fabbed-up Ram-Air air cleaner

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Kit Sullivan

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Many years ago (back in the 80's) my Mustang was stolen (from a church parking lot, no less!). They stripped as much stuff as they easily could and got away with my original Magnums, rear spoiler, rim blow wheel, passenger side door mirror, a Kenwood amp, some 6x9s, my collection of cassettes(!), all my scuba equipment (just got back from a trip) and...my ram-air air cleaner.

When I put the car back together, the only thing I could not source new or reproduced was a new 429 ram-air air cleaner. Unobtanium from Ford, nowhere to be found used or in a bone yard, no reproductions available and mega-expensive if you could find an original one for sale somewhere. I certainly could not afford the $1000 for a used one the Perogies had for sale back then. They seemed to be the ONLY place to buy hard-to-find stuff for our cars...just like today.

So...I fabbed one up as best I could, using junk yard parts, a little sandpaper and some paint, and some 20-something's ingenuity.

I found an air-cleaner from a Ford wagon with a 400 2-V that looked like a decent fit, used the rubber molding made to seal the bottom of garage doors, cut it to fit and glued it in place.

It never looked really convincing to anyone who knew better, but to a casual lookie-loo it served the purpose.

It has bugged me for well over 20 years now how crappy and out of place that looks every time I pop the hood, but still...no affordable reproductions available even today, with the exception of the fiberglass repros from leon Grice at "Ford Ram Air".

I don't care for the look of a fiberglas air cleaner (it is isn't a convincing repro to me) and they are pretty expensive anyway.

So...Leon at "Ford Ram Air" sold me the upper ring to attach the foam gasket to, and a new foam gasket.

I took of the old "garage door" gasket from my original Ford air cleaner, attached the ring to the top edge of the air cleaner (a perfect fit!), installed the new repro ram-air gasket and...it looks better!

It still won't fool anyone who knows better (the snorkel is the dead giveaway), but it looks good enough that it doesn't scream "fake" every time I open the hood.

It only cost about $150 for the parts, which is a bargain for anything for our cars!

Here are some before and after shots:

Picture 995.jpg

zpfile001.jpg

 
it would have fooled me. Well done. Many years ago (back in the 80's) my Mustang was stolen (from a church parking lot, no less!). They stripped as much stuff as they easily could and got away with my original Magnums, rear spoiler, rim blow wheel, passenger side door mirror, a Kenwood amp, some 6x9s, my collection of cassettes(!), all my scuba equipment (just got back from a trip) and...my ram-air air cleaner.

When I put the car back together, the only thing I could not source new or reproduced was a new 429 ram-air air cleaner. Unobtanium from Ford, nowhere to be found used or in a bone yard, no reproductions available and mega-expensive if you could find an original one for sale somewhere. I certainly could not afford the $1000 for a used one the Perogies had for sale back then. They seemed to be the ONLY place to buy hard-to-find stuff for our cars...just like today.

So...I fabbed one up as best I could, using junk yard parts, a little sandpaper and some paint, and some 20-something's ingenuity.

I found an air-cleaner from a Ford wagon with a 400 2-V that looked like a decent fit, used the rubber molding made to seal the bottom of garage doors, cut it to fit and glued it in place.

It never looked really convincing to anyone who knew better, but to a casual lookie-loo it served the purpose.

It has bugged me for well over 20 years now how crappy and out of place that looks every time I pop the hood, but still...no affordable reproductions available even today, with the exception of the fiberglass repros from leon Grice at "Ford Ram Air".

I don't care for the look of a fiberglas air cleaner (it is isn't a convincing repro to me) and they are pretty expensive anyway.

So...Leon at "Ford Ram Air" sold me the upper ring to attach the foam gasket to, and a new foam gasket.

I took of the old "garage door" gasket from my original Ford air cleaner, attached the ring to the top edge of the air cleaner (a perfect fit!), installed the new repro ram-air gasket and...it looks better!

It still won't fool anyone who knows better (the snorkel is the dead giveaway), but it looks good enough that it doesn't scream "fake" every time I open the hood.

It only cost about $150 for the parts, which is a bargain for anything for our cars!

Here are some before and after shots:
Click to expand...
 
Ummm - please excuse my ignorance, but aren't all of the Ram Air air cleaners pretty much the same? If not, what specifically are the differences?

Could one of the repops be discreetly modified to work while looking factory? (Not that there's anything wrong with what you currently have - nice job, BTW).

