drilling the airbox--series 1 mx5 1.6 114 bhp

[carspath]

i have heard that drilling part of the airbox will give a crisper and louder sound on acceleration

1/ is this true?

2/ would i need to change the airfilter at the same time, or could i retain the existing OEM filter?

3/ please could you describe (to a almost total technical newbie) how to go about drilling these holes---?household electric drill?/ what size of holes? /number of holes?

4/ please could you also describe exactly WHERE these holes should be drilled( as i understand that this is critical to the safety of the engine----? or else dirt might be sucked into the engine?)

i am hoping to get a more potent sound to my series 1 , and would be keen to do this drilling , if it is advisable and within my competence

thank-you

[Oldandslow]

I'd recommend a proper cone filter kit if it's just noise you want. Might also give a little more power but that's debatable. I kept my airbox so I could return it to standard if I ever needed to, not that it seems likely.

[Eighteeteewhy]

Oldandslow said:

I'd recommend a proper cone filter kit if it's just noise you want. Might also give a little more power but that's debatable. I kept my airbox so I could return it to standard if I ever needed to, not that it seems likely.

Yep, same as above.

This is a MK2 Typhoon kit modded to fit my MK1.

[Conor D]

Have a read through this discussion:

http://www.mx5nutz.com/forum/index.php?s=e4478c069...

Some examples of it done, and I'm sure similar questions answered.

[Richyvrlimited]

carspath said:

i have heard that drilling part of the airbox will give a crisper and louder sound on acceleration

1/ is this true?

Yes

carspath said:

2/ would i need to change the airfilter at the same time, or could i retain the existing OEM filter?

You can retain the old airfilter, or you can replace it, your choice.

carspath said:

3/ please could you describe (to a almost total technical newbie) how to go about drilling these holes---?household electric drill?/ what size of holes? /number of holes?

Take drill, drill holes, really isn't that complicated.

carspath said:

4/ please could you also describe exactly WHERE these holes should be drilled( as i understand that this is critical to the safety of the engine----? or else dirt might be sucked into the engine?)

In the lower half of the airbox, this is pre filter, so no dirt will be sucked in. You definately do NOT want to drill the top half.

carspath said:

and within my competence
thank-you

If you can drill a hole in plastic, you'll be fine.

[carspath]

thank-you all for taking the time to try and help me

i am leaning towards the drilling option, purely because of the cost associated with getting a cone filter (? about £100?)

how difficult is it to remove the airbox?(which i presume is necessary to get access to the bottom of the box where the holes will need to be drilled----- ? OR is it possible to acccess the bottom of the airbox by removing the airbox cover and taking out the filter, and drilling the holes with the rest of the box and the associated tubing left in positioN

if the complete airbox and the associated black tubing needs to be removed from the car to allow for the drilling, please could you describe how to go about doing this
do i have to remove the ?air-flow meter? which is on top of the airbox cover?

[Richyvrlimited]

carspath said:

thank-you all for taking the time to try and help me

i am leaning towards the drilling option, purely because of the cost associated with getting a cone filter (? about £100?)

how difficult is it to remove the airbox?(which i presume is necessary to get access to the bottom of the box where the holes will need to be drilled----- ? OR is it possible to acccess the bottom of the airbox by removing the airbox cover and taking out the filter, and drilling the holes with the rest of the box and the associated tubing left in positioN

if the complete airbox and the associated black tubing needs to be removed from the car to allow for the drilling, please could you describe how to go about doing this
do i have to remove the ?air-flow meter? which is on top of the airbox cover?

Can you hold and operate a ratchet?

You need to remove the top part of the airbox to access the lower part anyway, but all it's held down with is a few 12mm bolts, there's no rocket engineering involved

If you have a 1.6, whatever you do, don't try to take the AFM off the airbox top housing, you'll likely destroy it in the process (a relatively common mistake).

[Oldandslow]

The AFM is actually pretty robust. The usual mistake is to undo the screws at the connector, the connector unclips. Do NOT undo the screws as this messes up the internal connections in the AFM body.

[Richyvrlimited]

Oldandslow said:

The AFM is actually pretty robust. The usual mistake is to undo the screws at the connector, the connector unclips. Do NOT undo the screws as this messes up the internal connections in the AFM body.

That's the bit I was on about, sorry for not being clear.

[carspath]

sorry for being really thick, but does this mean that i can gain access to the bottom of the airbox where the holes need to be drilled, purely by taking off the top of the airbox (ie the airbox cover with the MAF still attached), and then removing the airfilter?

even i can probably manage that

i would prefer not to have to remove the large black plastic duct that goes from the airbox to the engine if that is possible

[Richyvrlimited]

carspath said:

sorry for being really thick, but does this mean that i can gain access to the bottom of the airbox where the holes need to be drilled, purely by taking off the top of the airbox (ie the airbox cover with the MAF still attached), and then removing the airfilter?

even i can probably manage that

i would prefer not to have to remove the large black plastic duct that goes from the airbox to the engine if that is possible

you'll still likely need to remove the lower part, but it's held down with a few bolts.

The crossover is held in with two jubilee clips!!

You're making this out to be an awful lot harder than it really is...

[MX-5 Lazza]

Isn't it the front & side of the lower half of the airbox rather than the base that should be drilled? i.e. the side furthest and best shielded from the exhaust manifold.

[Richyvrlimited]

MX-5 Lazza said:

Isn't it the front & side of the lower half of the airbox rather than the base that should be drilled? i.e. the side furthest and best shielded from the exhaust manifold.

Really won't make the slightest bit of difference, it's all hot in there, if you're going to draw air from the base of the airbox, it's going to be warm air.

[carspath]

DONE IT !!!

thank-you very much to everyone who has helped

as you said it was not quite as difficult as i was anticipating, but i am very glad that i sought your advice , as i would have taken at least a couple of wrong turnings had i not done so

thanks once again!!!

[MX-5 Lazza]

Has it made any difference at all?

[Mr MXT]

Can you post pics?

So we can say you've done it wrong!

[carspath]

i will tell you if its made a difference as soon as i get to go on a drive

i have put a total of 42 holes on the bottom and the cold (ie right as you stand in front of the car looking at the boot)side of the bottom of the airbox---all well underneath the OEM filter

i have not put any holes along the front of the box (yet)

[Digby]

42? Blimey! I used a small hole saw and only did around five

[Tyrewrecker]

Digby said:

42? Blimey! I used a small hole saw and only did around five

42 holes You should only need a few if the holes are the right size. Not a big deal, it will sound somewhat difference. Mx5 nutz has a thread dedicated to this, lots recommend it as a cheapo option but I CBA with the un-necessary noise, plus I have put in a K+N panel filter in.

[Richyvrlimited]

I'm assuming these 42 holes are with rather a small drillbit.

OP you really should've used a holesaw