Tornado??
- Thread starter gittyup87
- Start date
Jim Henderson
Dedicated LVC Member
The two websites that I am a member of, the general opinion is snake oil. Some people MIGHT get better mileage, but it is eaither magic, luck or they accidentally fixed a problem with their intake by opening it up.
Scientifically controlled testing and the experience of the majority of the people on those websites who tried it, said they either got no change or changed downward or some got an unexpected result. They did get improved mileage but lost power due to restriction in the intake. At best on an efi engine it would apper these things act like a carb restrictor, which causes intake vacumm to rise which is good for mileage, but because of less air flow, performance drops.
Always keep in mind. With all the pressure on Detroit and other automakers for performance and mileage gains, don't you think they would jump on tornado technolgy if it could get them thru the EPA hoops and Gas Guzzler laws, if it worked?
That is the test of snake oil. If it would save as much as claimed, then it would already be in general use. Multibillion dollar companies spend millions yearly on research for such improvements.
There is always anecdotal evidence, but that type rarely stands up to scientifically valid investigation.
Just my opinion.
Jim Henderson
Scientifically controlled testing and the experience of the majority of the people on those websites who tried it, said they either got no change or changed downward or some got an unexpected result. They did get improved mileage but lost power due to restriction in the intake. At best on an efi engine it would apper these things act like a carb restrictor, which causes intake vacumm to rise which is good for mileage, but because of less air flow, performance drops.
Always keep in mind. With all the pressure on Detroit and other automakers for performance and mileage gains, don't you think they would jump on tornado technolgy if it could get them thru the EPA hoops and Gas Guzzler laws, if it worked?
That is the test of snake oil. If it would save as much as claimed, then it would already be in general use. Multibillion dollar companies spend millions yearly on research for such improvements.
There is always anecdotal evidence, but that type rarely stands up to scientifically valid investigation.
Just my opinion.
Jim Henderson
FreeFaller
USAF LS8
IMHO those things are complete and utter poop...all it does is add more junk between the air filter and the intake manifold.
luckieleo
Well-Known LVC Member
Jim Henderson said:
your probably right.
i saw one of those tornado thingys on ebay, but i was thinking the same thing... if it really worked, more people would have them in use... and they would be more popular...
but hey, if someone wants to give it a try & let us know, go for it! :Beer
Yeah, that's pretty much what I was told by a Ford research engineer about a decade ago on some other topic. I think it was about the mythical 100mpg carburetor; he said that one actually did exist, but it was not suitable for automobiles--the engines that used it were only capable of ~10hp. (This included long discussions of the Miller and Otto cycles which are too long and technical for me to recall in any detail.)Jim Henderson said:
Basicaly, he said that, oil companies be damned, if Ford (or GM, Chysler, etc) found anything that would improve mileage reliably without the trade-offs (like loss of power) that drive customers away, they'd be all over it like ducks on a junebug.
FWIW, I saw a stack of Tornadoes at AutoZone on Saturday. That alone should tell you something.