I honestly don't know that I'd change a thing. Your car is your car, and has your signature all over it. Part of the story is that the original air cleaner was stolen, and that you came up with a [very] suitable substitute in the wake of zero replacement options. If it was a high-end collector's car going on the block for auction, then sure - a $1000 replacement might up the value somewhat. But it's your baby, and doesn't sound like it's going anywhere anytime soon... or that you afford it the life of a garage queen (you enjoy your car, in other words) - so, I wouldn't worry about it.

If it keeps you up at night, then by all means... otherwise, I just say it's part of the car's heritage and 'patina,' if you will.

 
Technically there were at least 4 different versions of the Ram-Air air cleaner bases in 71-73:

1) There was the 351- equipped versions. These had an offset foam ring on the air cleaner because the carb on a 351- equipped car is not located in the correct spot in relation to where the opening in the underhood plenum is. An extra piece was built into the top of the air cleaner to put the foam sealing ring in the right spot. This also raised the foam ring up a bit because the 351 carb sits lower in the engine bay. And I think the 49-state versions had an open "trumpet" style end on the snorkel and got air from underhood, while the "California" air-cleaner had a non-flared trumpet with a flexible air duct attached to get fresh air from behind the grill. I think the 2-V and 4-V versions had the same fit on the actual carb, so no differences there. So...I'm thinking 2 versions so far.

2) The 429 Cobra Jets were more simple in construction: the carb on the 429 CJ and SCJ engines are located exactly centered within the underhood plenum opening, so no gimmicky "offset mounting ring" was used to move the foam seal off center: it lined up perfectly. Additionally, the carb on the big blocks are higher up in the engine bay, so the mounting ring for the foam seal is mounted directly on top of the outer edge of the air cleaner, giving the 429 air cleaners a shorter overall height vs the 351 air cleaners.

The snorkels on the 429 air cleaners are much different: More squared off, blockier-looking and shorter than thier 351 counterparts. That is where mine is obviously incorrect.

The alignment tabs inside the air cleaner to properly position the air cleaner to the front of the carb were a different shape depending on which carb the car had: Rochester ( CJ) or Holley ( SCJ).

So that is at least 2 different versions for the big blocks.

3) Now, I am not sure but if there were also "California" versions of the big block air cleaners ( with a flexible duct on the end of the snorkel) then that makes 2 more versions.

So...that makes at least 4 different versions, possibly 6.

And if there is a difference in auto vs 4-speed applications, there might be even more!

The 429 Ram Air setup is clearly how the car was designed: everything lines right up. The 351 set up is cobbled-up to fit.

The steel aftermarket repro systems are an excellent reproduction. They look and fit perfect, but only work on a 351 car ( or a 302 car with a little adjustment). They come unpainted, so a little "Ford Blue, #2" and they look awesome.

Unfortunately, there is no steel repro of the 429 Ram Air air cleaners, so us big block guys gotta make do.

There are fiberglas repros of the 429 air cleaners, but they are pricey and are not convincing-looking. Easy to spot as a repro.

 
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Technically there were at least 4 different versions of the Ram-Air air cleaner bases in 71-73:

1) There was the 351- equipped versions. These had an offset foam ring on the air cleaner because the carb on a 351- equipped car is not located in the correct spot in relation to where the opening in the underhood plenum is. An extra piece was built into the top of the air cleaner to put the foam sealing ring in the right spot. This also raised the foam ring up a bit because the 351 carb sits lower in the engine bay. And I think the 49-state versions had an open "trumpet" style end on the snorkel and got air from underhood, while the "California" air-cleaner had a non-flared trumpet with a flexible air duct attached to get fresh air from behind the grill. I think the 2-V and 4-V versions had the same fit on the actual carb, so no differences there. So...I'm thinking 2 versions so far.

2) The 429 Cobra Jets were more simple in construction: the carb on the 429 CJ and SCJ engines are located exactly centered within the underhood plenum opening, so no gimmicky "offset mounting ring" was used to move the foam seal off center: it lined up perfectly. Additionally, the carb on the big blocks are higher up in the engine bay, so the mounting ring for the foam seal is mounted directly on top of the outer edge of the air cleaner, giving the 429 air cleaners a shorter overall height vs the 351 air cleaners.

The snorkels on the 429 air cleaners are much different: More squared off, blockier-looking and shorter than thier 351 counterparts. That is where mine is obviously incorrect.

