Dropped vs Flat Air Cleaner!

[dstryr]

well its about time to get the hood back on my car but the problem is i made the mistake of buying a flat mount air cleaner with a 3" filter. It looks like it needs about an inch shaven off to clear... How much of a difference does a drop base one make? think I'll clear with it or do I need a drop base and a 2" filter?

[Steve Chryssos]

It's a common problem. One that most people band-aid with the wrong air cleaner. Drop base air cleaners work. They are very common on roundy round cars. But they need to be matched with a carburetor that has a milled or eliminated air horn/choke--which are, of course common on race cars.

Easy test for anyone with this problem. Take you car for a short spin on roads that are free from sand. Drive it with and without the air cleaner. If your air cleaner lid is too close to your carburetor you WILL notice a difference. After the test drive, you'll be like "duh!" Often the carburetor or engine gets the blame. You gotta make room somehow. Inspect it, measure the clearance and make room by milling or replacing something--preferably the carburetor, not the intake.

Also be sure to check and correct carburetor linkage clearance with any air cleaner base--especially a drop base.

You are not alone.

[70bird]

I used to have Moroso drop base, (about 1-1/2 drop) on a Mopar with a Carter carb. Had no clearance probs with linkage etc. Who knows if they still make it, or if it will clear your carb? Might be worth checking.
Mark

[CarlC]

I agree with Steve. The drop base killed performance in mine. I ended up using the drop base but used a spacer underneath until it got close to the hood and combined it with a filter top to maximize flow.

If all you need is an additional 1/2" you may want to consider a 1-1/2" drop base with a 4" tall filter.

[woody80z28]

That was a question I was about to ask. I have a drop base on mine, but it's a K&N X-Stream where the air comes in from the top as well. So in that case, wouldn't you want some space between the hood and the top of the filter? I plan on sealing it all off to cold air in the future.