Louver Install w/ Pictures and Actual Cooling Data

[inkpot]

Oh, cool! (I know, dumb pun intended )
Really good to know how you did that and how it worked out.
I've been toying with that kind of idea for a while, and will make use of your clues.

It does take a little bending and trimming to make it all fit without creating rattles. But it is well worth it.

 

[AverageTanner]

Very interesting about the fenders not getting as hot.
Maybe the upward escape route for hot air means that the whole engine bay is not quite as "filled up" out to the edges with hot air, and ambient leakage flow at the edges isn't being quite as overwhelmed by the larger, hotter, radiator flow.
So, stuff out at the edges, battery compartment, etc., may stay somewhat cooler. Keeping the battery compartment even a few degrees cooler would help battery life, at least in the hot low desert like Arizona.
This may lower IATs for those without snorkels, specially at slower driving speeds. I've seen a strong speed influence on IATs. Anything below highway speed and IAT goes way up, I think because large volume of hot radiator air is dumping out the lower back edge of the USPS fender where air intake is coming from (I think?). It takes highway speed to really dilute that with fresh outside airflow.

Interesting indeed - your mentioned reasoning is what I would ASSUME, but without the data I will not confirm nor deny!

How about cabin fresh air intakes? Do you get heated air at the vents?

Honestly I hadn't tried the fresh air intakes until this morning after reading these responses last night. I usually just leave my AC on recirculate. It doesn't seem to affect the fresh air, but it's hard to tell for sure after just one drive, especially when it's only 75° outside.

I doubled up on the OEM heat shields to cut down on cabin heat. The studs holding the firewall (top) shield are long enough to hold a second one. By leaving the original nut in place, it created a thin dead zone between the two shields and still had enough sticking thru the second one to put on another nut. Easy peasy. The big cat shield is really thick, so can't use the first trick to mount it. I bought rod coupling nuts and used them to replace the original nuts on the original shield. Then I found really short bolts to run thru the second shield and into the open end of the rod coupling nut. It DID take some SLIGHT reshaping of both the firewall shield and the cat shield to fit in the available space. I bought what I have been told is the LAST OEM #3 exhaust heat shield in the world. A good used one will work fine. Or, a piece of 4' chimney pipe is pretty easy to shape into place for the 3rd position. My exhaust has been rerouted over the frame like a 93-94, so there is room for a shield over that section where it comes out along the transfer case. Much cooler floor according to my wife. It used to get soo hot when I was running WOT up the mountain passes that she had to pick her feet up off the floor. Not any more.

Interesting... I have actually been trying to chase down a rattle that I think is coming from my exhaust and currently have all of my heat shields removed except for the ones on the manifold. I really haven't noticed any heat difference since taking my heat shields off.

So, what was the temperature when you got to the end of the driveway and put it in park WITH the louvers?

On average about 184°

 

[Azca]

Interesting... I have actually been trying to chase down a rattle that I think is coming from my exhaust and currently have all of my heat shields removed except for the ones on the manifold. I really haven't noticed any heat difference since taking my heat shields off.

[/QUOTE]

Check your exhaust system cushions. There are three of them. I had the same issue and found that all three were ripped and worn through. To check them you will need to push up on exhaust at each mount, there is a bit of weight and they will bind a bit. If you get any movement, they are shot. Or use an inspection mirror. They are supposed to look like this:

 

[AverageTanner]

Check your exhaust system cushions. There are three of them. I had the same issue and found that all three were ripped and worn through. To check them you will need to push up on exhaust at each mount, there is a bit of weight and they will bind a bit. If you get any movement, they are shot. Or use an inspection mirror. They are supposed to look like this:

View attachment 2043048

I'll have to order some... I know one of them (directly after my test pipes) is bad. I didn't think they would have that much of an effect on the system though.

 

[Nathan King]

This weekend I installed the louvers I bought here:

Small Angular Universal Hood Louvers

Improve cooling and downforce with TrackSpec's Small Angular Universal Hood Louvers. Designed for performance and durability, it includes a full install kit.

trackspecmotorsports.com

After much research of the forum I found most of the people that have installed louvers say “they work great” but have no data to back it up. For the two weeks prior to installing the louvers, I made a spreadsheet that included ambient temperature, humidity, length of drive, high coolant temperature and average coolant temperature.

For those wondering how I’m monitoring this info - I have a temperature sending unit cut into my upper radiator hose and a GlowShift gauge mounted on my A-pillar.

Below are pictures of the finished louvers.

My first drive after the installation DOES seem to yield a lower coolant temperature, but I will verify after a couple of weeks when I have more consistent/sufficient data.

