Well, after wanting more power out of my BMW, and being bored, I decided to tinker a little. I went digging through my parts bin, and was trying to get some ideas. I very carefully examined the stock 325e air box system, and tried to see how power could be acheived. I know many people run an external filter, but can lose power without a heat shield. So, I decided to make do with what was given.
I first drilled some holes into the top half of the airbox, being careful.... I drilled two good size holes in the front of it, the part facing towards the grille of the car, two on each side, and two on the top. I figured this would let more air in. To test the theory, I put a peice of printer paper on one of the sides I drilled the holes into, to see if it was actualy sucking upon throttle. It held the paper in place, and when throttle was stopped, it fell.......
Then, after digging through my parts, I came up with a genious idea. A while back I had a PT cruiser, and put a CAI on it, and kept the stock parts, thank god lol. I had a little tube, which I beleive ran from the stock airbox to the fender. I will get the part number for you guys interested in it, you can get it at a chrysler dealer for cheap, or a junkyard for free basically. Anyway, I took that little tube, and seen there is a hose comming out of the bottom of the airbox once you take some plastic gaurd off. I took this tube, and forced it into that hose from the airbox. The tube fits in PERFECT, and SNUG! And since the tube has a small bend, when turned the right way, the open end of it goes right to a COMPLETE fresh cold air source. It is like a match in heaven. I will get some pics of this setup soon, as I have been busy.... Anyway, I put my hand over the end of that tube, and had my father give it some gas, and it sucks my hand right to it, so I know it is working! We took it around the block, and I can say it made a very noticeable difference. The stock airbox acts like a heatshield, but is still much like a CAI done like this. So 2 days ago, I go to autozone, and buy a K&N air filter to make the most out of my setup, and let me say, it is highly reccomended from me.... I put it in, and it felt much better, and sounds very good lol. With just the mods in my siggy, and this airbox work, the car feels very good, and torque feels awesome. I am very pleased with the airbox mod, and it will not waste your time, it is a quick procedure, and really does make a difference. I noticed the car spinning its rubber a little better now.
