Replacement air scoops for undertray
 

I have been concerned about cooling air flow to my gearbox due to the condition of those rubber air scoops on the front of the undertray. One of mine had fallen off, and the other was badly torn, and was no longer functioning as intended.

I did a search to see if you could purchase these somewhere, but found nothing available. I didn't try my local dealer though, as they almost never have anything I need.

So, I made my own:

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01/P11388357689.jpg


http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01/P21388357722.jpg


If anyone wants to make some of these for themselves, here is the pattern. You can cut it out of .019" aluminum sheet from Home Depot, which is easy to bend over some wood, even if you don't have a sheet metal break.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01/P31388357888.jpg


Hopefully these will scoop some air without being so low that they hit anything.

you are a king of men! I was thinking exactly the same thing yesterday - need scoops, can't get 'em without buying the whole tray. now I shall make my own! (unless you want to sell/trade me a set ...).

Glad to be of assistance. Obviously, I didn't design it with ROW dimensions, but I'm sure you can convert as needed.

Great! Thanks for sharing.

The rubber scoops are available separately. They are listed in the 986 PET although not shown in the diagram (501-01).
986 331 361 02 or 986 331 361 03 depending on year.

Not as cool as home made metal ones, of course!

Shoulda done a search dude - your question has been asked and answered at least six times before:

http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/48581-need-part-please.html

http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/43214-mysterious-piece-rubber.html

http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/36372-always-wondered-what-these.html

http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/30232-part-numbers-request.html

http://986forum.com/forums/performance-technical-chat/28913-rear-under-cover-rubber-spoilers.html

http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/26766-hard-find-part.html

Nice scoops though. Hope you don't catch them on something and damage your under tray

how's a 0.019" aluminum vent going to tear off the rear subframe of the car?

Excellent work. How did you bend the aluminum?

The OEM scoops are made out of rubber for a reason.
Just saying.
Part No.: 986.331.361.02 for '97 - '00 MY .... MSRP $2.15
Part No.: 986.331.361.03 for MY 2001 + ..... MSRP $10.66
Happy Boxstering,
Pedro

I have ripped mine off countless times. That lower brace that they are attached to connects to a bunch uf suspension and more. I would stick with the rubber.

Well, "tear off" might be overstating things a bit, but one could certainly anticipate damage beyond just the scoops themselves. Like Pedro said - they are rubber for a reason. The frequency with which they get damaged ought to tell you something.

I think metal scoops are awesome. a huge number of parts on the car are plastic, and they aren't doing too well after 10 to 15 years of use - the more metal the better (I worry about the plastic bits in the engine - I've replaced the sump baffle with a metal ebs unit, but the tensioner pads are a known issue and I have concerns about the plastic oil separator...). and it looks like they only reduce clearance by about 1"; no different than this:

TechnoSump

or this:

Rear Subframe Stabilizer W/ Tie Downs (Front and Rear)-Rennline, Inc.

or anyone who has put on aftermarket headers, lowered their car, or done a 996 engine swap. I do realise that the rubber ones are designed to shear off, but a thin alu part should do the same, or even better just deform so that it can be bent back afterwards. and this way you can make them as big as you want (anything that improves tranny cooling at the track is a big plus in my book) ie, perhaps rivet an additional rubber flap to the initial metal scoop, or use the provided template to make a larger scoop out of an old Tupperware tote.

I commend anyone who gets out there, does something, and then offers it up to the Forum! I don't know if this is exactly the solution for me, but I applaud the ingenuity and effort. Great job and thanks! :cheers:

Hey I guess everyone has an opinion.

These may not be for everyone, but my car now sees very light street use, and air flow on track is more important to me. Mine are installed with light aluminum rivets that would shear off easily in the event of hard contact, but I appreciate those who seem concerned about potential suspension damage.

I'll just cast my pearls elsewhere next time.

Nah, keep casting them here. We're not all swine. Many here appreciate good ideas. Others may troll a bit because they did not think of it first, you did. If your idea wasn't good, you wouldn't get a reaction. Keep the good ideas, and the pics coming.

