Tornado Air

[richmbailey]

Saw a show on the Speed Network about this little gizmo. Seems interesting and they do have custom sizes for Jeep Libbies.

http://www.tornadoair.com/

--Rich

 

[grogiefrog]

Does that mean I can drive with a lead foot then?! wrc.gif

Seriously, let me know if it really improves your MPG. I figured that if it saved me a gallon of gas per fill up, it would take a year to pay for itself.

 

[-=JoN=-]

someone put these on from JU....they said it actually made it worse...he lost about 2 mpg..

 

[valvestem]

Tornado

Don't forget to pickup a few gallons of snake oil too!

yupnope.gif

 

[Trodo]

There was a recent Popular Mechanics article that covered the Tornado device, a clone of the Tornado, sold on Ebay, and several other items, like the magnet you place on the fuel line.
The results read like this.
"Both devices reduced peak horsepower by more than 10 percent. The Twister increased fuel consumption by more than 20 percent. The Tornado fuel saver provided no significant change."

Now I'm sure your results may vary, but from what I know, you want a clean undistrubed pulse of air, on the intake stroke. Even if it was "swirling" it would be disrupted every time the intake, takes in air. Just like passing your hand under the faucet while it's running. If you put your hand back by the exhaust, you'll notice it's pulsing, not flowing. I feel it would be impossible to make 6 seperate mini tornados all going with some sort of regularity and consistancy.
Get an intake kit from K&N, you'll be better off in the long run.

 

[SRotblat]

I think I saw that Speed Network show, in another episode they reviewed Blinker Fluid (great for those quick blinks), Cross Drilled Brake Lines (really opens up brake fluid flow) and muffler bearings (you dont want to hear one of those blow out ](*,) )

 

[Blue_Liberty]

Another so called performance/mileage enhancing item that is a complete waste of time and money is the throttle body spacer. Don't get me wrong, spacers do work really well------- on carburated engines. The concept behind a spacer is that it allows for your fuel and air mixtures to have more time to "swirl" together for better atomization prior to being ignited. This only works if the spacer is located at a point after the air and fuel have mixed (hence why it works so good when placed beneath a carburator). On most modern fuel injection systems, the point where you install a spacer is either immediatly above or below the throttle body. Air and fuel are not traveling there together, just air. So applying a spacer to that could, at best, do nothing, and at worst, cause performance loss. You would essentially be requiring your air to travel farther, giving it more time to slow down and to heat up, both of which rob power.

Here is more on this: TB Spacer Myth

 

[richmbailey]

Thanks for all the info....I think I've made my mind up to forget this little gizmo...not worth it.

--Rich

 

[FSJ Ralph]

Just last night I was chatting about this show with my Jeep buddies. I know these shows (I see them on Spike TV and Speed Channel) are basically infomercials; however, they usually offer sound advice and engage the viewer to trust the spokespersons.

This show with the Tornado in it really blew chunks on the integrity of those two bozos.

 

[P4M]

Air pipe

This little pieces of tin that claim to create better air flow are all ********. They do nothing except get in the way of the incoming air. There is no need to straighten the air flow. If you are that concerned you should run a short-pipe intake.

An engine is an air pump. If you want more air in, you need a less restrictive intake, a larger throttle body and assistance from a some sort of real air charger (supercharger, turbocharger, intercooler). Then you also need a way to get the gases out of the engine. Bigger headers and exaust pipes typically do the trick.

It's silly to think that a piece of tin will help anything. Beware of these idiots that sell little, plastic "electric turbos" on Ebay for $50-$150. Also total ********. Just an electrical parasite.