Cold air intake?

gumper said

I've mulled over the idea of fabbing an air intake that I'd run through the factory battery location and draw air from the front bumper area. I've seen some guys run the intakes with dryer-like hose. Has anyone had personal experience with the performance benefits to such a thing? When it's hot and I'm going from the return road back to the staging lanes in the late rounds I think this would help keep the car consistent compared to drawing hot under hood air. I like my cowl hood, but honestly I doubt it does much for air intake. From a few guys I've talked to it really leans the car out at the top end if your forcing the air in more at higher speeds. How could you tune for this to keep the from being too rich at the slow end of the track?

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Forcing the air in doesn't cause it to go lean. More air moving through the carburetor will draw more gasoline along with it. What is happening is the cooler air drawn in through a scoop is more dense than the warmer underhood air. That's why we want it. More oxygen. Because denser air can support more fuel & thus make more power. The carb however, must be jetted/ calibrated to match the added density of the cooler air & higher oxygen levels. That's where it can go leaner. You can think of it like a barometric pressure change inside the scoop. If the weather changes at the track you have to make jet changes(think altitude correction) to keep it in tune.
You'd be suprised how well your cowl hood works if it's fitted right to take advantage of the high pressure area at th base of the windshield. Even on the return road. But I wouldn't worry about what it's drawing in for air in the staging lanes or return road. You're not racing there. That air is lonnngg gone when you get the car going down track. If you want to keep it cooler for consistancy's sake cool the radiator, intake manifold & fuel line between rounds. Put an electric water pump on it & circulate the water while the engine is off.