Installed Typhoon this w/e : Some questions and comments

[GDeschodt]

I've read on this board that a filter and exhaust were about all you can do for a Cooper without breaking the bank. I started with a Typhoon system from Turner motorsport (on sale for $130 or so). The installation was a non-event, took 15 minutes maybe... I honestly was not expecting much... Maybe a bit more power down low where my car always bogs down, and better sound. I got 1/2 my wishes...

The sound is very very nice ! Under normal driving you cannot tell, but once you step on the gas hard or exceed 4000 RPM, it sounds immensely better. I am amazed that an air filter alone can do this ! No change in power that I can feel.. But I'll keep it just for the noise !

One question though: The previous airbox was fed air directly from outside via a duct behind the grill. The new K&N element is inside the engine compartment, exposed to engine heat. So is this really a better thing performance wise? Also I drive on FL highways where the inside of the engine compartment always gets sandy and full of crap and the filter was pretty dirty on the air intake side. Will the K&N do as good a job ? One wonders...

[holdenontoit]

Quote: Originally Posted by GDeschodt

I've read on this board that a filter and exhaust were about all you can do for a Cooper without breaking the bank. I started with a Typhoon system from Turner motorsport (on sale for $130 or so). The installation was a non-event, took 15 minutes maybe... I honestly was not expecting much... Maybe a bit more power down low where my car always bogs down, and better sound. I got 1/2 my wishes...

The sound is very very nice ! Under normal driving you cannot tell, but once you step on the gas hard or exceed 4000 RPM, it sounds immensely better. I am amazed that an air filter alone can do this ! No change in power that I can feel.. But I'll keep it just for the noise !

One question though: The previous airbox was fed air directly from outside via a duct behind the grill. The new K&N element is inside the engine compartment, exposed to engine heat. So is this really a better thing performance wise? Also I drive on FL highways where the inside of the engine compartment always gets sandy and full of crap and the filter was pretty dirty on the air intake side. Will the K&N do as good a job ? One wonders...

this question is exactly why I went with the Alta.the alta "partition" completely isolates the filter assembly from the motor compartment and opens up completely to the cowl vent, directly below the windscreen on the driver's side.That said,I really didn't like the noise level of the foam filter which came with the Alta, so I went with a K&N filter which quieted it down sufficiently that I could live with it.The ONLY downside to the Alta's open- to- the- cowl- vent design , occured when I added some scoops in lieu of the cowl vents, and then I wound up ramming water,sleet,and snow directly into the filter and damn near killed the motor in the process by injecting water instead of air- cowl vents are back on-needless to say.