quote author=Kiiski

" The placement of the modification holes could disturb the laminar flow over the air deflector in front of the radiator, causing turbulant blockage.  Linear airflow is much more important in a cooling environment than mass turbulent air, which can create a pressure blockage through a grid (radiator) which can actually decrease airflow."

lol, yes it does disrupt the outer laminar flow as defined as "a smooth flow over a surface of an airfoil" this is how the flow would normally bypass the radiator as I explained earlier, this is a problem with the original design of the air-dam. The ZIO MOD puts a hole right in the middle of that flow allowing it through to the engine bay. My grill acts like little scoops which deflect the air in, directing it like little vanes to put the flow against the radiator and through it.

If you had performed the mod and taken before and after temp readings from multiple points you would have a leg to stand on, but you didn't and you don't, so why do you spout on about this and that? You would have seen the engine bay temp drop not rise as long as you didn't place your sensors in the hottest calculated airflow from the hottest surfaces, even these would be lessened. Turbulent flow blockage has not been proven in this case, as more heat has been exiting the engine bay at an accelerated rate not the engine bay getting hotter as you tried to state.


quote author=Kiiski

"I would like to see flow tests done by the designer after his modification, but on the other forums, he refused to bother.  Cutting a bigger hole is rarely a proper solution.  The designer does not know flow dynamics to the necessary levels to make a modification such as this, and it is irresponsible to NOT properly test it when you are trying to get others to do it, and/or buy a product."

Uh- it's kinda simple- you add more moving air through an engine bay and you get cooler temps overall. I test it every day, and I monitor it while I use it, paying less for gas every day. I say it is a success, you can scoff all you want my car costs less to operate and will last longer due to lower engine bay temps overall at usage speeds (of which 80% of mine are highway).


quote author=Kiiski

"I simply want to let you know that, again, there is the POSSIBILITY of a very damaging airflow issue and I would hate to see others try an untested product based on this individuals word, and end up doing permanent damage to their vehicle, that certainly would not be covered under warranty due to this modification."

What damage have you proven? none. Fact: plastics, rubbers, electronics & wiring last MUCH longer when cooler, Fact: cooler denser air makes for more power and gas mileage. Fact: most sensors are not covered by the scion basic warranty. It's my car too. I am a scientist trying to help others understand things at the level that I do. Fact: you are arguing that the facts I just stated don't matter to you and that everyone else should think like that. Fact: you're wrong. I don't bet on possibilities, I read the facts. maybe you should.

Fact: My "product" didn't exist until after I fixed my car with my solution.
Fact: I properly researched this simple problem until I found a simple solution that fit all sides to the puzzle.

quote author=Kiiski

"Dirt on the radiator is NOT by any means any indicator of airflow patterns, it is a strike zone of matter that is heavier than air.  The lower half of the radiator is much closer to the road, causing a natural increase of road grime."

Actually the dirt pattern matched exactly with the air flow pattern masking effect from the lower intake, whereas the upper portion of the radiator was totally unaffected by direct flow patterning from expected dirt/grime through the upper grill which appeared to be somehow blocking flow through it. After examining the angle of incidence of the front bumper deflector dam I reasoned that the cross flow of incoming air was deflecting the direct incoming air past the grill entirely this flow striking mostly on the bumper. There were no bugs in the radiator on the upper portion either. The lower condenser however looks like it needs a finer grill, due to the damage it has already suffered from incoming rocks. I will be applying the same grill material to that area as well to help protect it better.


quote author=Kiiski

"I do not factually know 100% that this will cause problems, as I have not tested this mod myself, but many years of real world experience has shown that disrupting a laminar flow,especially to a cooling grid, can be very problematic.  Again, I have not tested this mod, I do have the equipment, and have run data on a stock config and have found the flow to and through the radiator and engine compartment to be more than ample on the stock configuration, but I won't be cutting holes in my bumper to test this modification, especially since the "blocking design" of the bumper indicates through my measurements, that it does indeed direct flow in a laminar position, which is a good thing."

Please see laminar flow link: http://www.aviation-history.com/theory/lam-flow.htm

Laminar flow past the grill intake is not a good thing which is what my MOD fixes. Laminar flow across the radiator face works fine as long as the fans pull in the cool air, when they weaken in their upper service life the vehicle will run hotter more often and then will eventually fail because of the electrical fans not being able to effectively remove the hot air from the cooling system. This combined with a mostly sealed engine bay will lead to other failures of a systemic nature. If however the Zio MOD were in place then the car in question would run cooler over it's entire service life, not dependant upon the fans entirely for cooling, which would extend the end life of the vehicle considerably, as well as making the fans last longer though less active use of them through forced air current introduction. You state my MOD introduces disruptive flow- I say prove my mod reduces the amount of cooling air going through my engine bay. FACT: YOU CAN'T.

