When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
So, if the lid is part of the problem then creating a tall HO air cleaner by melding the bottom half of one and the top half of another could be advantageous. Make it just the right height to accept one of the taller filters and use the same lid. But, since the lid will now be above the flow, or at least partially out of the flow, then the ridge won't have the same effect. Right?
And, I understand that factory air cleaners don't control the high temp, but they certainly reduce it, which has to be good. And, you said "The real solution for stabilizing under hood temps is stuff like cowl induction or venting, Hood scoops or even behind the grill inlets.". That's exactly what the factory air cleaner has - behind the grill vents.
Here's my plan, using factory parts. Both sides are plumbed to the radiator support, so there should be plenty of cooler air than if an open element unit was used.
Absolutely the easiest thing to do is to increase the height of the filter and the housing and raise the lid up. Remember most of the filter housing these trucks is the same as the cars where hood clearance was an issue cost cutting to use the same parts or same basic parts that can share stamping dies. Getting that lid up off the carb will make the unit as nearly as effective and as an open air unit. If it has the inlet baffle in the air cleaner pitch that also it is just a restriction and was used for noise reduction unless of course that is a concern.
And in a truck under hood temps are not usually an issue the engine compartments are are open with lots of places for air to enter and leave the engine compartment.
The other advantage of the open air units is there is not a bunch of extra heated steel acting like a big oven heating the incoming air.
Ducted inlet systems certainly offer advantages on vehicles with tight engine compartments. On trucks with open airy engine compartments the benefits are negligible at best and can in some instances be detrimental. Just ask YJ owners that have hit a couple inches of standing water at any kind of speed, that resulted hydro locked and shattered engines due to behind the grill ducted inlets.
So make sure to take your applications and use in to consideration.
I'm sure there is no doubt that it can be "handled"....You mentioned open air cleaners used by Ford Performance during the 60's. How would you explain the forced induction used by FoMoCo on the Thunderbolt through the headlamp openings on the factory sanctioned lightweight drag cars ? Having been a member of the now defunked Performance Ford Club of America and My Brother owning a factory Galaxie SOHC 427 Lightweight car....which does not, nor ever employed an open air cleaner, I'm finding it a tad hard to follow.
Lets look the operative phrase here "forced induction" this was ram air set up in a specialized race application.
This is apples to oranges.
How about put that on the street and hit an inch of standing water at 20 MPH want to lay odds how much water you are going to injest? Will it result in just bent rods or shattered pistons and or block ? There lots of YJ owners that will tell what will happen.......
I think that the cold air that is constantly coming is as you drive would cool down the air cleaner though. In the summer I guess I will just have to test it. 10 minutes of driving vs 10 minutes of idle temp.
Lets look the operative phrase here "forced induction" this was ram air set up in a specialized race application.
This is apples to oranges.
How about put that on the street and hit an inch of standing water at 20 MPH want to lay odds how much water you are going to injest? Will it result in just bent rods or shattered pistons and or block ? There lots of YJ owners that will tell what will happen.......
Introducing "variables" into the scenario That's like saying it's the bottom of the ninth, 3 ***** and two strikes on the batter and the home team is up by one run....but now it's raining??
Lets look the operative phrase here "forced induction" this was ram air set up in a specialized race application.
This is apples to oranges.
How about put that on the street and hit an inch of standing water at 20 MPH want to lay odds how much water you are going to injest? Will it result in just bent rods or shattered pistons and or block ? There lots of YJ owners that will tell what will happen.......
If it was not advantageous...why did they employ it ?
Introducing "variables" into the scenario That's like saying it's the bottom of the ninth, 3 ***** and two strikes on the batter and the home team is up by one run....but now it's raining??
Not variables but real life operating conditions that all street driven vehicles see.. That is why when the manufacturers did use ram air is was cowl induction utilizing the high pressure area at the base of the windshield or hood scoops that would minimize the risk of water ingestion.
Really cowl induction is the best way to get ram air on the street on older vehicles with more vertical windshields it minimizes the chances of water ingestion to just about zero and utilizes a natural high pressure area that can be greater than if it was picked up behind the grill.
Hmm must be a chevelle guy lol all the other gm companies used forward facing ram air. Both olds and pontiac had their ram air on the hood facing forward.
If it was not advantageous...why did they employ it ?
Again RACE APPLICATION. I never said it was not advantageous you assumed that. That set up is not PRATICAL for street driven vehicles. The Factory for set ups ARE NOT RAM AIR not even close and some actually end up drawing from low pressure area's. These system are not all identical from vehicle to vehicle or even engine to engine. Some are quite good others are total trash
Use some common sense and look at what is on your vehicle. And go from there.
Again RACE APPLICATION. I never said it was not advantageous you assumed that. That set up is not PRATICAL for street driven vehicles. The Factory for set ups ARE NOT RAM AIR not even close and some actually end up drawing from low pressure area's. These system are not all identical from vehicle to vehicle or even engine to engine. Some are quite good others are total trash
Use some common sense and look at what is on your vehicle. And go from there.
Race application? This is a truck forum! I figured since it is a truck forum we would be talking about the air cleaners on our ford trucks!
Hmm must be a chevelle guy lol all the other gm companies used forward facing ram air. Both olds and pontiac had their ram air on the hood facing forward.
Not chevelle guy at all that would be my buddy Dan But why do you think they utilized it ?
Does it look as cool as forward facing hood scoops nope , is it more effective yup. And why do think NASCAR cars utilizes cowl induction ? It's not cause it sounds cool.
Given your responses matt, I can only be left to assume that all of the manufacturer's have been severely mistaken in their placement of air intakes in core supports and fender wells of millions of production vehicles over the last how many years, given that they are subject to head on ingestion of numerous elements. Yes?
I'm not trying to be a wise guy...just trying to sort out your logic.
Not chevelle guy at all that would be my buddy Dan But why do you think they utilized it ?
Does it look as cool as forward facing hood scoops nope , is it more effective yup. And why do think NASCAR cars utilizes cowl induction ? It's not cause it sounds cool.
Given your responses matt, I can only be left to assume that all of the manufacturer's have been severely mistaken...
Give him a chance; he is saying some things I've been hearing since I was a kid, e.g. most of the the factory-supplied "ram air" configurations are there for Marketing purposes only and don't really offer a tremendous performance impact.... I can totally understand how all velocity is lost upon hitting the body of the air cleaner....
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalytic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath
Slideshow: Called the Fortress, the 850-horsepower pickup combines Raptor underpinnings with military-inspired features, survival equipment, and a starting price of $285,000.
That's like saying it's the bottom of the ninth, 3 ***** and two strikes on the batter and the home team is up by one run....but now it's raining?? 
