Air box settings

[glenn]

Simple question, but have searched the forum and can't find any reference .....I presume the two air box/filter settings are for summer and winter, but which is which please.

Also thanks to those who have answered previous questions - rocker/cam cover gasket replaced with no drama and my first oil change marred only by slight overfilling and subsequent paranoia! I wojt be tackling the increasingly baulky gearchange myself though.

[lancialulu]

In the drivers hand book c pg10 (if S2 Coupe) up is winter down is summer. Only really relevant if

a) driving in freezing wet conditions and
b)only if the hose is fitted from the air cleaner to the lower exhaust manifold.

I dont have the hose fitted and always runs on summer setting and never had any issue of icing up.

[Kaha]

As I have learned and forgot the positions a lot of times, my memory rule nowadays, is to think that the pin on the outside is the same position as the flap inside.
I e, the pin up means the flap is up and air gets through the lower hole, pin is straight the the flap is straight and air gets trough side hole, on the side of the cooler.

As Tim says this is only relevant if you have the hose connected to the lower hole of the airbox and the other end attached to the nozzle beside the exhaust manifold. This will give the engine hot air, which prevent ice building up around the venturis in cold and damp conditions (the same effect that can cause ice on plane wings)

[1,6 HF]

E = "estate" ("summer")
I = "inverno" ("winter")

As Tim says, the "Inverno" setting is to draw hot air from the exhaust "chimney" through a flex duct. If (as with many cars) these are no longer fitted, then it makes little difference.

[Marnix]

Drawing the hot air is to avoid "carburetor icing". But I can say that carburetor icing is very unlikely for the twin choke carbs in the Fulvia in normal climates. I removed the big tube to the exhaust (it is in the way for a number of things, like setting/checking the ignition advance) but I still set it to "winter" when it is colder: it draws air in that is coming partly through the radiator when you do so, so it will be warmed up a bit.

I have only encountered carb icing on the Fulvia once, but was on the chokes (starter); the choke covers were iced up (it was above freezing temp outside, carb icing can happen between -10 and + 15 Celsius in theory). Air is drawn in that part is not going trough the filter, so the hot air wouldn't have worked anyway. Actually it was only after a considerable time with the the starter on (longer then I should have, with the car stationary).

[fay66]

My 2c does not have any of these features, it is a straight intake, in 20 Years of ownership I've never experienced icing, or in fact any other problem, as many know England has a very damp climate, but our first Y10 fire, with a carburettor often experienced icing in the winter, So the the air cleaner was turned so the nozzle pointed to the bulkhead in warmer air, end of problem.
Brian