just read up on the BREATHLESS and they say becareful driving in the rain at high speeds[puddles} do other units have the same problem?blackwing,ect

 

I shot an email to Callaway tech support regarding the water issue. They said they drove their cars in all conditions, including snow, and did not see any signs of water getting past the filter.

I recommend sending them an email yourself. They are very good about responding.

 

thanks

 

Yes, some other intake systems have this problem. Bottom feeders, most obviously could be harmed by driving through puddles, but even then it would have to be pretty severe. I've got a Cyclone (bottom feeder) on mine and have been driving it in rain a LOT lately. I've heard some have issues with Vararam, but again, it would have to be extreme to get a lot of water in through the front like that.

I don't believe Blackwing would have that issue unless you went through Hurrican Katrina, as there is no cutting involved and it isn't feeding down to the foglight area.

I think rain will be okay for most systems, just not fording any rivers....

 

I drove my Halltech/CAI mod-equipped C5 through heavy, heavy rain for 20 minutes or more and ended up with a slightly damp filter, nothing more.

 

Never had any problems with the Blackwing on mine and I've driven in some very heavy rain.

 

ok guys i bought the vararam intake at caralisle $336.00 going to install it this week .i ask the guy about the water problem and he said there was none .and if anytime after i install it and im not 100% satified he would creidt my money back on my visa card .so i figured how can you go wrong.plus i got a hat $300 hat $36 intake

 

You can't go wrong with the Breathless unit...Just remember what you are driving and don't try to go 4 wheeling thru creeks, rivers, and large standing waters. Rain storms won't hurt you as long as you don't drive thru those puddles (cause you don't know how deep the water might be) use a little of the common sense that God gave you and you'll be fine.

 

Regarding the water ingestion Honker question:
I drove a Honker-equipped Callaway SuperCharged Corvette home to New Haven, CT from Carlisle Sunday night. Between around 8:00 and 9:30 pm, I drove through about 50 miles of some of the hardest rain that I've ever seen. And I've been driving since '71. From the I-287 to I-95 interchange all the way to just west of New Haven, I drove through major amounts and depths of standing water. Tractor-trailers that I passed spewed huge walls of water over and under the Corvette. Cars in the opposite direction threw waves over the median. Twice, water coming over the median engulfed the car to the point where I couldn't see through the windshield for several seconds. It was pretty dramatic. I was confident with the Honker because of the testing that we had conducted during product development, but this was a lot of water. I would be concerned about driving a car with a stock air intake system through that weather. This "test" was much more severe than anything we did during development. It would be practically impossible to simulate those conditions. After I got home, I heard that part of I-95, around Norwalk, CT, had just been shut down. Was anyone else out there then?

The good news is that the engine never missed a beat. Engineering is scheduled to disassemble the intake tomorrow to determine whether any water entered the Honker, past the air filter element. I'll let you know what they find tomorrow. Stay tuned.

 

don't most filter have oil on them? Isn't oil thicker than water? I know when I clean my k&n on my jeep I have to soak it with the soap solution to get the water to break up the oil for cleaning. Unless theres lots of soap in the rain there I wouldnt worry to much

It would probably take some chemistry expert to explain the physics

 

Honker from SuperCharged Corvette was disassembled today by Engineering Dept. Remarkably, there was absolutely no evidence of water passing through filter element.

 

I searched google for a couple hours today and couldn't find any info on the subject. Maybe a call to k&n or someone can get some more info.

I am very surprised none of the aftermarket filters have advertised this information.

 

Awesome!

 

Having had a Breathless Vortex, I can understand their concern. The Vortex has a downward facing scoop that I imagine could actually ram water into the filter. I had one on a previous C5, though I never personally had a problem with mine. On my present Z06 I have the Honker. This past weekend both going and coming home from Carlisle, I drove through considerable amounts of rain, almost all the way in both directions. The car ran perfectly with not one hiccup from driving in the rain.

 

I sucked water in a parking lot....using the BPP intake. It damaged my MAF, and caused the motor to stall before water could get into the motor.

I immediately changed intakes.

Buyer beware!

 

driving around today i got caught in a heavy down pour.i mean the roads were flooded .i drove it slower than usual and when i got home i checked
the filter on the VR .and i had no sign of any water getting into the filter.