rear window - engine bay window

I wouldn't put a window on there. Its the exit point for most of the hot air in the engine bay.
Unless you let your car sit in a torrential downpour, you'll never get mush water in there.
BTW, make sure there is a spacer under that air filter or else it will cost you HP

There is a vey comprehensive article (with the conclusions backed up with test data) on the making of a Rear Window for the Pantera.

It is in the POCA newsletter - December 2016.

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after I have read the article in the POCA newsletter I srted thinking about the modification. As I understood the test, the temperatures around the engine were not too high as long as your are not standing for a very long time in a traffic jam.

My first idea avoiding the water coming into the engine bay was installing a roof spoiler. But unfortunately there is a slot between the roof and the spoiler if the spoiler is installed.
Alfred

I have this Holley air cleaner, should I be concerned about a spacer?
Holley 64280 PowerCharger Air Cleaner Assembly

You do not want to seal that part of the engine from the atmosphere.

I have a different induction system, 4 Weber IDA's but have a similar issue with keeping out water.

What I did was take a piece of 1/4" plexiglass and bend it down with a heat gun.

It covers the top of the exposed velocity stacks and does not seal against the deck lid. It is open on the bottom and is really just a canopy.

You can see through it, keeps the water out from washing with a garden hose, and opens with the decklid so it doesn't hinder access to the carbs, linkage, etc.

The stacks are 5" tall and the openings are close to the roof. The system isn't water proof but it certainly removes the majority of the concern of the engine swallowing a big gulp of non-compressible water.

The aluminum plates that you see on the carbs do the same thing to cover the screens over the jets. So far, so good.

Of course in my case, I have rear louvres, which are functional to the induction, and the sugar scoop is also since it redirects air downward towards the velocity stacks. There is no louvre slat directly under the roof scoop.

If you look at the combination you might see that there is method to the madness here?

Here's a picture.

You might be able to take the thought and extrapolate it towards a solution for yours?

Alfred, a viable alternative is a set of aftermarket louvers covering either the opening, or the whole depressed area of the rear deck. It transforms the car's silhouette to something similar to a Lambo Miura, and does prevent rainwater from getting in. These attachments were popular in the '70s & '80s and although rare now, a set could be fabricated locally from vintage photos. Or, Kirk Evans' "Amerisport" built/builds a fiberglas rear screen with a 2" or more raised center section just for the purpose you stated. There ARE ways....

quote:

Originally posted by RiverRat:
I have this Holley air cleaner, should I be concerned about a spacer?
Holley 64280 PowerCharger Air Cleaner Assembly

Many have stated that the air cleaner surface area is inadequate with this air cleaner. Not true. The problem lies in that it sits too close to the carb opening. Cost me 13 RWHP. Putting in a 1/2' spacer solved the problem

Louvres.

DON'T park the car on a steep decline, nose down and they WON'T help you in a car wash with water shooting every where.

They are fairly easy to build out of .080" aluminum sheet. You can buy that with the slats already cut to the width that you want.

Don't drive while it's raining. :-))

I own a set of those louvres in storage that I would sell if someone was passionate about owning a set. They were built by Mindtrain, I believe. Presently, I am not intending too use them... However, what day of the week is it... I am currently restoring a Pantera and my thinking had been back and forth.
However, they are rare as hens teeth.

You will find if you make the mistake to drive your car in the rain, that the air flow runs under the car to the opening in the area just before the rear wheels where it travels up past the engine and out the opening in the rear sail where it is sucked out by the venturi effect of the sail, this drags filthy rain water mixed with road grease oil etc into, around and through every piece nook and cranny of your engine bay to then exit like a fire hose out of the rear sail opening, do not drive in the rain.

I have never driven my car in the rain.

I agree that is the best solution.

What I did is to protect the open velocity stacks and jet access on the Webers from water.

If you look at the way the carbs were isolated in the original GT40's, there was a "cookie sheet" that isolated the stacks and in effect created an isolation chamber under the rear window.

Many presumed that was for "ram/cool air effect" but it may be more to your point of keeping the water out of them.

Those cars were often run very hard in very hard rain during races.


The "sugar scoop" changes the air flow in the car. It directs air down to a certain degree and up over the car as well.

It's an entirely different effect of putting a spoiler or a wing further back on the car.

Personally I don't think the sugar scoop design and location was entirely arbitrary and just cosmetic.



The formula as I recall is lift vs drag. If the number comes up as 1 or greater, you have flight.

With a wing, the design is averaged to where the downward force has the effect of putting down force on the rear suspension and the drag on the car as a result is minimal or minimalized as best can be done.

Downforce helps the entire car stick better and drag slows down the top speed of the car. Usually about 5mph somewhere around 195 to 200 mph.

A cookie sheet would probably be in order with Webers IF one was going to drive the car in the rain and leave ventilation through the factory provided areas in the engine bay.

I would suggest that BY FAR the simplest solution for YOU, all things considered, change the air cleaner assembly. MAYBE go back to the original FORD air cleaner?

All wings will create drag.

The only alternative to that I can think of is to add adjustable "ailerons" to the wing.

posted December 17, 2016 09:16 PM
Don't drive while it's raining. :-))

"It never rains in California", but unfortunately I am living in Germany and it's raining more often. I drive my vintage cars only when it is not raining but sometimes one is surprised on the way by the rain.

I think about modifying the roof spoiler so that rain is not coming in when the car is parked.

Alfred