Simple solution for getting cool fresh air to Engine Doghouse

RVlover · 01-01-2010, 02:36 PM

Heres a short video that cures the hot engine bay and DogHouse on RV's . It drastically cut the heat build up and should make the engine electrical, vaccuum hoses, plug wires...etc last longer ,. in addition to making the Cab cooler too.

YouTube - Getting Fresh Air to Engine Doghouse

hillbilly3 · 01-02-2010, 07:42 AM

GM used to do this with a plastic air dam in the 80's, but for some reason discontinued it, don't know whether it was for asthetics, or they started having problems with road debris and water being scooped up and thrown into the engine compartment when driving through water on the road. There is a definite need for more air flow though. I think that transmissions in vans and RV's also fail early do to overheating. Our company ran a lot of vans for a while, both Ford and Chevy. It was hard to get 100,000 miles out of the transmissions. The pickups we ran could go nearly 200,000.

RVlover · 01-02-2010, 07:56 AM

Im pleased to report that i dont get any rain or road debris coming up into the engine bay . Im thinking of bending a new piece of sheetmetal only this time , the entire width of the front crossmember to really scoop up the air .

hillbilly3 · 01-02-2010, 10:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RVlover

Im pleased to report that i dont get any rain or road debris coming up into the engine bay . Im thinking of bending a new piece of sheetmetal only this time , the entire width of the front crossmember to really scoop up the air .

Somebody probally drove through deep water, and somehow damaged the engine or wrecked, and sued GM! You know you have to build everything totally idiot proof these days! I don't see any real problem with installing the airscoop, it should help air flow greatly, anything to help cool off that hotbox should extend the life of many components. I have the high temp plug wires on my class A. It needs more cooling, as the engine heats up on long mountain runs. The 460 is about as small of a gas motor a 36' coach could use, a diesel would be better in a coach this size.

ernieh · 01-02-2010, 11:42 AM

This looks like a good idea, but before someone goes "overboard" on the size, a word of caution. If you create too much pressure from the bottom, you may make it difficult for air to get thru the radiator.

Years ago, I worked on some aircraft flight test projects where engine cooling was a problem. I learned that scoops don't always have the effect that you would expect.

RVlover · 01-02-2010, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ernieh

This looks like a good idea, but before someone goes "overboard" on the size, a word of caution. If you create too much pressure from the bottom, you may make it difficult for air to get thru the radiator.

Years ago, I worked on some aircraft flight test projects where engine cooling was a problem. I learned that scoops don't always have the effect that you would expect.

Thats a valid concern ; I have remote engine oil/trans. oil temp. readouts...in addition to the dash Water Temp. Gauge....and she always stays right at 190 f. for the water even in 100 f. outside temps while moving forward slowly. No change in any of the readouts occured after the modification. No change in gas mileage or handling either. The air scoop is well past the radiator which is a good thing.

On my former Class B Camper/Van, I was able to take fresh ram-air from the cutouts in the front spoiler on each side and duct it to the back of the engine without any material being seen from outside....using 6" flexible aluminium ducting --- that worked exceptionally well .

steelheadbluesman · 01-02-2010, 04:41 PM

This is an interesting thread about a serious issue. I bought a '99 Pace years ago, and it overheated all the time, actually boiling the water out of the overflow reservoir, so I cut a chunk out of the rubber air dam and made a small (12"w x 8" h) scoop and screwed in onto the top of the air dam to force a bit more air down and over the top of the engine. No more problems. My current rig with the 8.1 was burning out plug wires on the rear-most cylinders (which were replaced under warranty), and finally I put in the Workhorse "Cold Air Kit", their remedy, which is two 3" tubes running from the grill to the back two spark plugs, so each hotspot gets its own extra air. So far, so good.... Just sharing my experiences....

RVlover · 01-03-2010, 08:54 AM

It does go to show that car/RV manufacturers dont pay enough attention in their designs/build .... and there is almost always room for subsequent modification improvements without any adverse affects. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

ninos · 01-10-2010, 08:27 PM

I personally think that this is a great thread and I have to say that RVLOVER hats off to you this is a great Idea, now I wonder if this would help a diesel pusher If you made a scope pointing the radiator maybe the fan wouldn't need to came on as often?? Just an Idea what do you guys think?

az bound · 01-12-2010, 05:51 AM

Workhorse makes a kit that has two inlets and ducting that should be easy to adapt to any engine compartment. It was designed to duct air to the rear sparkplug wires on the 8.1 liter gas engine. After installing the kit there was a very noticable reduction in heat from the doghouse. I mounted the intakes in the grill and ran the ductwork to both sides of the engine. www.workhorse.com

RVlover · 01-13-2010, 08:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by az bound

Workhorse makes a kit that has two inlets and ducting that should be easy to adapt to any engine compartment. It was designed to duct air to the rear sparkplug wires on the 8.1 liter gas engine. After installing the kit there was a very noticable reduction in heat from the doghouse. I mounted the intakes in the grill and ran the ductwork to both sides of the engine. www.workhorse.com

I couldnt get any specifics from the site . Can you take a picture or video of what you have ? Im very interested in this. Thanks, Dave.

az bound · 01-15-2010, 03:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RVlover

I couldnt get any specifics from the site . Can you take a picture or video of what you have ? Im very interested in this. Thanks, Dave.

Dave; At the website go to parts,you will find it under custom parts listed as an engine ventilation kit. There is no price listed so you would probably need to contact a workhorse service center in your area. I will take some pictures today and post them for you.

RVlover · 01-15-2010, 08:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by az bound

Dave; At the website go to parts,you will find it under custom parts listed as an engine ventilation kit. There is no price listed so you would probably need to contact a workhorse service center in your area. I will take some pictures today and post them for you.

I got to the picture of it on the site, but little info on it. Would REALLY love to see it on your rig. Take some closeup pics / video . Cant see on my engine where the intake fittings would go. Thanks.