Cowl snorkel or actual snorkel??

jeep-N-montero

Expedition Leader
I'm liking the look of these cowl snorkels. Especially good for me as our Jeep is our daily drive and my wife does NOT want a snorkel on it.

Are there any drawbacks to using a cowl snorkel?

Well, if you do manage to have water come up over the hood into the cowl area it can get sucked in.
 

VanIsle_Greg

I think I need a bigger truck!
The only filter on the spectre is in the pill shaped area in the middle correct? I think I could find a 90* elbow that I could put in and up through the top of the cowl and place a pre filter on top of that.

Correct. It is a cone shaped filter in the bulge just over the valve cover. Not a bad filter, re-usable and replacements are not expensive. I have been thinking the same thing, I looked at a few sites online that sell the exact same pre-filter but for tractors and they are super cheap. Not sure how well a 7" will fit in that spot, but I am pretty sure we could make it fit!

This one looks promising...only 5.59" Diameter...hmmm. (http://www.tractorpartmart.com/us/top-spin-pre-cleaner-p10124.html) and only $42 bucks!

I'm liking the look of these cowl snorkels. Especially good for me as our Jeep is our daily drive and my wife does NOT want a snorkel on it.

Are there any drawbacks to using a cowl snorkel?

Honestly, the only one I can really think of is the noise? The hole in the firewall is cut directly in front of the opening for the airbox intake under the cowl. All the TB noise is basically transmitted into your cabin...muffled yes, but still louder than before. I have a modded TB on my XJ. It is a 62MM bored out one from Leigh Performance Machine (Stroked Jeep .com http://www.strokedjeep.com/) and there is a bit of "whistle" at certain throttle positions under certain load conditions. My wife was annoyed by this, not the growl. A stock TB should NOT have this issue at all.

And yes, water ingress is possible, less possible if the hole is on the passenger side because of the bulkhead in the cowl and the non-opening vent (fake vent) above that side. If water is going in your intake, your interior will also be getting slammed and everything under your dash. Big problems.

So far my fav part is the space for the 2nd battery and the cleaner filters.
 

vonguido

Adventurer
Greg, that's a another nice option. I might send Spectre an email and see if they have heard anyone attaching a pre-filter onto their cowl kit. What's the size of the opening 2.5-3"? Also have you had any problems with oil on the filter at all? I read over in the naxja and jeep forums that guys were having some issues with theirs and had to run a oil catch on the line coming from the valve cover, granted the posts were from 2 yrs ago so not sure if it was a problem with the first runs of the cowl intake.
 

jeep-N-montero

Expedition Leader
Correct. It is a cone shaped filter in the bulge just over the valve cover. Not a bad filter, re-usable and replacements are not expensive. I have been thinking the same thing, I looked at a few sites online that sell the exact same pre-filter but for tractors and they are super cheap. Not sure how well a 7" will fit in that spot, but I am pretty sure we could make it fit!

This one looks promising...only 5.59" Diameter...hmmm. (http://www.tractorpartmart.com/us/top-spin-pre-cleaner-p10124.html) and only $42 bucks!



Honestly, the only one I can really think of is the noise? The hole in the firewall is cut directly in front of the opening for the airbox intake under the cowl. All the TB noise is basically transmitted into your cabin...muffled yes, but still louder than before. I have a modded TB on my XJ. It is a 62MM bored out one from Leigh Performance Machine (Stroked Jeep .com http://www.strokedjeep.com/) and there is a bit of "whistle" at certain throttle positions under certain load conditions. My wife was annoyed by this, not the growl. A stock TB should NOT have this issue at all.

And yes, water ingress is possible, less possible if the hole is on the passenger side because of the bulkhead in the cowl and the non-opening vent (fake vent) above that side. If water is going in your intake, your interior will also be getting slammed and everything under your dash. Big problems.

So far my fav part is the space for the 2nd battery and the cleaner filters.

One thing I am noticing is that a few setups posted on here have plumbing that is smaller than stock and smaller diameter than the throttle inlet, in other words this will restrict airflow. That pre-filter you posted has only a 2 inch inlet, but there are others all the way up to 3.5 inches. I have been toying with the idea of using a few parts I have here to build a setup in the cowl area to help with the dusty conditions my Jeep sees 80-90% of the time.
 

VanIsle_Greg

I think I need a bigger truck!
Thanks Greg, will bear that in mind when "we" make that decision :)

Ha ha... no worries.

Greg, that's a another nice option. I might send Spectre an email and see if they have heard anyone attaching a pre-filter onto their cowl kit. What's the size of the opening 2.5-3"? Also have you had any problems with oil on the filter at all? I read over in the naxja and jeep forums that guys were having some issues with theirs and had to run a oil catch on the line coming from the valve cover, granted the posts were from 2 yrs ago so not sure if it was a problem with the first runs of the cowl intake.