The alignment tabs inside the air cleaner to properly position the air cleaner to the front of the carb were a different shape depending on which carb the car had: Rochester ( CJ) or Holley ( SCJ).

So that is at least 2 different versions for the big blocks.

3) Now, I am not sure but if there were also "California" versions of the big block air cleaners ( with a flexible duct on the end of the snorkel) then that makes 2 more versions.

So...that makes at least 4 different versions, possibly 6.

And if there is a difference in auto vs 4-speed applications, there might be even more!

The 429 Ram Air setup is clearly how the car was designed: everything lines right up. The 351 set up is cobbled-up to fit.

The steel aftermarket repro systems are an excellent reproduction. They look and fit perfect, but only work on a 351 car ( or a 302 car with a little adjustment). They come unpainted, so a little "Ford Blue, #2" and they look awesome.

Unfortunately, there is no steel repro of the 429 Ram Air air cleaners, so us big block guys gotta make do.

There are fiberglas repros of the 429 air cleaners, but they are pricey and are not convincing-looking. Easy to spot as a repro.
Click to expand...
First... very cool! I would not change a thing. It's a story that you will always have with you and truly makes it "your car"

Second... It takes very little to no adjustment to make a 302 work as I have it working on mine. Everything worked perfect without any real modifications. The only modifications (spacer under carb) was because of modifications I had to make to the kick down bracket to keep the cable from rubbing on the intake.

 
The 302 carbs are about 3/4" lower in the bay than the 351 carbs, so a spacer ( as you mentioned) is needed to get a adequate seal on the system once the hood is closed. A typical aftermarket aluminum manifold on a 302 is usually a bit taller, makes for a good fit with the stock system.

Now, an aftermarket manifold on either of the 429s raises the carb too much in most applications and the tall-ish stock 429 air cleaner won't quite fit in most circumstances. My "home-brewed" set-up neatly and conveniently solves that problem because the 400 2-V air cleaner I used is a tad shorter than the correct air cleaner, and since I have an Edelbrock manifold on mine it makes up for the too-tall- carb situation.

Trying to get the minute details "correct" on an old car is maddening...the details will drive you crazy.

 
The 302 carbs are about 3/4" lower in the bay than the 351 carbs, so a spacer ( as you mentioned) is needed to get a adequate seal on the system once the hood is closed. A typical aftermarket aluminum manifold on a 302 is usually a bit taller, makes for a good fit with the stock system.

Now, an aftermarket manifold on either of the 429s raises the carb too much in most applications and the tall-ish stock 429 air cleaner won't quite fit in most circumstances. My "home-brewed" set-up neatly and conveniently solves that problem because the 400 2-V air cleaner I used is a tad shorter than the correct air cleaner, and since I have an Edelbrock manifold on mine it makes up for the too-tall- carb situation.

Trying to get the minute details "correct" on an old car is maddening...the details will drive you crazy.
Click to expand...
I did not think about it, but I use an edelbrock intake which also raises everything up some.

 
So with that garage door seal in place would your garage remote open those ram air doors or did you have to stop and open them? Sorry, could not resist!

 
Many years ago (back in the 80's) my Mustang was stolen (from a church parking lot, no less!). They stripped as much stuff as they easily could and got away with my original Magnums, rear spoiler, rim blow wheel, passenger side door mirror, a Kenwood amp, some 6x9s, my collection of cassettes(!), all my scuba equipment (just got back from a trip) and...my ram-air air cleaner.

When I put the car back together, the only thing I could not source new or reproduced was a new 429 ram-air air cleaner. Unobtanium from Ford, nowhere to be found used or in a bone yard, no reproductions available and mega-expensive if you could find an original one for sale somewhere. I certainly could not afford the $1000 for a used one the Perogies had for sale back then. They seemed to be the ONLY place to buy hard-to-find stuff for our cars...just like today.

So...I fabbed one up as best I could, using junk yard parts, a little sandpaper and some paint, and some 20-something's ingenuity.

I found an air-cleaner from a Ford wagon with a 400 2-V that looked like a decent fit, used the rubber molding made to seal the bottom of garage doors, cut it to fit and glued it in place.

It never looked really convincing to anyone who knew better, but to a casual lookie-loo it served the purpose.

It has bugged me for well over 20 years now how crappy and out of place that looks every time I pop the hood, but still...no affordable reproductions available even today, with the exception of the fiberglass repros from leon Grice at "Ford Ram Air".

