*free Horsepower*

Ok guys I was at my handy-dandy auto shop today and this one guy who owned a 97 SL showed me the coolest thing ever. I asked how I could get a little more sound out of the car without any major exhaust mods (since I'm damn near broke) and he showed me the quickest, easiest, cheapest (hence FREE) way to get clean natural sound, increase horsepower, and boost efficiency. *Keep in mind this is on my 97 SL and i dont know how varying body designs will affect this*

The air filter is connected to a big black hose that makes a sort of "s" turn before connecting to the next part. if you look under that hose, there is a little thing about the size and relative shape of a large, deformed potatoe. The mechanic told me that this thing was for capturing excess water to keep it from gettin into the engine, and that it was only useful if you were taking on HUGE amounts of water, i.e. driving in flood water (which is a bad idea anyway:screwy: ). So unless you plan on driving through a lake, all it does is just hang there and f*** up your air flow. So he unscrewed some screws and took off the hose, and loosened another screw and took off the little thing (it actually resembles the thing that holds your paintballs on a paintball gun) so now you have a hose with a hole in it. Well, he took the plastic cap off of a bottle of antifreeze and shoved it into the hole and tightned it up nice and snug to seal off the hole, so now instead of having an extra little room for your air flow to get stuck in, it has a much straigher path. He put every thing back on and I left a little later, and I almost killed myself spinning out because I was NOT expecting that much of a power gain! it was NOTICABELY different in power, response, accelaration, and fuel efficiency. Unless someone knows a real problem with this, i HIGHLY reccomend it. Seriously, you have to try it to believe it.

Credits go to Gene - My Mechanic! WOOT

Thats a resonator/silenver. Its not to catch water.

Yeah it is not to catch water. As far as performance it is minimal. It definately gives the intake a throatier sound but does not do much for performance. Maybe 1hp at the crank to be generous.

are you sure we're talkin about the same part? cuz I know of a resonator as part of my exhaust system and its made of metal. Im talkin about a hollow plastic bowl type thing connected to the air filter/intake.

Well, regardless of what the thing is, I definitely noticed a gain of more than 1 "generous" horsepower

I am 100% sure we are talking about the same part. It is just after the air filter underneath th piping in an odd shape. The only resonator on the intake. And what you may be experiencing is the placebo effect.

Definitely placebo. The better sound makes you think its faster. BT W Alot of stock cars have resonators/silencers. Its one of the 'free mods' Mustnag guys do too.

Hmm..Well I am only 18 so Ill leave it to the pro's to know what's goin on. Please note that my family is known as being VERY stubborn:grinyes:

if u just get a $30 open element intake system, u can prolly install it faster and easier then what "gene" did. and youll have more gain. or just put panty hose where the filter should be....fuck it. TOODLES!!

I'm pretty sure most stock intakes on MANY cars out there have a resonator (at least all of mine have). Their purpose is just to quiet the sound of the intake by muffling it. I agree with the 1 "generous" horsepower to the crank if your talking about an entire short ram cold air intake, but removing the resonator, IMO, won't give you half a horsepower.

If water were getting into your intake, I figure that you'd have bigger problems than flooding the engine(i.e. drowning).

if you want to find out for yourself on the hp gains, go to a dyno. Do a run with the intake resonator on, then do a run with the intake resonator off. That'll tell you what the car is really doing.

HAHAHAHA I was freaking cracking up reading this!!

if you want to find out for yourself on the hp gains, go to a dyno. Do a run with the intake resonator on, then do a run with the intake resonator off. That'll tell you what the car is really doing.
i've done it before, you get 40hp to the drivers side front wheel:grinyes:

i've done it before, you get 40hp to the drivers side front wheel:grinyes:


in that case, i'll take 2 please

The mechanic told me that this thing was for capturing excess water to keep it from gettin into the engine, and that it was only useful if you were taking on HUGE amounts of water

Credits go to Gene - My Mechanic! WOOT


Find a new mechanic immediately. If that is what he told you, I wouldn't trust him to fill my gas tank.

i dont know bout u, i've never had a mechanic fill my gas tank, and i live in jersey, where people pump for u. that's y i'm a lazy bastard