Just because you spoke to the teacher after class doesn't mean they will side with you if you are proven wrong in your comments.

Zio

It hasn't gone wrong- fear not, my MPG went up again to 25.2MPG average!!

My heat effectively vents out the rear louver, as is evident by the exit plastics being hot to the touch after driving, also you can feel the hot air exiting when the vehicle is parked, through the louvered section.

I did this for scientific reasons, more air is definitely getting through, my car will last longer than yours will when lower temps in the engine bay are an indication of this.

If those kids were my employees they would have gotten fired after the second or third BS comment, sorry I don't like people that don't know what they are talking about trying to second guess me in front of others.

As for you kiiski- big words from someone who hasn't proven anything. whereas I have and continue to do so with proven heat venting and higher MPG ratings.

If I wanted that thread reopened I would have contined but I had stated my peace. You sound very one-sided in everything you have posted about me, my MOD and all my threads, I was attacked by you and others like you and I do not appreciate it.

You have been reported.

Zio

Here is the link to my Active Ebay Auction for the kit.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&sspagename=STRK%3AMESELX%3AIT&viewitem=&item=280228413965

My MPG went up another 10th, to 25.1MPG average!! that's .3 up. I hope it keeps going!

ZIO

I'm right here if you have any questions beyond the diagrams,

Zio

HI guys thanks for waiting, here are the pics for the mod when I completed it.




I also made a kit to sell to others who want this mod.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&sspagename=STRK%3AMESELX%3AIT&viewitem=&item=280224852314

Zio

Hi everyone!

Well I have been getting squashed by the admins at scionlife over a front bumper mod I have done for scientific reasons to my front bumper.

Lemme give you some background-

I bought my XB at Christmas time, for a while after driving it I smelled very hot rubber when exiting the vehicle, I thought it smelled a little like coolant so I took it in to the dealer who pressure checked the system and said nothing was leaking- after this I was relieved until I pulled over that day and got out of my car and the same strange hot-rubber and plastic smell was there.

After thinking about this for a while and examining my engine and radiator I realized that it was the front bumper blocking the airflow into the engine compartment. This was made very evident by the oily dirty stains on my radiator that only went up about 27% of the way from the bottom of the radiator which meant that the rest of the air was being deflected somehow by the factory grill and bumper assembly.

After examining the angle of the deflection on top half of the front bumper, I realized what was occurring- the air was not being allowed to enter the front grill at highway speeds effectively by the angled air being deflected by the top half of the bumper and when it passed sideways across the "holey grill" it just passed over the grill holes instead of through them. The top half of the radiator was showroom clean, while the bottom 27% was road stained. The hole pattern seemed to help this effect along by creating something in the aerospace industry known as VC's or Vortex Creators, channeled walls of resistance that create a V pattern across the grill and set up channels of resistance to air entry. Now either this was a huge mistake in styling or a really good design for automation controls failure.

I calculated that the plastic blunt-nosed design had to be modified or all the sensors and wiring in my engine compartment might get hosed by the heat build-up which is what was causing the smells. I noticed the engine compartment was sealed almost entirely, with rubber gaskets and closed fenders and the exhaust manifold set in the middle like a HUGE heater cooking all the hoses and wiring around it which are already hardened and softened by the heat exposure after only 6500 miles!!

I recommend that the hood directly above and extending back from the exhaust manifold be louvered to let the heat escape up and out of the engine compartment as well, well mainly because heat rises, lol.

I measured out with a dry-erase marker, and left myself 4cm down the middle for plastic bumper lip support cut 2 holes as neatly as possible leaving 1cm of material around the edges for trim, calculating the angle of air entry past the holes and just big enough to directly hit the radiator with cooling air at highway speeds. The two holes had a forward-facing profile of 28cm x 8cm which would allow 1.1 million cubic cm (or 38.8 cubic feet) per second into the engine compartment per second at 55 MPH.

Did I mention that I am a scientist?

Anyways- I tried out the "MOD" for 2 days and the smells dissapeared entirely. Now the admins from the other site said this was due to additional air, and now I gotta say he's right, it is a lot of additional air right where it's needed most.

I will post diagrams of the mod sometime today with details on measurements.

I have not put "grill" material over my holes yet- I haven't found any that don't block the airflow, maybe I'll channel the two holes with a "scoop" look in fiberglass or just trim the holes in black rubber edge trim.

Free the XB, make it the longest lasting, coolest car on the road!

Zio