hey all,
ive been racking my brains for the past few days now, mostly in regards to covering up the vent on hood top for the evo 8... call me ****, i just dont want the snow from a bitter cold albertan winter and the vent constantly in the back of my head. I know all the nay sayers, and what not, and i've certainly been reading up all i can about poss. detrimental harm vs. no harm at all...
i've had a (very rare) stroke of genious... why couldn't i just take that black stuff that was under my 04 lancer ES hood... you know that thermal/sound dampening crap lining the underside of the hood??? and cut it to fit and velcro it under the vent on the evo??
i'm not entirely sure is this is a good idea, or even feasable? but it may be worth a thought?? any opinions?

 

call me crazy, but wont that stuff get wet and soggy then? What Im planning on doing is when the car is sitting when its snowing Ill cover the vent, thinking about just cutting some stainless steel or something like a rubber floormat. if its running, ill take it off.

 

yea i was thinking about that as well, however depeding on when you put it on... ie over a hot engine, especially with rubber, as it warms it becomes almost too malable? i was thinking of running that stuff directly under the vent.. and maybe cutting a few holes around the center to allow a little breathability... much like you would with cardboard in front of a rad. but that soggy thing... adds a good point. hmm i dunno if it would be bad though? i mean that stuff gets wet ofter as well.. and the heat from the engine itself would dry it out with ease.

 

Put something over the opening when you stop, when your driving you shouldn't collect that much more than if it was raining. Remember I think it's like every inch of rain is like 6 inches of snow or something. So it's not that much water getting in.

 

They sell carbon fiber hood vent grills, which would probably offer more protection. I wouldn't put any of that sound deadening material, as it would probably get all soggy and that will usually provoke rust.

 

what you need is a large piece of vinyl..the stuff that make large advertisements or names on that you can put on your car yet pull off when you want. It wont leave any sticky stuff either. i have a piece on my car as we speak. you can cut your size out and slap it over that opening when you want, and pull it off when you don't. make sure you leave like 6 inches over lapping so it wont come off at speed. will work perfect.

 

just dont worry about it.... its there for a reason.. these cars were made to be drivin in winter and snow climates aswell... No Big Deal

 

just leave it.

get the car undersprayed at Krown or whatever you guys have in alberta. the vent is there for a reason.

 

yea i agree with the soggy factor lol come to think of it.. that stuff would likely hold ALOT of water weight as well.. no good. I wholly agree that mitsu knows their stuff, and certainly would have tested and played beyond any reasonable doubt with these vents and every other factor imaginable, i'm just rather particular about it however, doing the preventative maintanance now, so i don't have any premature rust and what not down the road. I rekon i'll likely look into some fine wooven mesh, it'll look good, and create a more or less semi permiable barrier. with lows of negative 40 here in Ab.. any heat i CAN manage to hold onto in the engine bay, will likely go a long way haha i can see it now... she's gonna be groggy as hell tryin to start up on one of them bitter cold days. methinks an oil pan heater would be a wise investment lol

 

if the vent that came there originally is there then it shouldnt be a problem. when the vent itself is removed then anything can go into the engine bay such as bird droppings and anything people want to throw in there

 

Try and park in a covered area? Or if you know if it is going to snow cover it up. I know that doesn't solve it all the time, but it would help.

 

i wouldnt worry about it but if you are going to that vinyl sounds like a good idea. light and waterproof and it will shed water rather than hold it.