Diy snorkel

[TheHoneyBadger]

So, I've been contemplating a diy snorkel. I live in the Houston area and we've been experiencing a lot of flash flooding. I would like an increased chance at being able to drive out of any flash flooded area (in the case that i have no other option) without hydrolock. Plus, a nice mod for future off road trips. What i am thinking is something to the effect of what's on this defender, but brining the flex hose through the passenger side wiper cowl. This way I'm not cutting into the hood, or fenders. Thoughts and opinions please!

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[MN4runnerman]

I think [MENTION=55891]Bandit Runner[/MENTION] has his DIY in his build thread or made a thread for it somewhere. He'd be able to help

 

[Bandit Runner]

Here's my snorkel build if you are interested:
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/109438-bandit-runners-custom-snorkel-build.html

I'm not sure how the flex hose would work, as it doesn't provide a very nice smooth surface inside. The ridges might slow down the air flow. Routing through the cowl might be doable.

Good luck with your project.

 

[TheHoneyBadger]

Thanks for the responses. [MENTION=12884]Bandit[/MENTION] Runner yours turned out very clean! I may be copying the mounting bracket you made. Thanks for the tip about the flex hose. Can anyone with first hand experience with using flex hose for air intake chime in? Did it restrict flow any?

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[RockenAlex]

I've never use the flex hose on a 4runner but a while back in an attempt to make a cold air intake for a muscle car we used it, problem we had was thee big v8 sucked so much air the hose would collapse when you stomped it....

 

[AntleredRuin]

Haha I was JUST talking to my wife about this on Friday. I live in North Houston, and the entrance to my neighborhood was underwater when I went home Friday. I had to park at the gas station at the front of the neighborhood and wade through water over my knees just to get to my house.
I honestly passed by 15-20 hydro-locked cars on I-45's feeder road on the way home.
What do you think? A snorkal on a 2wd 4runner and 2wd RAV4? Bit too poser?

Can anyone with first hand experience with using flex hose for air intake chime in? Did it restrict flow any?

I used metal dryer vent hose to replace the dry-rotted factory intake hose on my old Jeep Wagoneer with the AMC 360 V8 and didn't notice any air flow problems. (of course the Jeep always had problems, but nothing to do with the hose, from what I could tell.) The vent hose is not as corrugated, so it doesn't interfere with airflow as much as plastic hose. It did not collapse at WOT, comes in a variety of diameters, and can be easily shaped. It's aluminum, so did not corrode/rust, even after 2 years of being completely bare (no paint/primer) Obviously make sure that there are no metal pieces dangling around to get sucked into your engine. This was all under-hood, not snorkel, though.

 

[TheHoneyBadger]

I got to reading back through [MENTION=75824]Clownmeat[/MENTION] 's build thread because I remembered he had used some kind of flex hose. High temp neoprene air duct hose, is what he used for his turbo. I'm thinking if his turbo didn't collapse it, my N/A 3.4 will be fine. I think this might be the ticket. If not, I may try to bend some pvc with a heat gun (really hate the look of the diys I've seen that use 90* joints). Not sure how well the metal flex would look on the outside. Mine looks a little stock for a snorkel too, but I'd rather look a little poser for a while. If it helps me avoid hydro lock, it would be worth it! The flooding has been crazy! They pulled 3 cars out of the access road to my gf's neighborhood. I try to avoid driving anywhere when it's pouring, but I'm also starting a new job on a side of town I'm not familiar with. So, it would suck to get somewhere that i don't know is a flood zone and not be able to get out.



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[volkinator]

Just make sure you've extended your rear diff breather, and done other necessary mods to allow for deep water crossings. and don't turn the car off if your exhaust is under water. I'm sure you've looked into these things, but just making sure

 

[AntleredRuin]

I got to reading back through [MENTION=75824]Clownmeat[/MENTION] 's build thread because I remembered he had used some kind of flex hose. High temp neoprene air duct hose, is what he used for his turbo. I'm thinking if his turbo didn't collapse it, my N/A 3.4 will be fine. I think this might be the ticket. If not, I may try to bend some pvc with a heat gun (really hate the look of the diys I've seen that use 90* joints). Not sure how well the metal flex would look on the outside. Mine looks a little stock for a snorkel too, but I'd rather look a little poser for a while. If it helps me avoid hydro lock, it would be worth it! The flooding has been crazy! They pulled 3 cars out of the access road to my gf's neighborhood. I try to avoid driving anywhere when it's pouring, but I'm also starting a new job on a side of town I'm not familiar with. So, it would suck to get somewhere that i don't know is a flood zone and not be able to get out.

Hmm...air duct hose usually is not very firm (HVAC duct at least; that's all I'm familiar with). I think you're right though; if that particular hose was used with a turbo, it should be good for ours. It probably has better 'spring-back' than aluminum hose. Harder to permanently dent.

It's supposed to rain the rest of the week too. I personally love the rain, and I feel like I make good enough decisions to NOT get stuck/ hydro-locked, but I guess you never know. I work near the Galleria, but can work from home if necessary, so it's not a big issue.
I kinda think that this flooding will become a permanent thing in Houston, at least for the next few years. All the construction going on lately has left nowhere for the water to drain; it's all concrete now. That's why it all runs off into the creeks and overflows them, and why it all runs into the outskirts of the city. My grandparents live in Cypress and got 6 FEET in their house a few weeks ago, and 2 feet last week (of course that last 2 feet didn't mean much then). In the 20 years prior, the most they ever got was 2 inches.
We've always had week long summer storms, but there was always much better drainage.

