DIY Water Vapor System for a Car
If you drive a sports car that's turbo or supercharged, your motor is more likely to overheat than a normally aspirated engine. This can cause knocking or pinging and can even damage moving parts. Water vapor injection solves the problem by lowering cylinder temperatures to prevent premature ignition of the fuel/air mixture. This can save your engine from a premature combustion that happens before the plug's fire, which is called detonation and can destroy your pistons, rods and valves.
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Things You'll Need
- 2 to 4 liter dark plastic bottle
- Large and small cable ties (zip ties)
- 4 millimeter inner diameter flexible plastic tubing
- Bradawl (awl with a beveled tip)
- 21 to 25 gauge double-ended medical needle
- Epoxy glue
- Double layer nylon mesh (from pantyhose hem)
- Scissors
- Thick rubber band
- Friend
Instructions
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1
Mount the water bottle. Find a location that's below your carburetor to prevent gravity from affecting the water feed rate. It's also helpful to be close enough to the exhaust manifold to heat the water without melting the bottle. Find a good spot that has a stationary horizontal or vertical structure and secure your bottle to it with the large cable ties.
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2
Cut the plastic tubing to the proper length. Stretch your plastic tubing from the cap of your water bottle to the vacuum nozzle of your carburetor. Leave enough slack to fasten the hose to your engine compartment with the small cable ties (plus an extra foot for testing) and cut off the rest with your scissors.
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3
Bore a hole in the cap of the water bottle. Take the cap off your water bottle and bore a hole in the center of it with your bradawl that's just big enough for the plastic tubing to fit through. Your hole doesn't have to perfectly fit the tubing since any gaps will let air bleed in and replace the water as it goes out.
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4
Install the needle into the plastic tube. You'll need to test each needle from 21 to 25 gauge to find the one that's best for your engine. If your engine runs poorly with a 21 gauge needle, snip off the tubing where the needle is installed and glue in the next size up. To do this, mix your epoxy according to the directions and apply it to the threaded plastic base of your double-ended needle. Now twist the needle base into the end of the tubing that will be connected to your carburetor's vacuum nozzle and let the epoxy dry.
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5
Install the nylon mesh on the plastic tube and push the tube into the water bottle. Cut the hem off a pantyhose with your scissors and stretch it across the end of the tubing that will slide inside your water bottle. Now slip the rubber band over it to hold it in place and slide the tube through the hole in your bottle cap until the end rests on the bottom of your bottle.
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6
Connect the plastic tube to the rubber carburetor nozzle tube. Pull the rubber tube off your carburetor nozzle and make sure it's flexible and crack free. Now puncture it at a shallow angle with your needle and feed in the needle until you see it inside the tube. Use a small dab of epoxy to seal the rubber tube where the needle entered and replace the tube on your carburetor vacuum nozzle.
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7
Test the water vapor injection. Have a friend start the engine and watch the bottle and plastic tube to make sure water is sucked into your carburetor's vacuum nozzle when your friend guns the engine but not when it's idling. While you're at it, listen to your engine and if you hear pinging or knocking, or if it runs rough, you'll need to test higher gauge needles until it sounds right.
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References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Goodshoot/Getty Images
