'98 Ford Festiva 1.5L Air Intake Inquiry

[Deicide47]

I'll get a quote from my mechanic. He does all that stuff.

[bhearts]

I thought that you'd have a hard time doing a cone filter

[Deicide47]

I decided to just mod the stock air box as I've heard bad things about the cone filters. Not much of a difference in flow anyway. Also, if the police find one then they can fine me. Lol

[Deicide47]

Here is the Festiva at the doctors getting a new wheel bearing and CV joint boot covers. I didn't realize how well the intake air box mod worked until a friend followed me to the mechanics in her V8 LS1 and said that I was tricky to keep up with. It must be accelerating easier than before or I was just excited to get to the mechanics. Lol!

[nitrofarm]

LOL Its fun to see you getting excited about your Mods- Your friend with the V8 LS1- I hear those things are slow because they frequently get air cleaners clogged with Festy's. < joke There is quite a lot you can do internally to your engine that can never be detected by the Authorities. But it would require a complete tear down,but since swaps are such a PITA for you guys it would be worth it. That 1.5 has a LOT of potential in your car just not with factory pistons, cam & head. I would start with with a better exhaust and then get a spare motor for a High Performance rebuild. Other wise Max will just suck you up and spit you out his exhaust.< again joke

[Deicide47]

Lololol. I definitely enjoy modifying my car. The 1.5 L has the same intake as it's smaller counterpart so freeing up the intake should technically have a better effect on the larger engine. I have definitely considered a high performance rebuild but that won't happen for another couple of years if I decide to do it. Exhaust is the next step, then I'm getting Iridium spark plugs and thicker leads which should improve efficiency and performance.

[TominMO]

Okay, thanks for the advice. I could invest in a K&N drop-in filter but they are closer to $100 over here but it is cheap in comparison to other mods. When I have some spare time, I'll pull out the air box and extend the hole so it can breathe easier. The pod/cone filter is pretty much illegal over here. If you get caught with one they will give you a nice fine and a defect notice.

On an otherwise-stock car, a better filter is of little or no use, because the restriction before the filter is the airbox design itself--as you have figured out. The stock pleated filter, properly freed up by more air feeding it, will provide all the flow possible to an unmodified engine. The next restriction is the air intake tube from the filter to the intake manifold. Again the filter has a greater flow capacity than the intake tube itself; so you've really done all you can (cheaply) just by drilling more holes in the bottom airbox half. I'd drill them in the front.

The next mod to make to your car would be a good tubular header, free-flow cat, and good cat-back exhaust system. You can save some money by doing this when you need to do exhaust work anyway. After that, you are getting into major dollars for mods to the engine itself. A cam would cost about the same as a tubular header, maybe $300-350 USD; but significant headwork would pretty much double what you have invested in modifications.

If you have any problems with the inspection guys, just keep the airbox piece you took off, find another stock bottom airbox half at the JY, and put those on for the inspection.

[Deicide47]

Thanks for the advice, TominMO. I don't think I'd go as far as internal engine work but I am still definitely getting the cat-back exhaust. I've had to save up money as I'm getting ready to move (plus the electricity company has been overcharging) so the exhaust has been put on hold until March or April.

Seeing as it has been two months since I've posted, I can say that I've had no problem with the intake mod. Even in heavy rain, water doesn't get anywhere near the air box so removing the snorkel bit and punching a hole in the front/fender side is safe. I've also noticed it helps the engine breathe in the mid to high RPMs. Plus it sounds a bit like a Subaru when I put my foot down. lol.
No idling problems and no (noticeable) increase in fuel consumption.

[bhearts]

Thanks for the advice, TominMO. I don't think I'd go as far as internal engine work but I am still definitely getting the cat-back exhaust. I've had to save up money as I'm getting ready to move (plus the electricity company has been overcharging) so the exhaust has been put on hold until March or April.

Seeing as it has been two months since I've posted, I can say that I've had no problem with the intake mod. Even in heavy rain, water doesn't get anywhere near the air box so removing the snorkel bit and punching a hole in the front/fender side is safe. I've also noticed it helps the engine breathe in the mid to high RPMs. Plus it sounds a bit like a Subaru when I put my foot down. lol.
No idling problems and no (noticeable) increase in fuel consumption.

In reference to the b3 engine, I think the best mod would be an entire intake from head to filter. Am I partial to this idea, yes, can you make serious power, no. The b3 intake is terrible for mid to upper rpm ranges, just terrible. There's always sacrifices though. With a naturally aspirated engine, one should not expect to gain power without losing power somewhere. Although any mod better than stock should have net gain over the rpm range.

[bhearts]

I'm not familiar with the b5, so I must reference the b3