A snorkel + other water-fording mods would definitely be useful for the foreseeable future. Especially if the snorkel was removable with minimal work somehow, like your idea of bringing it through the passenger wiper cowl. Could just cap it off at the cowl when not in use, unmount the snorkel itself, and route the hose under the hood back to the stock airbox location.

Where's your new job?

 

[TheHoneyBadger]

Yes, you nailed the idea there. I was already thinking of some sort of small cap, maybe one with a small mesh grill to allow the under hood part of the snorkel to stay attached. I'm going to be as minimally invasive as possible. Changing a wiper cowl is a whole lot cheaper and easier than a fender, or hood if i decide later on to ditch the snorkel. As to the cause, I've heard all kinds of theories, an old farmer told my father in law that if they stopped oil fracking that he'd lose his crop to flood waters. Not sure i believe him, but it has been raining since. New job is i10 towards fry road. I'm usually in the Tomball Magnolia area, so a fair bit of Houston is foreign to me.


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[TheHoneyBadger]

Just make sure you've extended your rear diff breather, and done other necessary mods to allow for deep water crossings. and don't turn the car off if your exhaust is under water. I'm sure you've looked into these things, but just making sure

I have, I had extended diff breather lines on my jeep and used it several water crossings while wheeling. So, I have some experience fording. Thanks for the heads up though.

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[Denis_Ruso]

Subscribed for finished product... even though we don't have water deep enough for a snorkle.

 

[AntleredRuin]

This is a VERY fast mockup using Inkscape for the through-cowl adapter. Note how the Fernco 90deg can be removed as needed. The aluminum window screen should keep bugs and whatnot out. The bushing can also be capped off.

 

[AntleredRuin]

I guess you could also use a Fernco 3" straight coupler and simply have the air ram right out of the hood as well; no 90s, but it might look pretty stupid.
I'd be concerned with simply leaving the ram assembly off while still using the under-hood routing. What would stop rain from falling straight in?
If the assembly was capped off, and the deckplate mod was done, then intake air could come from the deckplate hole while the snorkel is disconnected. To use the snorkel, close the deckplate, remove the cap from the snorkel assembly and mount the snorkel.

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[TheHoneyBadger]

I guess you could also use a Fernco 3" straight coupler and simply have the air ram right out of the hood as well; no 90s, but it might look pretty stupid.
I'd be concerned with simply leaving the ram assembly off while still using the under-hood routing. What would stop rain from falling straight in?
If the assembly was capped off, and the deckplate mod was done, then intake air could come from under-hood while the snorkel is disconnected. To use the snorkel, close the deckplate, remove the cap from the snorkel assembly and mount the snorkel.

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As far as the cap goes, i was thinking something like this (excuse the paint drawing grill lol). Pvc pressure cap with a cut out and small mesh grill. Turned towards the windshield. Would still allow the system to remain a fresh air intake.

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[AntleredRuin]

I think the idea is sound, but I'm not sure how well this would work. It would be fine when driving, as rain would hit the front, but what about when not? It would have to be sticking up at least a couple inches from the cowl I'd think, which wouldn't work well with the 'sleeper' idea. If it sits almost flush so as not to be very noticable, when the 4runner is just sitting there in a storm (driveway, parking lot, traffic) the windshield would funnel water straight into it.

We'd almost need a complete U to cap it, but that wouldn't be flush either...

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[poser]

I'm in the Houston area too, and with all the flooding and more on the way I see a snorkel in my future as well.
I really like the look of the one off Amazon for the hilux. Only $134 and looms really nice. IMO a better option than DIY.
Does a snorkel affect performance any?


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[poser]

Just make sure you've extended your rear diff breather, and done other necessary mods to allow for deep water crossings. and don't turn the car off if your exhaust is under water. I'm sure you've looked into these things, but just making sure

Other than the snorkel and did breather, what else needs to be done?


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[AntleredRuin]

Other than the snorkel and did breather, what else needs to be done?


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I know that the dip sticks for the engine and tranny need to be sealed. I've heard that simply duct tape is good enough for this. The tranny dipstick tube is two pieces so they'd need to be sealed too. Caulk, gasket maker, etc. Maybe duct tape is good enough for this too, if you're just doing a quick in-and-out.

Would the top of the airbox need to be sealed somehow?

What else is there?

By the way, this is my street last night. Had to park at the gas station at the front of the neighborhood and wade through thigh high water to get home. According to my wife who was home to watch it happen, this took less than an hour.

 

[poser]

I know that the dip sticks for the engine and tranny need to be sealed. I've heard that simply duct tape is good enough for this. The tranny dipstick tube is two pieces so they'd need to be sealed too. Caulk, gasket maker, etc. Maybe duct tape is good enough for this too, if you're just doing a quick in-and-out.

Would the top of the airbox need to be sealed somehow?

What else is there?

I also asked this question on a facebook group, and got this:
"Front and rear diff, trans and tcase."