Nicely done keep posting! sheet metal drawings are great. If you want them to shear off you can consider riveting them on the outside of the tray so they are on the outside surface and not trapped; or deflectable tips. You might even consider coarser track versions....lots of heat to get rid of. I start to loose third it's so bad

+1 Ideas like this lead to the "enthusiast development" that makes DIY fun.

Public forums bring out the best and worst in people, ignore who you want. The idea is to share and then people can choose to do the same or not. It's all good. :D
In this particular case I don't think anyone was snotty just pointing out a perceived problem of road clearance. I fall into the category of not thinking it is a problem. Please report back after putting on some miles to see how they are performing. Thanks for sharing. :cheers:

LAP1DOUG

It's often hard to read the emotion behind a post... I don't think anyone was trying to attack you or your work - just expressing concern that if your metal scoops get caught on something they could possibly cause collateral damage. Looks to me like they would simply sheer off...

I think the intent with the stock scoops was to redirect airflow over the inner CV joints, to help keep them cool. If so, you might want to rivet your aluminum ones to the outside (bottom) of the plate so that if they do sheer off they won't fly up into the area where the inner CV joints are spinning...

I really liked your post and thanks for posting the plans. I'd definitely be interested in hearing about anything else you come up with...

Thanks!

Bill

Can I get 3 sets from you?? :) I'd like to have them deeper than you made them (no joke) another 1/2 inch... and I'm serious..

Unless you are JUMPING curbs or completely missing apexes and high centering race track birms.. you will have NO issues with these hanging down :)

I'd rather have the *potential* for extra cooling on the in board CV's these point towards when installed.

send paypal invoice: paypal@bradrobertsag.com

You can also consider making them from light weight plastic. Check out Foam Core PVC or Foam PVC sheet from Tapp plastics, 1/8". It is very light, easy to cut with saw or shears, heat with a heat gun to bend. If they hit something, they will just shear off without breaking anything under your car or cutting a tire. And they won't be a real hazard for anyone behind you.
Make them real short, then extend them with sheet rubber and pop rivets.

Love your screen name!! LOL Makes me want to cook meth with you LOL

I was a bit surprised Walter's tag line wasn't, "It's all breaking".

I've always used my name online. No reason to hide. I've made mistakes (plenty) no need to hide behind a screen name :)

I built an air dam for my Mustang with some 1/4" foam PVC and a heat gun.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1388632433.jpg
I plan to build one for my Box someday.

WW is my real name.

I'm hiding in plain sight, like Gus.

I can see (now) how it sounded like it was aimed at you, it was actually a general statement :)

The stang setup looks good!!

I guess my wife is right, it is always about me!

Update on the home made air scoops:

They worked fine for a few hundred miles of street use, and even over some normal size speed bumps. Then I ran over a cone at an autocross, and it sort of mashed them in (very light gauge aluminum) but didn't tear up anything else.

I have a track day coming up in a week, so, now I get to make some more, which is a 30 min. job, or order some of the rubber ones. If you don't autocross, then no worries

It would be interesting to measure airflow with the aluminum versus rubber just insde the inlet. I'll bet there is a much higher flow with the aluminum than the rubber due to the stiffness of the aluminum.

Someone said that an overheating transmission can make you loose a gear?
Is that just for the automatic transmissions or does that happen on manual transmissions as well?

I never noticed these scoops on my car so they might be missing.

I like the aluminum scoop idea but since I have a 3D Printer perhaps I should make a pair out of ABS plastic. In ABS they would disintegrate on impact and won't end up a sharp edged flying object at the auto-x.

Great idea!

Does anyone have a photo of these on the car?
Just out of interest, If the diy ones are the same shape with the same intake area, I would think the airflow would be the same. What if the front of the scoops were widened but kept at the same depth, it would surely increase the air volume and speed which would increase the cooling effect. Would they fit? Is there any way to fit some type of heat sink to the gearbox to increase the surface area to dramatically increase the cooling? What about spraying the gearbox black to increase the heat transfer more?

Just some thoughts without actually seeing the area that the scoops fit on to. Not had the boxster on the axle stands yet.