View attachment 2023137

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View attachment 2023160

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Hey. Which ones are those? I went to the site but the universal louvers are longer than those.
Thanks,
Nathan

 

[AverageTanner]

Hey. Which ones are those? I went to the site but the universal louvers are longer than those.
Thanks,
Nathan

They are the “small angular” universal louvers:

Small Angular Universal Hood Louvers

Improve cooling and downforce with TrackSpec's Small Angular Universal Hood Louvers. Designed for performance and durability, it includes a full install kit.

trackspecmotorsports.com

 

[ZIFFFZJ80]

They also have a set specifically for the 80. Here’s a recent pic of my truck where you can see them.

 

[jkeithw]

They also have a set specifically for the 80. Here’s a recent pic of my truck where you can see them.
View attachment 2465864

any under-hood photos? I'd like to see where those fall in relation to the ribbing. also, what material are they?
Nevermind, I found them: Hood scoop pics!

 

[fencekey]

Okay, holy post-bump I know.
The original poster installed the "small angular universal" sized louvers that, per the Trackspec website measure 4" front and rear width and 12" long on the centerline. Trackspec also offers a "large angular universal" louver that measure 5.5" wide and 12" long (but doesn't specify if that's the centerline).
Based on the underhood cutout/fitment of the small vent, does anyone think the 5.5" wide vent could fit in that space without cutting into hood structural support?
I'd prefer the look of the slightly wider louver if it will fit

Alright so it's been a few weeks since I installed the louvers... No I did not have to cut into any of the hood supports, although I was very close to drilling a hole for a rivet through on of the supports (no big deal).

View attachment 2037524

My under hood insulation was falling apart in the areas where I put the louvers so I just cut them straight back along the under hood support structure. As you can see, I eyeballed it with a razor knife and it's a little bit off.

Now for the data. I wanted to run this testing to see if the louvers being in place were directly related to water temperature. In hind sight, I really should have gathered data on both my under hood temperatures and IAT's pre and post louvers, but I didn't. Oh well.

Highways speeds there is little to no effect (0°-2° cooler water temp). The biggest area that I noticed a change is pulling in to and driving down my driveway (for reference: I live down a quarter mile dirt road - do to dust and being neighborly, I usually don't travel down it much faster than 15 mph). The louvers don't seem have a direct correlation with the water temperature at slow speeds, but they did seem slow down the inevitable. What I mean by that is the rate at which my water temperature rose. My Cruiser at it's hottest, typically runs around 196°. Before installing the louvers, I would hit that 196° by the time I put it in park. After installing the louvers, I would come down the driveway, park, and in order to hit 196° again I had to wait 5 minutes in my driveway. This was on a day that was 92° outside with 35% humidity, compared to the first trip (without the louvers) at 91° and 38% humidity, so the ambient temperature/feel was almost identical. The drive itself was from work to home on both occasions (a 10 mile, 20 minute trip consisting of getting going to 60mph, slow down for stop lights, back up to 60, slow down again, back up to 60, stop at light, etc).

Another thing that I have noticed is that the fenders do not get as hot to the touch after trips. And after a trip, if you place your hand above one of the louvers, it's shockingly hot!

Based on what I've found, there are some obvious benefits to the louvers. Are they easy to install, yes. Do they look cool, yes. Will they cure your overheating problem, no. Would I do it again, probably.

Okay, holy post-bump I know.
The original author installed the "small angular universal" sized louvers that, per the Trackspec website measure 4" front and rear width and 12" long on the centerline. Trackspec also offers a "large angular universal" louver that measure 5.5" wide and 12" long (but doesn't specify if that's the centerline).
Based on the underhood cutout/fitment of the small vent shown here, does anyone think the 5.5" wide vent could fit in that space without cutting into hood structural support?
I'd prefer the look of the slightly wider louver if it will fit

 

[AverageTanner]

Okay, holy post-bump I know.
The original poster installed the "small angular universal" sized louvers that, per the Trackspec website measure 4" front and rear width and 12" long on the centerline. Trackspec also offers a "large angular universal" louver that measure 5.5" wide and 12" long (but doesn't specify if that's the centerline).
Based on the underhood cutout/fitment of the small vent, does anyone think the 5.5" wide vent could fit in that space without cutting into hood structural support?
I'd prefer the look of the slightly wider louver if it will fit

Okay, holy post-bump I know.
The original author installed the "small angular universal" sized louvers that, per the Trackspec website measure 4" front and rear width and 12" long on the centerline. Trackspec also offers a "large angular universal" louver that measure 5.5" wide and 12" long (but doesn't specify if that's the centerline).
Based on the underhood cutout/fitment of the small vent shown here, does anyone think the 5.5" wide vent could fit in that space without cutting into hood structural support?
I'd prefer the look of the slightly wider louver if it will fit

If you made the perfect cuts it would be realllllly tight without getting into the hood supports.