are you kidding me? do you know nothing about canada hahahaa...it was 115 degrees f here today. Heat soak is a very bad issue in the summers.

That is why I want to know if drilling holes in the windshield wiper cowling or even the non funtional lower grilles will be bad for winter driving with rain, snow, slush, salt etc....

 

In most parts of Canada... the summers are hot and humid as our winters are cold, damp and god damn slushy!

Dave, my lower grilles were really hacked up [half of it on both sides] for a long while. I was in and out of Montreal, Kitchener, Waterloo, Mississauga, Toronto, Brampton, London and Windsor a lot. There were no issues with opening up the lower grilles. Sure, snow and slush got in that area sometimes... but nothing to damage the car.

I'll be doing this mod soon as ... god damn I can cook an egg by leaving it on my fender or hood!

I can see a potential problem with this mod in the winter time. I suppose making some sort of cover would be the best option---unless you can get another cowl to replace it for winter.

 

It's good to hear their are so many other ppl with this heat soak issue. It is honestly enough to make me sell this fucking car and buy something else.

 

I wonder if you put a body kit with large openings such as the link below if that would help. I think a big reason for shitty cooling is the fact not enough air is drawn into the front bumper since their is just the top grille opening...


or maybe even a new hood with hoodscoop, but what if you get a hood with hood scoop and it rains, snows etc...


http://cgi.ebay.ca/04-05-06-07-08-Ac...item5192c06c58

 

even if u have a hood with a hood scoop u will be fine in any weather. i know cause i have a hood scoop on my AM hood. most AM hood with hood scoop have a removable plastic peice underneath to redirect water, dirt etc to the front of the hood/grill outlet. i keep my plastic piece off cause whats the point of having vented hood with the vents being blocked off?? u will be fine in any weather with vented hood

 

Currently in the process of the UCM.
Just took off the cowl... the driver wiper was a small pain to take off!

Man... I made the mistake of performing this mod after going for a drive. The heat coming at me along with the humidity in the air was unreal!
I'm just sitting in the TL abusing the a/c now...

 

do it and take it for a drive to cool it down LMAO. UCM FTW

 

I went back to the car after a hour (both wipers and cowl are removed).
The hood and fender areas have already seemed to cool down. Usually it'd still be hot to the touch!

Not sure how much of the bottom vent to open up... so I did almost all of it. Now just have to find how I want the escape-holes to look like.

 

im on the same boat. But for now im just rocking the full UCM until the cutting begins

 

Just installed my cut cowl.
I had a little fun with mine, though.

Ended up dremeling 'o4komodo' in to it... came out much much MUCH larger than anticipated. Forgot that the wheel would be too big. Oh well.

I ended up opening all of the lower vents of the cowl. I then pretty much cut a long-mid-sized rectangle. Essentially it's like having the full UCM... but with the cowl still there.


^^Wanted it to be 1/2 that size... if only I had a spare cowl...

 

whoa, 04Komodo.. You showed no mercy on that cowl. I just did mine too. I went with the small holes across the top, on the outside.

 

Real quick... After getting the bolt off the wiper, I had a tough time getting the wiper off too. What I did was lift the wiper up away from the window at it's "elbow". This instantly allowed me to remove the wiper from the screw area.

 

he shouldn't be allowed to play with dremels any more LMAO. How does it look on the car?

 

Day 1 - took about an hour. 1/2 inch holes across the top

 

soon as my parts come in I will be doing this as well.

Any problems now that we have had some serious down poors?

 

I had my first downpour one year ago. Quoted above is what I posted on August 13 2009. What I posted a year ago, is still true today.

This is my daily driver with no days off due to bad weather. I have been thru more downpours than you could shake a boat oar at.

Thanks for checking

 

heres some pictures of what MUST be removed from the cowl if you want the UCM to work for you.

Hot engine air goes through these holes






hot engine air exits out these holes


I also highly recommend removing the plastic engine cover that sits over the radiator. There is a small gap between the bumper and the radiator that fresh air can now enter and move into the engine bay. With this plastic cover in place, it will block almost all the air entering through the front grill

 

Looks good Bert!

 

I did the semi UCM a while back and drilled 7/8 holes where ever i could but i never cut out the plastic where you pinpointed the arrows and i do want to do it as i see that it is the main area where the air will go trough to exit.

the only thing is that i dont feel like removing the cowl again, i wonder if it is a big pain in the ass doing it on the spot

im sure i wouldnt be able to do it clean....

 

removing the cowl just takes 2 bolts and it pops off. 5 minutes max for a cleaner looking job. I suppose you could always drill holes in the area that I cut out but you still have to spend 5 minutes cleaning up the shavings.

 

Thanks. Works very well too. Im monitoring IAT's now since the turbo install and the proof that the UCM works is in the data

 

Turbo Bert, great craftsmanship Your cowling cut-outs has a very breathable design.

