RiF Posted August 5, 2004 Share Posted August 5, 2004 That's right. All our R&D has pointed to just trapped air. Silly this has not been solved before. A very cheap solution that we tried to start with was 2 plastic bottles cut down and two flexible pipes put in the cap end and piped out. Certainly reduced the heat while driving along. Richard in France Flying fast in my very bright yellow 226bhp Duratec 7, with internal kevlar/carbon panels and pushrod suspension 😬 😬 😬.for pictures of 7 and carbon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metal mickey Posted August 5, 2004 Share Posted August 5, 2004 For cars fitted with windscreen and doors would a small vent sitting between the scuttle side and trapped by the front edge of the door work? On the back of this vent you could fit a length of flexi pipe and duct the air into the footwell. This is obviously treating the problem and not the cause but at least its not a permanent fixture on the car and easy to try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe 90 Posted August 6, 2004 Share Posted August 6, 2004 Michael, that's very interesting. Now all I need is a neat permanent equivalent. SEP field working, not spotted in 102,200 miles. Some photos on webshots, updated 10 June Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Simon Posted August 6, 2004 Share Posted August 6, 2004 As I got out of the car last week to fill up with Petrol I must of caught the gearshift gaiter and pulled a rivet out. It then had an inch gap which let air from the transmission tunnel into the cockpit. The cockpit side was much cooler after this and heated up again when I pressed it back down again. I pulled the tunnel cover out of my car. An hour long blat in 98°(F) temperatures left the tunnel top and sides reasonable to the touch. What a difference! All that's needed is an elegant way of extracting hot air from the tunnel. -Bob 95 HPC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metal mickey Posted August 6, 2004 Share Posted August 6, 2004 So what about a removable louvred panel for the underside of the transmission tunnel.If anyone wants to take the time to make a pattern i could make one up for them to try. Mike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krum Posted August 6, 2004 Share Posted August 6, 2004 How about cooling the source of the heat, ie the gearbox? Would it be feasable to put a gearbox oil cooler on or is that missing the point Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michaelw Posted August 7, 2004 Share Posted August 7, 2004 I have had a look at the car and I think a vent in the rear panel to let the air out from around the rear axle and hence the transmission tunnel would sort it out but would look wrong. The other option would to be to fit a brake duct in reverse sticking out of the back of the car if you see what I mean, which is what I think some one has suggested further up. I guess if you had a defuser this would also sort the problem - a bit extreme though. Michael. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiF Posted August 7, 2004 Share Posted August 7, 2004 krum: it is the engine heat getting trapped by the gearbox not the heat of the gearbox although it does heat up but mainly from the engine compartment heat. Richard in France Flying fast in my very bright yellow 226bhp Duratec 7, with internal kevlar/carbon panels and pushrod suspension 😬 😬 😬.for pictures of 7 and carbon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Simon Posted August 7, 2004 Share Posted August 7, 2004 Mike's idea of a louvered panel sounds good. I suppose a row of louvers open to the rear should pull the air through. I can recall seeing similar louvers in a racecar, although I think they were cooling or venting some other specific area. Is the underside panel of the tunnel a separate piece of alclad or is it part of the whole floor pan? I'd look myself, but my car's at the painter's getting her new stripes. -Bob 95 HPC VX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe 90 Posted August 7, 2004 Share Posted August 7, 2004 NACA duct in exhaust mode? SEP field working, not spotted in 102,200 miles. Some photos on webshots, updated 10 June Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irrelevant Posted August 7, 2004 Share Posted August 7, 2004 Yes Oliver - that's what I reckon too. In a panel along the underside of the tunnel. After a hi-vis (pocketted side) driver's door if anyone's got one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevefoster Posted August 7, 2004 Share Posted August 7, 2004 All that dry heat, you may end up mumified in the 7. I doubt they will bury you in your 7 even if it is your last wish. My first 7 had a flap where the heater would have been mounted. On a pull chain to open and close it. Open, it let lots of nasty carb / engine smells in that gave me a headache after an hours driving. I blocked it off. It was more for heating in the cold swedish spring / autumn than cooling. Cool air from the outside va ducts would be possible but at what cosmetic costs. In traffic all will heat up anyway... In downpours water may get in - does that matter? I got THAT wet during last Thurs thunderstorms around Reading / Farnborough! I survive fine with the DS oil tank heating the pass footwell and bare ali. "the cockpit of a modern racing car is an inhospitable / violent environment" Quote one or another racing mag. Hants (North) and Berkshire Area club site here My racing info site here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve-B Posted August 8, 2004 Author Share Posted August 8, 2004 found these today whch might be the trick here combined with Donkey Dick f you put a split downstream, could be just the dogs Steve B Big Black Beast^3 Lighten up everybody....NOW USA 2005: How the West Was Driven Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe 90 Posted August 24, 2004 Share Posted August 24, 2004 Quick update, I've let a NACA duct in to the bottom of the transmission tunnel to suck the hot air out (well that's the plan). I've posted some pictures here SEP field working, not spotted in 102,200 miles. Some photos on webshots, updated 10 June Edited by - Oliver Sedlacek on 24 Aug 2004 18:23:35 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irrelevant Posted August 24, 2004 Share Posted August 24, 2004 Oliver: Why's your car got a one piece floor? Is that the real floor or a second skin? Accumulating bits . