Track Tac

Racing air filters and driving in the rain

R

robox45

New member
Hey guys, i have a serious question here. when i bought my karting, i remember a day i was driving in the track while it was raining. every time i drove in a puddle, water was trown from the back wheel right in the stock air filter, in witch it was full of water, the air couldn't go in and the engine stopped.

i have my next race in couple of days and i was thinking of putting on a race air filter. but the weather forcast says there is a chance of rain. the racing air filters are right on top of a back wheel. does racing air filters have the same problem with water as the stock air filter? and for all of you that has raced in the rain, i would like for you to share your experience.
 
Worse than that is the in-compressability of water, I've seen racing outboard hydroplanes, that it can cause case/block flanges to rip off and even a wrist pin driven thru' the top of a piston.
 
Attach a rubber or plastic 90-degree pipe so the filter will be angled upwards from the tire. Should help your problem dramatically.
 
Our standard rain setup is using a plastic peanut butter jar.
Depending on the size of your air filter which jar will work best.
Drill a hole through the end of the filter and insert the largest washer you can fit inside. Insert a bolt through from the inside then another big washer and a nylock nut on the outside.
Now you can attach your air filter in the usual manner.
Drill a hole in the bottom of the jar (offset to clear tire) and slide on bolt and secure with 2nd nylock nut. You can add extra washers to support the plastic.
Trim the jar so that it is close to the motor. When it looks like rain, it's quick to put on or take off as conditions change.
This type of setup will be legal in most places. We used to have the top of the jar on the air inlet and then just screwed it on, but that's not legal now.
 
When I raced SIRA I remember when it rained we would take 32oz Gatorade bottles cut the end off where the top was and slide it over the air filter. We would then take a screw and screw the bottle into the top of the filter to hold it on. Never had any problems.
 
I use to run a metal shield when we were required to pack the track in with our karts. It shielded the back half of the air filter from mud. Worked pretty slick. Although I have no idea where I got it so I am pretty sure this was no help...lol
 
The last Gatorade bottle I saw had a big indent on the bottom that made it hard to mount. The plastic folgers coffee can or a "simply orange" or other "Simply" juice jug works well. If the filter has a rubber/epoxy end on it, I'll simply use a couple truss head screws and washers thru the bottom of the jug into the end of the filter.
Hint: A larger bottle allows you to trim it and play with the airflow a bit while still keeping the rain out of the filter.....
 
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