Forced engine compartment cooling with full belly pan

[tugboat]

@BamZipPow - where'd you get the thermocouples and digital readouts?

[BamZipPow]

Originally Posted by tugboat

@BamZipPow - where'd you get the thermocouples and digital readouts?

Thermocouplers came from Thermoworks...
ThermoWorks – High Temperature Thermocouple Probes. Use these probes to measure temps above 600°F

I have 2 different ones...the Washer Thermocouple and the High Temp Industrial Probes (1/16").

You can find other thermocouplers from other companies on the web, too.

I found some 12V (AC or DC) temperature switch controllers at LoveControls.com
Table of Contents -- Temperature Controls

I used the TCS-4030...and I run them on a 12V voltage regulator (got it off of eBay) to make sure they git 12V vs what the alternator is putting out.
Series TCS - Thermocouple Temperature Switch - Dwyer Instruments

[Exalta-STA]

oh, so hood spacers are not that safe nor aerodynamic, thanks for the information. I always thought that the increased angle of the hood directed air over the wipers and there was a vacuum effect that sucked the warm air out of the engine bay or that's what the hood spacer manufacturer claims .

[tugboat]

Regardless of the performance claims, it's absolutely unsafe, for the reason already given... one good front-end collision, and 'There can be only One!'(tm)

[Bill in Houston]

tuft testing usually shows air getting sucked into any gap at the back of the hood, which is the opposite of what we would hope. of course, things being the opposite of what we would hope, is what we would expect.

[Joenavy85]

I take out the gasket at the rear part of the hood(the one that separates the base of the windshield from the engine compartment) when temps start getting hot. It allows a small amount of air to flow through into the engine compartment, but i only do it if my intake temp gets above 130*, since my engine starts to knock around 135-140*

[Bill in Houston]

Originally Posted by Joenavy85

I take out the gasket at the rear part of the hood(the one that separates the base of the windshield from the engine compartment) when temps start getting hot. It allows a small amount of air to flow through into the engine compartment, but i only do it if my intake temp gets above 130*, since my engine starts to knock around 135-140*

Have you used a piece of yarn to see what direction the flow is? Not that it mattters, maybe, for your purposes, but just for our general knowledge?

[Joenavy85]

never tried it but it does cause my intake temp to drop, so it either has flow into the engine compartment and out the bottom, or flows out allowing more flow through the engine compartment.

[aerohead]

Originally Posted by Sidakers

Ok, so I was thinking about building a corroplast belly pan on my sl2 after reading about one another saturn owner built; not only because I'd like to improve my mpg, but because the factory air damn got ripped off by some road debris, now my car feels rather floaty and less safe to drive at highway speeds.

Most of my miles are highway miles (I live right by the on ramp to the main corridor through wichita, and work right by the off ramp 10 miles down the road or so) so I really figure I'd see an mpg improvement as well as stability from a full belly pan.

My concern is engine compartment cooling. I figure a lot of heat actually gets pulled out under the car, so I'd like to force cool it somehow. This got me thinking. I figure I could put two 12v computer fans near the top of my engine bay (heat rises, right?) duct the airflow down with dryer-vent piping and flushmount a dryer vent (like the kind with the flaps that close with no airflow) into the corroplast.

I figure the flaps on the vents would close at high speeds due to terminal velocity, but I could build a thermostat that would activate the fans once the engine bay reached a certain temperature, forcing the flaps open and venting the engine bay. Otherwise, the fans could run while idling or at low speeds, to vent the bay while not being aerodynamically inhibitive.

Anyone heard of anything like this, or have any thoughts?

Also, Hi. I read this forum a lot but this would be my first post

Sidakers,if you'll check out the aero mods sticky you'll find a section on cooling systems.Fans can fail,you've got plenty of ram air for cooling.With proper design,you'll get the drag reduction and okay cooling.

[chris_kraft3]

I live in wichita also. That's cool to see another person on here from our area.