ChaseN

Hey guys

I'm looking for a heater bypass tube that doesn't cost an arm and a leg...why does seemingly every aftermarket manufacturer make one out of CF and then charge through the nose for it? I'm ok with good ol' ABS plastic just like what basically everything else in the engine bay is made out of.

Anybody fabbed one up? I seem to remember a red RS from somewhere with an interesting (aluminum?) bypass tube.I just can't bring myself to pay $200+ for something that would literally cost $50 (or less) if I were buying it for any other car.

Thanks

axl911

My $30 tube. It's a 3" flexible intake pipe they sell at Autozone. I used 1/4 insulation seal at the end where it goes into the heat tube. Worked well for about a year now.

ChaseN

Thanks for the idea, that just may work. BTW, did you paint or powder coat your fan? Any balance issues?

geordie

I really like axl911's ingenuity! More details & photographs would be great.

I just ordered one of Thom's that needs a little finishing :

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsc...e-blowout.html

(No affiliation)

Unkle

Totally agree, unless i'm going to completely retrim the engine bay, 1 CF part would look weird in a used 100k mile engine. Just out of curiousity what would be the weight saving from CF to ABS plastic anyway?

@ Geordie: Perhaps I just haven't tuned myself into the pricing of these things yet, but doesn't that still seem like a lot of money for what it actually is?

Interested to see what people have used

axl911

Powder coat. Paint won't last. I had to go in and sand the powder coat off the edge of the fan to prevent it from scraping the housing.

geordie

The piece I received appears to be well constructed, accurate (template is a genuine 964RS piece) & featherweight (CF a couple of grams lighter ?). Requires minimal finishing to look like a stock, factory piece. That's exactly what I wanted.

Did it cost much in the way of labour/materials to produce ? Probably not.
I accept that I was shopping for a "specialist", small batch product & expect to pay for the privilege.

Horses for courses ....

Unkle

No problem, I buy putters for a golf collection and my wife thinks its a bit weird so you are right horses for courses. just seems like a lot for a piece of plastic

911Jetta

I asked the same question a couple months back
https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...ferrerid=19642

Here are two good pictures from that thread.

ChaseN

What type of material is that in the red car? Looks like some sort of household ducting?

SuperUser

Looks just like the old heater tube in an aircooled VW.

vespam5

Heater still works right? Just doesn't have fan blowing heat as hard?

ChaseN

Right. The reason I am interested in this right now is that my current rear blower is dead - and honestly, I can barely tell that it isn't working (passengers have no idea that something might be 'wrong' with the heat). This past winter (the coldest since the mid 1800's IIRC) in Virginia I had NO problems with heat the few non-salty days I took it out. The cabin of a 964 is so small, and seals so well (a coupe, anyways) that a minimum of hot air warms things up in minutes - not to mention it starts producing heat well before any water-cooled car I've driven.

With an RS tube I should actually get a little airflow back I think - there will be no dead blower restricting the CCU fans from pulling hot air up front.

xeps

The cheapest option would be to just remove the guts of your blower motor from the assembly - take out the motor and the fan blades.

You still lose most of the weight, though it doesn't look as clean as an RS tube.

ChaseN

Hmmm, interesting. I just might do that till I decide what to do with the bypass tube. Thanks.