Good call. Maybe their R&D folks are interested in offering this as an option?? As far as oil goes, I cannot see the Spectre getting any more oil in it than the stock box would have?? If the PCV valve is shot, or your crankcase pressure is too high (oil too full) maybe but mine is clean?

One thing I am noticing is that a few setups posted on here have plumbing that is smaller than stock and smaller diameter than the throttle inlet, in other words this will restrict airflow. That pre-filter you posted has only a 2 inch inlet, but there are others all the way up to 3.5 inches. I have been toying with the idea of using a few parts I have here to build a setup in the cowl area to help with the dusty conditions my Jeep sees 80-90% of the time.

Oops...my bad. Yeah the Spectre has a 3" pipe. Missed that, was mainly looking at the size of the bowl, missed the inlet dia.

I would go with Thor offroad before i would ever go with the spectre. http://shop.trailheadoffroad.ihostnetworks.com/

Why? Bad experience? I know of 2 people with the Spectre setup who I spoke with before I got mine, they spoke highly of it and had zero issues. I like the Thor one as well, to me it is 6 of one 1/2 dozen of the other but one was cheaper. I also liked the fact that the Spectre filter is protected a bit more. An issue, probably not.
 

monele

Adventurer
Only thing I'm noticing is the Thor has a spot for the MAF sensor on later jeeps and the Spectre appears not too. Anyone running either on an '04-'06? Big advantage to the Spectre is not removing the cowl cover to service the air filter (though getting that can open has to be a bit tricky) The Thor may have a tad bit smoother airflow with no facets on the elbows (though considering the silly square intake runners so many jeeps have I can't imagine there's a noticeable difference!) The pass-through mount on the Spectre looks to be a little more robust and easier to seal than the Thor, though there aren't any good pics of the that on Thor's website (at least for the TJ/LJ) Thor also looks to cross at an angle that blocks the oil fill.
 

NFRs2000NYC

Adventurer
I don't want to piss on a bee's nest but....

1) There have been guys on various forums that have hydrolocked a JK from puddles.
2) A snorkel is the only REAL cold air intake for a JK.
3) It is an insurance policy. Last I checked, and I check every morning, this is expedition portal. You may one day find yourself having to go through something deeper than expected.

I don't have a snorkel on my current rig, but on my soon to arrive rig, I will. Peace of mind that will let me not worry too much about getting into something really deep.
 
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beardus supremous

Adventurer
I have been running a spectre intake on my 01 xj for well over a year now, and I love it. I wanted the added space under the hood as well as not having to worry about catching a snorkel on branches in tight trails. I have done some water crossings, but always keep in mind how deep I should go. Not to mention, I'm not into washing my interior out with river water, so a cowl intake works just fine. It's all in how much you want to spend and your offroading. As for the Thor intake, I personally would rather have my filter back more out of the elements. If you wanted to add a prefilter to a spectre intake, easy peasy. Just attach a 90 degree elbow up and then set the prefilter as high as you want. Then you can also detach it as well, unlike a snorkel. Just my $.02
 

Septu

Explorer
In 14 years of wheeling in Colorado and Moab there was only 1 time a snorkel would have made any difference at all, even then it may have not helped because the water was halfway up the doors. 90% of the vehicles you see in the US with snorkels are for poser purposes only.

I likely will never ever need the one I just bought... but $400 is cheap insurance vs potentially replacing an engine.
 

vonguido

Adventurer
I don't want to piss on a bee's nest but....

1) There have been guys on various forums that have hydrolocked a JK from puddles.
2) A snorkel is the only REAL cold air intake for a JK.
3) It is an insurance policy. Last I checked, and I check every morning, this is expedition portal. You may one day find yourself having to go through something deeper than expected.

I don't have a snorkel on my current rig, but on my soon to arrive rig, I will. Peace of mind that will let me not worry too much about getting into something really deep.

This thread is about a cowl snorkel or snorkel on an XJ, not a JK
 

vonguido

Adventurer
I have been running a spectre intake on my 01 xj for well over a year now, and I love it. I wanted the added space under the hood as well as not having to worry about catching a snorkel on branches in tight trails. I have done some water crossings, but always keep in mind how deep I should go. Not to mention, I'm not into washing my interior out with river water, so a cowl intake works just fine. It's all in how much you want to spend and your offroading. As for the Thor intake, I personally would rather have my filter back more out of the elements. If you wanted to add a prefilter to a spectre intake, easy peasy. Just attach a 90 degree elbow up and then set the prefilter as high as you want. Then you can also detach it as well, unlike a snorkel. Just my $.02

Thats the route I'm going to go. Just need to figure out what prefilter I want and find a 90* elbow. Hopefully get it bought and installed by the beginning of October.
 

NFRs2000NYC

Adventurer
That doesn't matter. The point was that you don't need to go "submarine" to hydrolock a vehicle. That the only way to get truly cold air on an offroader is get the air from up high OUTSIDE of the hood since unlike a sports car, you don't want your filter down low. And the insurance point applies to all vehicles.
 

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