using 12v compressor to help v8 wading, does it work?

Hi all

this is only as a temporary measure till i get megasquirt + as it will cost me nothing its worth a go

Im sure some of you have read on the net in places that people have used small 12v compressors connected to the distributor via a fitting drilled + sealed to the dizzy cap, siliconed the cap down + switching on before going into water + it working providing it wasnt windscreen deep for a length of time

working on the basis that its keeping the dizzy pressurised to the water cant get in due to the air pressure, makes sense

I tried + wasnt dissapointed however not satisfied either, i switched on before going in, got stuck in deep ruts + water was just in line with tops of the sills but obviously as it dropped into the hole water went up under bonnet

It still ran ok + revved ok providing i didnt rev it hard, after 5 mins with it running while i was winching myself out it was fine again

so not a total failure but id like it better

Has anyone had any actual success using the 12v compressor method or knows any tricks?

Like i say its just to get me by till end of march when ill be running megasquirt

cheers
james

First things first. It is not water getting into the distrubutor that is a problem. After all you could easily just seal it up. The problem is stopping condensation from forming on hte inside of the dissy cap and dissy main body thus allowing the spark to track away from where it is supposed to and doing this when the outside is suddenly cooled down when it hits water.
So the air pump idea works by constantly pushing fresh air through the dissy hopefully taking away moisture before it can condensate on the inside of the cap.
I used a different approach. I use the engine vacuum to suck fresh snorkal air through the dissy and thus take away the hot moist air that causes condensation when the outside of the dissy cools down rapidly. The vacuum helps keep the moisture from condensating and the cool fresh air is nearer matched to the cold water so causing less condensation anyway.
Pumped air is warm or even hot. If you use an air dryer then great if not you are just pumping hot air and moisture and pumping it against the now cold dissy and allowing condensation to form.
I always went with the vacuum option.
Good luck with it though. Megasquirt will solve it all.

I tried every method under the sun with my dizzy.

It was a piece of engineering masterpiece.

One weekend went Laning amd it was the last straw, ####ing useless.

In a fit of rage picked up phone and ordered Megasquirt

Life has been perfection ever since, and so many extra bhps

Megasquirt is the answer to water and v8s. Some small diameter rubber tube and silicone after drilling 1 hole and putting a nipple into the dissy drain hole works great for racing and deep wading when you still want your stereo working afterwards.
If its being submerged or you think you might need your own skuba gear never mind the engine then mega squirt is the only answer.

Haha when the stereo is fried you know you're deep

I keep forgetting to pull mine out before it gets too serious, have smoked a few now

Thats a fair point about the condensation forming due to the air going in undried

Like i say around march ill be going megasquirt but i have a bigger problem for the moment, centre diff went pop on sunday in LT95 so im now on the hunt for a replacement

Mr noisy - I was curious about power differences on megasquirt but your comment sums it up

cheers

The mega squirt timing is fully adjustable. So if the engine has ever swapped a camshaft, changed carbs or even a different exhaust or air cleaner set up, with enough time (and money) your engine timing can be optimized for your particular set up. Of course even the std supplied spark map is probably better than many old, bearly getting along set ups anyway, so improvements are often easily found.

I found that the ignition and timing improvements were most noticeable, driveability went through the roof!

The fueling improvements only served to make maximum bhp from my particular setup, which did not go unnoticed

Best way I can describe, on efi it drove like an old engine

On MS it drives like an old engine that drives like a new engine

Ie, all the noises, vibrations and raw innefficiency that you like, with the precision and immediacy of a new engine

Probably the most well spent money on the whole car