Below are the pics from Post #337 by "libert69" on Page 9.

 

Turbo Bert - Your cutting along the bottom section of the cowling (section under the hood) is very smooth, yet very close to the edges. The part where the red arrows are pointing in your recent pics. What did you use to make the cut-outs ? Did you use the hot butter knife idea ?

 

wow this thread is still goin!? good job guys!

 

For anyone that goes the extra mile to open-up the lower grills by removing the pieces shown above, be sure to also remove the small pieces of plastic trim next to the radiator (see below pic). These trim pieces are not that large. But considering that the air will have a straight shot into the engine bay, this small opening is very valuable at allowing a significant blast of air to enter.

Note - This is only beneficial if you have already done an adequate version of the UCM. No sense in trying to get more cooling air in the engine bay if the air has no where to exit.





In the pic above - Remove these two piece of plastic trim from the left and right lower sides of the radiator.




In the pic above - The purple outline illustrates where the trim piece was located on the passenger side of the car. Also, it illustrates the new opening that was created. Ram air has a straight shot into the engine bay. The plan is for the air to enter here, grab some heat from the engine bay, and to exit thru the UCM.




In the pic above - The purple outline illustrates the same as previous paragraph, but on the driver side of car.




In the pic above - This illustrates the new opening as viewed from inside the engine bay.

 

i used a dremel cutting wheel and a small pair of tin ships to trim the corners

 

Mine has more issues with the heat then most of u guys. I think im gonna give a new thermostat a try and going to flush the coolant. My engine bay seems to get very hot quickly and the fans dont seem to kick in at full power. Which coolant do u guys recommend and where can i buy it. other then going to the dealer.

 

From my opening post on first page, third paragraph -

 

Did you try removing the area of the cowling where the red arrows were pointing at? If not, your Semi UCM is completely ineffective. That area with the red arrows must be removed.

 

i will do that most likely on saturday if not before. Yesterday i cleaned my intake filter and while i was doing that i decided to check out if my throttlebody butterfly valve seems to work properly. And it looks like its on the money all the way. it responds very well. i also cleaned the throttlebody a little bit with a microfiber towel as much as i could. And since last week i put a bottle of red line SI-1 complete fuel system cleaner and she seems to be running much better so far.

I feel like that my engine gets to hot either way cause sometimes some of you guys say, after having some cooling mods done to that u can actually keep your hand on top of the manifold cover for a little bit, which i can never do.

IHC said something about the thermostat keeping temps around 195 degrees even in winter which actually it should be around 170.

when my car gets sluggish it feels like its always running a gear higher then it should. and it doesnt take long for it to become sluggish

its not much money so i wanna give it a try....

 

I see nothing wrong with trying the thermostat. Are you able to get a Honda brand thermostat? I would not trust a brand from an auto parts store.

 

i will definatelly pickup one from the Dealer....

 

My oil cooler is making big differences in under hood temps, a must for those looking to shed as much heat as possible. Looking at pre UCM #'s from 6/21/10 at 71 degrees
1.VTEC cover :140
2.intake tube: 123
3. Turbo exhaust side 435/ intake 123

Post UCM : 8/4/10 74 degrees outside
1.VTEC cover:96
2.intake Tube:94
3. Turbo:500+ exhaust side/ 117 intake
Big losses even with the turbo in there.

 

My oil cooler is making big differences in under hood temps, a must for those looking to shed as much heat as possible. Looking at pre UCM #'s from 6/21/10 at 71 degrees
1.VTEC cover :140
2.intake tube: 123
3. Turbo exhaust side 435/ intake 123

Post UCM : 8/4/10 74 degrees outside
1.VTEC cover:96
2.intake Tube:94
3. Turbo:500+ exhaust side/ 117 intake
Big losses even with the turbo in there.

 

Hi Speed Turbo,

Thanks for the update !

 

You might want something like this. 13x4x2 or about 11x4x2 of actual cooling area. Not too bad AN fittings wise and 6 feet of hose would do it. The Earls cooler was $94. $30 sandwich adapter.

 

Lolz...good advice! I did this mod awhile back and can feel the difference. After driving the car I can put my hand on the engine cover or the hood which would've burned me before. No problems with rain but my passenger side wiper has started squeeking I think from the heat being released on it. Great mod! Thanks for the idea.

 

I just bought the ATLP J pipe and I am trying to decide between the TUSDO exhaust and the ATLP. I am wondering what the difference would be between the 2, and if this would create better flow, gas mileage and more?

 

Don't put too much thought into it. You should go by what sounds the best to you or what fits your budget. With the TL's <300hp, once you're running a 2.5" pipe and decent mufflers they're all going to make about the same power.

 

are there any negative effects by drilling the holes?