Has anybody seen the "Tornado" advertised on TV? I'm sure you have, since I have seen the commercial several times, and I don't watch much TV (aside from DVDs).
If I'm getting it straight, they claim it increases gas mileage and horsepower. Now, just looking at the thing, I would say that it is designed to create the coveted "swirling" effect which results in more efficient combustion. Swirling is certainly a good thing; Mercedes has stuck with 3 valves per cylinder for this reason, and VTEC-E was created to emulate the effect. Toyota came up with a system using a computer-controlled butterfly vavle. And now this small, stationary piece of metal can do the same thing? Yes, skeptic mode has been activated.
They claim mileage increases of up to 24%, and power gains of 10-15 hp. That's not bad for a $70 investment, especially when it's a super-simple installation that doesn't void your warranty! That's enough to peak my interest...
So who actually has one of these things, and how does it perform in reality? And, why is it $70 when it looks so simple? Is it made of some super alloy or something? Please, tell all.