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris K Posted August 24, 2004 Share Posted August 24, 2004 Oliver.. whats the lump behind the passenger bulkhead near the axle.. in hte upsidedown pic... ta 'Going round the corner givin' it a handfull' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe 90 Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 The one piece floor is standard on older live axle chassis. The lump behind the passenger seat is a tool storage box. It was easier to get at when I had bench seats, so it's currently empty. I'm tempted to move the battery there to improve the weight distribution, but there are some higher priority jobs on the list- as always. SEP field working, not spotted in 102,200 miles. Some photos on webshots, updated 10 June Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Sailor Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 Oliver, nice work. Was the duct hand made or bought? There are a lot of us interested in how well this works. Please keep us all up to date. Ken Sailor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe 90 Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 We went to the Windsor meet this evening, and I have to say the results were inconclusive. As the weather wasn't that hot, the temperature of the tunnel was quite pleasant, but still warm to the touch. Sunshine and a motorway thrash are still required. The duct was all of £12 from Merlin Motorsport. Update, went to Marlow yesterday, and the results are definitely disappointing. Back to the drawing board I guess. SEP field working, not spotted in 102,200 miles. Some photos on webshots, updated 10 June Edited by - Oliver Sedlacek on 2 Sep 2004 22:58:28 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe 90 Posted September 2, 2004 Share Posted September 2, 2004 BTTT SEP field working, not spotted in 102,400 miles. Some photos on webshots, updated 10 June Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slomove Posted September 2, 2004 Share Posted September 2, 2004 I did some "scientific" experiments the last few days because I had the exhaust headers off and could change various conditions: - car is LHD with 150 bhp Zetec engine, i.e. driver behind exhaust. No extra footwell insulation, only the ali sheet - I drove the same 35 minute route each time with a mix of city (20 min), freeway (10 min), city (5 min) - I measured the difference between outside temperature (22 to 25 deg. C) and the temperature in the footwell (barbecue thermometer strapped to my right foot) Results so far: - Generally I noticed under these condition it takes about 15-20 minutes from cold start to reach somewhat stable temperature in the footwell - There was not much change going from city driving to freeway driving. I suppose the better air draft cooling offset the increased generated heat. However, there was a noticable temperature increase (3-5 degrees) going from the freeway to city speed. That may be temporary, however. - The end temperature difference with bare exhaust headers was 16 degrees C above ambient, that means 39 degrees at my foot, which was uncomfortable but not unbearable. The same temperature difference at - let's say - 34 degrees outside might lead to a footwell temperature of up to 50 degrees which is definitely not nice. But maybe the difference gets smaller at higher overall temperature. - Then I added exhaust header wrap (double layer glass fabric tape with an aluminum sleeve). This lowered the temperature difference to 13 degrees above ambient. I was somewhat disappointed that it does not do more but the 3 degrees improvement is noticable. Obviously the bulk of the heat penetrating into the footwell comes from the hot engine block, gearbox and the radiator. - Then I uncovered the footwell bottom louvers (sucking air out to the rear) that I have in my car and had covered with carpet for the previous tests. This lowered the temperature again a tad but I would not suggest this is a worthwhile modification. - I made one run with a 3" vent hose (donkey dick style) hanging out of the cockpit side and scooping up fresh air to deliver directly to the bottom of the footwell. That made a BIG difference. The temperature difference dropped to only 5 degrees above ambient. Unfortunately somewhat impractical to drive all the time with a donkey dick between your legs 😬 My conclusion is: I can live with the header wrap/louver for now but I am still not satisfied, especially when temperatures reach 35 or 40 degrees (California!). The outside air scoop is surely the solution but I don't really want to install something on the outside skin. Next I will try to route an air duct from the narrow slot above the radiator to the footwell. Let's see..... Gert Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe 90 Posted September 3, 2004 Share Posted September 3, 2004 Thanks for the update. My conclusion is that it is more about getting cool air in than hot air out. SEP field working, not spotted in 102,400 miles. Some photos on webshots, updated 10 June Edited by - Oliver Sedlacek on 3 Sep 2004 11:42:38 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madman280 Posted September 3, 2004 Share Posted September 3, 2004 Been toying with the idea of a little footwell vent very similar to ones fitted to the early XK Jags. Little square metal box that sits flush to weatherstriping the footwell side when closed, but when opened looks like a little scoup.Boss at work restores them and mentioned they are cheap to source, and work quite well on the Jags on a hot day, but then again we are talking a guy who is working on Jags..perhaps a relative term to him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobuy Posted September 4, 2004 Share Posted September 4, 2004 I just did a track day here in Dubai, where the outside temperature was 44 degrees C. It was just a little hot, gave my new nomex suit a good workout. Would be very interested in doing some testing here. RIF what about a vented tunnel top in CF? Duratec Se7en, built in Dubai, pics here! Keep it sunny side up and out of the kitty litter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve-B Posted September 4, 2004 Author Share Posted September 4, 2004 mike, where would you want it to vent to 🤔 i found these here that may be handy next year *thumbup* Steve B Big Black Beast^3 USA 2005: How the West Was Driven Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now