades - NOT TRUE! Get a three pack fom Walmart and you should be just fine. You might only need one.

I don't think a Dremel tool would work very well. It is just too small and weak.

Plus, I noticed that fast cuts had one advantage. If your cut is slow, the paint surrounding the cut will heat up and discolor. If you cut rapidly, the paint will not discolor.

As for rain - I made block off plates out of aluminum. We get extremely heavy rains here often.

[Everglades W68]

Just be ready for big showers of sparks. Wear safety glasses and cover up the entire front of the car. I used some big plastic tarps and the car was fine. The sparks were melting through the tarp, so I put two tarps over the car.

I covered the entire front of the car. I tucked them in under the corners of open hood near the hinges and they stayed in place the whole time.

Ou course, I now have a tarp with a bunch of pinprick holes in it = junk. [img]smile.gif[/img]

[firebird99]

Wel I'm probably gonna do it today or later tomorrow. Hey Everglades W68 did you notice a difference after this mod? Also I read you can just put a sponge in there in case of heavy rain. Have you tried this?

[Everglades W68]

I don't really know. I have not done any with/without tests.

What I'm looking for now is some sort of screen to put in the openings. I've already had a dragonfly in there.

As far as a sponge, I believe that is sort of what the earlier ram air set ups did.