MrNizzles

iTrader: (5)

^ gee, didn't expect this to be such a heated debated... i guess i should clarify, like others have mentioned i have the sides of the radiator sealed off pretty good. did that when I removed the fog lights.. only in traffic do I notice temps above go 185, otherwise its a stable 180 at anything 30+. prior to removing and sealing, temps were a stable 185. yah, the guage is a needle type and I have no pfc, so maybe actually 3*, idk ... its just a freggin water temp.

Captain_Panic

iTrader: (15)

+1 to proper sealing areound the radiator. I upgraded to a Koyo, and filled in the gaps, and my car never sees anything over 87C.

Oh and for the record, the fog lights are still on, and so are the plastic ears. Still think the Sharkmouth mod looks AWESOME.

hsitko

iTrader: (1)

"venturi effect" not venturi. The effect is the change in pressure to change velocity. The wording was correct. I agree with you about the goal being to increase air velocity at lower speeds. Its a great idea. And i'm sure it took some engineering. Just saying we havent done as much research as they did. We dont have the budget they did. We dont have access to the same equipment they did. This is the one area in car modification that is the most fogy for individuals to make positive changes in. We shouldnt assume we know more than they do. Its kinda lame to just assume that the results are positive with out any concrete proof. It is like talking to old american muscle car guys that all drove around their "600" hp cars every day that got 40mpg. When you ask them what kind of dyno they had their car on or for any proof that the car got that kind of mileage, they suddenly become useless to talk to. I'm not trying to operate on that level. I want concrete results not here-say based off or unscientific data.

Double_J

iTrader: (28)

I pulled one and have been meaning on pulling the other. I didn't see any difference, nor did I seal it.

bbade

iTrader: (5)

Thought I would chime in here, I skimmed the thread so I apologize if I am repeating earlier advice. Last summer I had the FD at a shop for alignment and tech inspection prior to a track day at Putnam Park, the mechanic recommended I remove the plastic pieces to increase airflow to the radiator. I took his advice and had the pieces removed for the start of the track day. After some hard lapping I was noticing pretty high coolant temps and decided to make some quick ducting. I essentially mimicked those plastic pieces and then some with some duct tape at the track and noticed the car running cooler by as much as 5 degrees (as shown by PFC Commander).

I highly doubt that you will notice any difference under regular driving conditions, but if you plan on doing any track days you should definitely leave them in. I will be leaving them out, but only because I will be doing some more robust ducting this summer.

Not sure how much it matters, but I was running a Koyo radiator, and stock intercooler, with the ac condenser and power steering cooler in front of the radiator.

hsitko

iTrader: (1)

Kinda what i thought. People have a tendency to let what they think the results of something should be skew the actual results of what it is they are testing.

I'm glad someone else is corroborating something that i know to be true. The concepts and theories are sound.

hsitko

iTrader: (1)

Also, i could be wrong here. But as far as i know that temp gauge isnt linear. Meaning if there were a 3 or 5 degree temp change you wouldnt notice on the gauge. It is designed so that if it is near normal operating temp that the gauge looks "normal". Only when the delta to the "normal" temp is high will the gauge read higher.

Just saying.

theorie

iTrader: (31)

i have see some people do this to make the front opening get more airflow:

Barry Bordes

You could use one side as a cool air inlet. Should have a bell mouth.

Barry

theorie

iTrader: (31)

^^^ is this a rally car? holy crap mud in the condenser!

neit_jnf

iTrader: (17)

I took out my fogs, plastic ears and plastic piece that holds the opening's shape and added the shark mouth rods to open up the area. Don't have any before/after temps though.

I plan on making some good ducting along with Shine's front undercover.

evot23

iTrader: (17)

^^That's a sweet looking car!!^^^^

on topic, when I decided to do this many moons ago on the above car, Nick at N-tech gave me this explanation (paraphrased from my memory). Shark Mod originally intended to open the mouth of the front to increase flow to an aftermarket radiator. One that could take full advantage of all the air hitting the surface. With the mod, ducting is always suggested to force air through the radiator. With the stock radiator, I suggest leaving the pieces in as the air is being "directed" by these pieces to hit your stock radiator.

That being said I do recall seeing temp drop with aftermarket radiator and the shark mod in.

theorie

iTrader: (31)

haha yeah i've gotten a few rides in that car. its great when the wastegate opens up...

evot23

iTrader: (17)

I've never gotten a ride in it since it went single. Wonder how that would feel against my current car. I still miss that car and am sooo glad that it went to a good home.

jayk

It is probably safe to say that if you are casually driving around to pick up groceries and race from spotlight to spotlight, you can remove them or leave them in and it won't make much of a difference to the performance or longevity of your car. Same goes for the foglights.

If you are tracking your car then it may make a difference with the stock radiator. But why would you seriously track the car with the stock radiator? I pulled my foglights and the halfmoons, opened up the front like the sharkmouth mod, directed one side up to my air filters, replaced my radiator, and carefully ducted everything so air either goes to my IC, AI, or radiator. Never have a water temp problem even after long days at the track in 100 degree heat.