Is it true that going through deep puddles with a Cold Air Intake in your car could let water into the engine and blow it up? Is that one reason why the OEM intake is shielded?

 

You'd have to go through a pretty deep puddle to get the S's intake soaked. I don't think I've enver seen a car mfr that didn't shield their intake.

 

It's not gonna happen in a Cooper S, since the intake is up by the cowl... Some CAI's made by aftermarket companies for other cars are subject to sucking up water because they put the filter down so low. I've seen a few Civic's like that, and my Datsun's CAI has sucked up water before - no permanent damage, though.

 

My BMW's CAI is down almost lower than the bumper. That can definitely suck up water. But, on a Mini, you would have to drown it.

 

This is much more of a danger with the non-S Cooper, since the intake is right behind the grille. For Coopers, an aftermarket intake seems like it would actually make hydrolock less likely. For an S, I doubt your chances would increase much.

 

Road & Track magazine's long term test Cooper S, with the stock intake, had to have its engine replaced because of water ingestion from driving through a deep puddle. Article here. So I guess it can happen, though it thankfully seems to be quite rare.

Mark

 

your never gonna hydrolock the motor unless the filter is COMPLETELY SUBMERGED in water. it would have to be higher than the grille. if you going thru a puddle that deep, it hink you have more important things to worry about.

 

I don't think anyone needs to worry about hydrolock unless you attach a propeller to the back of your MINI or install a CAI on your World War Two vintage DUKW. All the hype about hydrolock, I believe, comes from vendors like AEM trying to sell their joke-of-a-product: the 'bypass valve'. I never understood those things. If you have a foam element in the engine bay, next to the engine, wouldn't it negate the cold air being drawn from behind the front bumper (as is the case with placement of most CAI's)? I think it's rediculous, but that's just me.

 

You guys should do a search. This has happened to plenty of people here whose cars weren't submerged or rocket-propelled. It's very much a real issue, at least for Coopers.

 

That R & T article is flat out BS. I drive around all the time in 1 ft. puddles when it rains and have not had problems. Even if some water did enter the intake track, it would still have to pass through the filter. Then into the motor. Even if you get a small amount of water in the engine, doesn't mean it is going to engine heaven. You just drain the oil and reservice. They were probably messing around in deeper water than that and pawned it off like it was less. That's my theory. Because that's what people do.

 

yes, cars with stock intakes.

there are long tubes that go down to near the bottom of the chassis to pick up air on our cars from the factory. they pick up air from the fenderwell too, it looks like.

When you go aftermarket, the entire way the car pics up air changes, and it sucks from the grill and the engine bay only. theres little or no chance you would ever suck up any water with an aftermarket unless the car was halfway submerged under water.

 

what he said... ^^

-Josh

 

what they both said ^^

 

Yes, there is a resonance chamber in the drivers side fender that is attached to the intake tube. Some MC's have ingested water from this area, causing hydrolock.

ken

 

A few years back, I bought an 02 MC from auction that had a motor that "would not run". I found that the motor had four broken connecting rods and as they broke, they "kicked windows' in the side of the block. Each of the four combustion chambers was full of water. The intake manifold was full of water. The air filter box had the filter in place, but the box was dry because it has a drain hole. There was no water or evidence of flooding inside the car, so I concluded that the car had been driven through a puddle and water welled up in front as it was moving through a puddle causing water to pour into the snorkel above the radiator. It would only take a 1/2 cup or less per cylinder to hydraulic. I was amazed that all the rods were broken and none were bent. Then I found that they were sintered and not steel forgings.

After replacing the motor (got one out of one of the Minis that appeared in the movie "The Italian Job", my wife drove it for another 15k miles with no problems.

 

mystery to me too
but that foam element/bypass valve does werk to remove the possibility of water becomin' a problem b4 it gets thru the intake.
a close friend of mine runs an AEM & is sold on the idea specially since its saved his *** a few times i've seen the mess the water makes under his hood a couple times so to me it werks....
as far as it werkin' well as a CAI, im w/u. i dont see it as its forte'......