Custom Airbox And Snorkel For R34 Gtt

[Angelecles]

Hey guys,

Ive been looking at the Gruppe M intakes to suit the R34 GTR and think they look sh*t hot, also the idea of a partition that is readily available to cover my open pod is not really too appealing. This is mainly because I'm thinking where is it pulling air from if you use stock IC piping. Im not big on cutting holes in my engine bay so im back looking at something that resembles the stock design with some Gruppe M styling cues.

I have a feeling people are going to ask "why dont you use the stock airbox with a K&N panel?" well i thought that would be too easy and i like trying new things and I want my engine bay to look a bit different. Anyway here goes.

Im gonna attempt to make an enclosed airbox with a massive snorkel out of fibreglass that hopefully improve the look of my engine bay while im at it.

This is sort of what im basing my design on (except not carbon/kevlar and probably not as nice )

First of all just a bit of disclaimer. I am not a professional fibreglass guy and do not pretend to be. You will also see this for youself as you scroll down to see my backyard fabrication techniques. Im sure there is about 1001 ways to do this better but im just doing it the best way I can. If anyone can suggest better ways to do this please do as I have not yet completed this mod and currently working on this.

Parts Needed:

Sharp Stanley blade (a hot wire cutter is better but i dont have one so mines a bit butchered)

Block of expanded polystyrene (about $15 from clark rubber)

duct tape or that brown shiny packing tape (F**k all from the $2 shop)

PVA glue

Pins - what your mum used to sew stuff

Glue that will not melt the polystyrene - Pretty much anything that doesnt have acetone in it (Liquid nails, silicone)

Fibreglass resin + hardener (Needs to be epoxy resin or else you risk melting through the polystyrene)

Cheap paint brushes (Heaps of them)

Fibreglass chopped strand mat

hint: is if you go to bunnings and see the fibreglass resins look for one with a little surfboard on it because they use epoxy to repair surfboards (not to melt the foam inside the board)

dremel with a cutting tool

Car filler

Heaps of sandpaper

Paint etc

I probably forgot some stuff but im nowhere near finishing yet so this is still a work in progress thread

Step 1:

Get your foam block and start cutting pieces and slowly make up a mould for your box using the silicone and pins to keep it together.

Im trying to make mine bolt down to the stock position so i started at the front and started making a little channel to not foul the stock IC piping

As you go it will start to take shape (abeit rough as) like mine after about 10 mins of gluing random bits of foam together

Depending on the glue you use, you might have to do this over two or so sessions so the glue has a chance to dry. The quicker the better. Silicone is pretty good, gets tacky pretty fast and isnt too messy if you dont use huge amounts of it.

Heres another photo after a bit more gluing.

Anyway, grab a beer and let your glue dry ready for step 2.

Step 2:

Grab your sharp stanley blade/hot wire cutter etc and start smoothing out the foam blocks into one smoothed out shape. Keep cutting and trial fitting to see if the box is too big etc.

A couple of photos after about 5 mins of butchery.

Step 3:

Cover your smoothed out box in duct tape or packing tape. Dont be tight with it. Half a roll should do it easy but if you wanna use more go for it.

This is what it should look like afterward.

After you cover the foam in tape. Paint all over it with PVA glue. Do a couple of coats (this will be a kind of mould release so the tape doesnt stick to the resin when we want to pull the foam out later)

The more the better so do a few coats.

Step 4:

Laying the first coat of fibreglass. Be sure to mix the resin according to the instructions and be in a well ventilated area.

Paint a light coat of resin over the box so when you start putting the chopped matting over it, it wont move around too much.

Start laying mat over it and saturating it with the resin, try to be even all over the box.

Be sure not to cut the mat, tear it with your hand. Its easier to lay and it also blends better with the laid matting.

This is roughly what your box should look like after a coat of resin + matting

Leave it to dry and then repeat until you are happy with the thickness of the box.

I did two coats so it ended up about 2mm thick (i dont want it too thick because im gonna smooth bog over the top of it to make the finish prettier later on.)

Step 5:

After your second/third coats get your dremel and cut the top of the box. (the bit that probably looks pretty average, i marked it with a permanent market first. Then can start pulling the foam out of the box. Should start breaking away pretty easy.

This is what your box should look like after you gut the foam out of the box.

Step 6:

Trial fit the box in the car, see what you did wrong..

In my case i stuffed up the angle where the AFM will later connect to the box.

This is a photo after i cut a part out of the box and tried to make it line up properly.

Dodgy i know. I used kebab skewers, duct tape and silicone to get the angle. I will then trim the box a bit more and fill the hole.

NOTE: If you guys learn from my mistakes, Step 6 will be much shorter on your job. I rushed mine a bit and am now paying for it.

Once i finish roughing the base i will start on the lid in a further post. Stay tuned people.

[08yannch]

hay

a constructive comment

couldn't u instead of making the shape that you wanted just tape up the area and mold the fiber glass so that it is an exact fit.

and spray PVA mold release liquid all over so that you dont have any problems with the resin sticking to the car.

you could probs use the same method for the top half of the air box by using the bonnet as a mold and using clay or something to make it all nice and smooth

here is a pick to help put the idea across

good luck

hope it works out

[rig136]

Also, to rid yourself of the foam once the resin has cured. Pour petrol on it. It dissolves pretty quickly!