Cold air intake on Carburetor

[WadiaAbushanab]

Hello everyone. I have a 1980 Fiat spider carbureted and I’m wanting to put a cold air intake with a cone filter on it. I’ve only seen kits for the fuel injected spider and I can’t find any kits or adapters to fit on the carburetor. Anyone know where I can find this or just any tips?

[wetminkey]

I did this:

Ram air, at speed.
BTW, that is the throat of a 32/36 DFEV, altered to DFAV,...
Todd.

[blazingspider]

https://www.lceperformance.com/Weber-Ca ... 035031.htm

I've been tempted by this setup.

[TheBender]

I’ve been tinkering with a few ideas and both failed. Apparently Guy Croft had been trying to use the silver one years ago and had issues with the airflow and turbulence. I’ve chatted with another member that says his K&N set up works. Main difference I can come up with is he is running high compression and I am not. Seems mine doesn’t suck as hard potentially. Things run good until I hit 4200 rpm under full acceleration (34 ADF) and then the power fades and it hesitates. I’ve chatted with some Fiat experts and they suggest a stock housing and hook up the hose/hoses as cold air intakes.

[Nut124]

I’ve been tinkering with a few ideas and both failed. Apparently Guy Croft had been trying to use the silver one years ago and had issues with the airflow and turbulence. I’ve chatted with another member that says his K&N set up works. Main difference I can come up with is he is running high compression and I am not. Seems mine doesn’t suck as hard potentially. Things run good until I hit 4200 rpm under full acceleration (34 ADF) and then the power fades and it hesitates. I’ve chatted with some Fiat experts and they suggest a stock housing and hook up the hose/hoses as cold air intakes.

Your engine should pull strong well beyond 6000rpm. If not, something is wrong and it's likely not the air intake plumbing.

Fuel delivery would be my first suspect. Then ignition timing.

[TheBender]

I’ve been tinkering with a few ideas and both failed. Apparently Guy Croft had been trying to use the silver one years ago and had issues with the airflow and turbulence. I’ve chatted with another member that says his K&N set up works. Main difference I can come up with is he is running high compression and I am not. Seems mine doesn’t suck as hard potentially. Things run good until I hit 4200 rpm under full acceleration (34 ADF) and then the power fades and it hesitates. I’ve chatted with some Fiat experts and they suggest a stock housing and hook up the hose/hoses as cold air intakes.

Your engine should pull strong well beyond 6000rpm. If not, something is wrong and it's likely not the air intake plumbing.

Fuel delivery would be my first suspect. Then ignition timing.

That’s the kicker. I put back on the lunch box style filter and it’s silky smooth 5000+. Been a frustrating experiment.

[davidbruce]

That’s the kicker. I put back on the lunch box style filter and it’s silky smooth 5000+. Been a frustrating experiment.

Is it possible the K&N is over oiled? Did you try it with the cone removed?

[TheBender]

That’s the kicker. I put back on the lunch box style filter and it’s silky smooth 5000+. Been a frustrating experiment.

Is it possible the K&N is over oiled? Did you try it with the cone removed?

Yes I gave it a go with the filter removed and had the same result.

[davidbruce]

Bender that is strange. I'm curious about the housings on top of the carb. Are they designed for a Weber or is there some sort of adapter? The only thing that strikes me is the deep recess where the wing nut is. Is it posible there is some restriction there? If the lunch box works fine and this set up doesn't, even with the filter removed. I would be looking closely at that housing. Just my $.02

[manoa matt]

The 79-80 stock air filter housing and intake hose will be the least restrictive. It takes cold air in from the hole in the radiator panel, the stock filter has a large surface area,(compared to aftermarket cone type filters) and there is an un-obstructed area above the carb venturies. With this setup, the air is forced into the intake tube and pushed against the filter. With the aftermarket phlenums, you either need to mount a short cone outboard of the engine compartment in the grill area, or in the engine compartment on the backside of that hole. The air has to get forced through the filter first which is a bit more restrictive.

The only other phlenum I would suggest would be this type which is made for the DFEV, DGEV type carb mounting. If you search around you can find them. I've seen them marketed by Weber, Redline, and some other brand. Typically, they are around $80-$100 but I know I've seen one for around $50.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/283759965463?c ... 0099027f0e