MS CAI Hydrolock

[cageyvet]

First and foremost, this shouldn't happen for most MS3 owners, since I have my fogs lights removed to make room for my intercooler piping but yesterday i almost hydrolocked my car after getting my MS CAI a LITTLE wet. I took off from the drive way and the car surged/bogged immediately along with throwing a CEL. Immediately, i decided to convert the MS CAI to SRAI b/c I made a conscious effort to avoid getting water into the crevice that held the CAI. I took off the maf adapter and blow dried it. Then i took the intake filter(it was a little damp) off the car and dried it with a lawn blower, hair dryer, & fan. After that I dismantled the CAI piping and made sure everything was dry. Then i assembled the MS SRAI started the car and voila, normal drivability. I learned that it does not take a lot of water to get onto the air intake filter to cause major problems with a car. Besides oil, is there another hydrophobic solution that you can put onto the filter that will not harm the maf or the car?

 

[dmention7]

If it puts your mind at ease, you didn't almost hydrolock your car. Some road spray or rain that wets the filter may make its way up the intake and get the MAF sensor wet, causing the car to run poorly and/or throw a CEL like you described, but sucking a few drops of water through the intake poses no danger to the motor at all.

In order to risk damage to the motor, you pretty much have to partially submerge the filter element with throttle at least partly open. Short of driving into >1 foot of water with your foot on the gas, there's not much that's going to hydrolock your engine.

To answer your question, though, you can get hydrophobic pre-filters that are like a highly porous raincoat for the filter. In addition to cutting down the risk of getting that spray of water on your MAF sensor, they also help keep the filter element cleaner longer. Here is a link to one place that sells them... http://www.ptuning.com/html/search-...&cmbSubCategory=hydros&MakeModel=model&Brand=

 

[ForceFed]

If it puts your mind at ease, you didn't almost hydrolock your car. Some road spray or rain that wets the filter may make its way up the intake and get the MAF sensor wet, causing the car to run poorly and/or throw a CEL like you described, but sucking a few drops of water through the intake poses no danger to the motor at all.

Exactly....You dont ALmost "Hydrolock" a car....
TO do that you need to SUbmerge the Filter or piping into water and Ingest it into the motor..Not Drops....But some serious Volume.

Wow..you guys kill me with all of this overanalyzing of things and Using Terms where they are not needed.

 

[Hyun]

i didnt understand all these people with cai that did not have any problem with them switching them out to cobb. I figured fear and hyped cobb sri.

 

[controlo]

i didnt understand all these people with cai that did not have any problem with them switching them out to cobb. I figured fear and hyped cobb sri.

yup.

i wouldn't mind having the Cobb, just because it's easier. I love my Injen though.

 

[wisniaPl]

Im happy that Ibought cobb sri today we were ******* floded with cai I would be ****** but with sri I even didnt have to worry about hydrolock