I don't care for the look of a fiberglas air cleaner (it is isn't a convincing repro to me) and they are pretty expensive anyway.

So...Leon at "Ford Ram Air" sold me the upper ring to attach the foam gasket to, and a new foam gasket.

I took of the old "garage door" gasket from my original Ford air cleaner, attached the ring to the top edge of the air cleaner (a perfect fit!), installed the new repro ram-air gasket and...it looks better!

It still won't fool anyone who knows better (the snorkel is the dead giveaway), but it looks good enough that it doesn't scream "fake" every time I open the hood.

It only cost about $150 for the parts, which is a bargain for anything for our cars!

Here are some before and after shots:
Click to expand...
Not bad, not bad at all, I like it! The guy who stole your air cleaner knew where to find one. Based upon the parts he stole, I'd been looking for a new 71-73 in the area with those parts on it.

 
The "area" in question back when it was stolen was Houston, Texas...somewhere north of 4 million people population back then. There were very few actual Ram-Air equipped cars delivered as new back then. It was a rare sighting to ever see one out of the hundreds of Ram-Airless Mustangs cruising around.

Today, you would assume that every Mustang mach 1 in 71-73 had Ram-Air based on what you see at cruise-nights and car-shows. Not true...a very rare option.

But, short of opening the hood of any Ram-Air Mustang I spotted, how could I have found it? And not recived a hot lead injection along the way?



So with that garage door seal in place would your garage remote open those ram air doors or did you have to stop and open them? Sorry, could not resist!
Click to expand...
No, but every time I blipped the throttle..the garage door would open and close real fast!

 
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Kit,

Did you do the Westheimer cruise scene back in the 80s?

I got lucky getting a ram air set up from that "guy" everyone had to get parts from, back in the summer of 80.

I bought mine for my 73 351 disaster car, and ended up putting it on the Mach-1, the day I bought the car Dec. of 80.

Jay

 
I didn't just "cruise' Westheimer back in the day...I owned it!

We regularly street raced anywhere between Highway 6 and Chimney Rock. Much past Chimney Rock and the traffic got too much because of the Galleria traffic, plus the streets were too curvey and too many lights.

Big blocks have the advantage and are AWESOME for street racing because they come on strong immediatly...and most races are over before you hit 70-80 MPH, which is where a high-winding small block starts to make its real power. But, as I used to say all the time back then: "Dude, the party was all over by the time you got here! Fork it over!" (the money).

In a real 1/4 mile dragstrip race, the outcome is much more evenly matched. But a street race is different.

I did a lot of racing on Gessener and also on Long Point.

Almost got killed racing a "Cuda on Memorial drive by Kirkwood: Spun out at about 75 MPH on a slightly curvy section by the firehouse...must have spun completely around 4 times. Luckily I didn't hit anything or anybody. My buddy Bob was on the passenger floor crying after shitting his pants, my tires were all flat-spotted, my brakes stunk for a week and my hands were shaking so bad I could hardly hold the wheel to drive away. I had the "Bigs and Littles" thing going on then, which seriously detracts from the cars balance. Stupid kids...

I hit a concrete bus stop bench on Hammerly and wiped out the front end: That was my last street race to this day.

That "guy" that you mentioned...that guy that everyone had to buy parts from "back in the day" for Mustangs in the Houston area? I remember him well. His name is (was?) Bob Earhardt. I bought some over-priced, questionable parts from him and he was a snake to try and get any satisfaction from. He and I "made circles around each other in a square room" several times over some questionable transactions some of my Mustang friends and I had made with him on a few occasions. I believe he may have ended up being "The Guy" in Houston for all things "Mustang" for a few years in the later 80's...I don't know, me and "Old Boots" were living in Irvine, California by then cruising Newport Beach, Dana Point, PCH, Harbour Blvd...and anywhere else the hot chicks of the day were hanging out.

How's that for some name-dropping?

 
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Surprised we didn't talk that I can remember of those daze...I knew one guy with a 429 Mach-1, but I'm not sure his wasn't an engine swap.

Remember the Mustang Owners Association guys that looked down their noses at the 71-73s? We ended up outlasting them...:D

I was out there almost all the time, either in my 65 2+2 six banger, or the blue Mach-1.

Saw a lot of crashes, had Lifeflight™ land in front of us twice, and more street races than I can count. My avatar pic was shot on Westheimer around'84.

Were you at the giant mob scene in '79 when it was rumored CarCraft was going to Houston for Cruisin'USA?

 
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