The engine air intake is on the right end of the air box assembly.
The ECU does sit close to it, tucked away behind the battery.
The cool air duct [actual part name: Cooling Duct] dumps air above the ECU.
It's primary function is to provide a 'cool' stream of air over the ECU while the car is moving.

There's no connection from the air box to this hood mounted air duct.
No doubt it delivers air to the air box.

There's been a lot of discussion on the forum regarding CAI and the extent some have gone to provide it.
Who was it that sacrificed a fog light to duct air in??

For 2012 it seems the Cooling Duct has been redesigned.
Looks like a more positive system, least on the front end.

Any one care to venture a guess??

 

this is what is looks like. cause everyone still thinks it's on the
bottom.
ass you can see from the pics the air enters from the far right.


here is another in my car.
ecu is right in front of the intake.


and here is one more out and apart from my car.

 

I have to agree...that stock intake looks like "ass." Sorry, I couldn't resist

Edit: and thank you for the pics. That fully answers the questions in my mind. The intake scoop on the front is likely there to help direct cool air to the air intake. The ecu just happens to also be there. I wonder why they didn't take the one extra tiny step and make it a factory ram air. That would really give Honda something to talk about.

 

Okay niko, your ass has convinced mine.

Interesting pathway for it.... in from right, down and towards front, up through filter, then back until it goes through the throttle valve.

So, is that box on the right, two chambers? One for the incoming air (below) and the top to act as a resonator? I can't really be sure from your picture, but it looks like the air comes into a bottom chamber

 

It is one BA air box! It's no coincidence the air intake and ECU are at the end of the chute. I'm pretty sure, however, that Honda was thinking cooling for the ECU and free air flow to the air box, but with the 2012 changes to the cooling duct maybe they're seeing the light?

 

Hum... I feel like buying that duct to add to my Fit.

With a bit of digging... the duct is only on the 2012 Sport trim, not on the 2012 Base. Add to that, as far as College Hills Honda and Bernardi are concerned, the accessory "sport grille" is available for all GEs... EXCEPT 2012 Sport trim.

The grille itself has a different part number from 2012 Sport vs all other year/trim (and costs more). So... I wonder what differences there are... a little bit more plastic for the screws... and maybe less plastic to open up the grille for the duct?

Though I do feel like buying the duct... I don't feel like buying a new grille trim just for it.

edit: apparently i wasn't looking closely enough... the front grille on the 2012 Sport trim would need the new bumper also!!! Which explains why the accessory grille won't fit.

 

I wonder if just changing the top valance would work? It has those cutouts that would allow the air to travel upwards even without the ram-air effect.

EDIT- Never mind. I just checked and my 2010 has that same valance

 

I think based on what KC was talking about, positive system with the duct... I'm not sure that little opening really has much air flowing through it without the new duct. Nothing is actually directing air up, most of the air is probably passing straight forward through the condenser and radiator.

Maybe...just maybe, depending on the flow of air, or more specifically, lack of air around the intake itself, the intake is sucking in air fast enough to create a vacuum in the area, which in turn pulls air through the underhood duct. But since the engine bay is anything but a sealed system... I'm thinking not likely.

Maybe I will buy that duct, see if i can add it to my Fit without buying a new bumper and front grille. If nothing else, zip ties.

 

let us know how it works out. id like to know how it works out.

 

I ordered it (and the accompanying screws) along with a pair of bumper clips from Bernardi Honda. The bumpers clips will go with the engine splash cover i ordered from Rock Auto.

My current engine cover is missing a chunk of plastic from my little incident during my road trip and is drooping a bit.

As for the duct... I don't know if it'll even work as well as in the 2012 Sport Fit, because the upper grille are different in terms size and probably amount of pass through openings in the grille itself. While I am hesitant to use it, I do have a drill. ( >.< )

Edit: aside from any placebo effect, I would have no idea how to measure any meaningful difference. At best, I can try taking readings from my Ultragauge for intake temp and pressure at a given speed/rpm. And see if there's any change. Maybe the timing advance/retard too? I dunno.

 

Is this the part you ordered?
17249-RP3-A00

 

yup, that's the one.

 

goobz I'm curios to see how this works out. Like you say though, how you gonna know?

Try and do some base readings before you swap it out.
IAT and Intake Manifold Pressure would be the only real things.

 

Well, I think the timing might change, because if the air is cooler coming in, then it should lower the chances of it knocking, right? If so, the ECU may be able to stick to a (slightly) higher timing advance... maybe.

The biggest challenge is trying to get the environment parameters consistent enough... namely ambient temp.

Aside from that, I was thinking about doing a couple of drives at different speeds to get different amounts of air coming in with different gears to see how it affects the engine at different RPM levels (cruising at different combinations of 30, 40 and 50 mph with 3rd, 4th and 5th gears).

Then another, simpler set at home, just engine on and my fan blowing in the front. See how it looks at idle and whatever other RPM levels I might push.

 

I think getting base info now. A few standard 50mph run down a straight/level stretch w/ cruise on will give you IAT, Intake psi and timing advance [though tracking timing is difficult] and record the outside air temp. Then repeat once you mod.

As far as the effects on driving, it's going to be some sort of CAI and possible [???] a bit more intake pressure, but not boosted by any means.

I don't know. Least it's a neat thing to do w/ a UG.

 

Well, I got the duct yesterday... and after work I drove out to a SuperDave's drive-in hot dog place... you know, the kind where you order from your car, sit and wait while they cook it and take it TO your car for you to eat there. Except I went inside to order and eat.

Anyway, on the way there I was trying to get various numbers (engine temp, which gear I was in at which MPH, IAT and even a bit of mani PSI).

All the numbers were pretty much all over the place, the only consistency (aside from using cruise control) was the IAT after a good stretch at whatever speed/gear I was in.

Initially, it looked like the IAT dropped by about 2 degrees... On the way home, in 5th@70 MPH on I-94, I got about 41 degrees. 15 minutes later (after installing it... more on this later)... I got 39.2 degrees.

The problem was... to confirm, I ran a few 50 mph test along Dundee. While I couldn't really get any really long stretches of road, the temps were basically the same with the duct in position, with the duct out of position (moved behind the H logo), duct still out of position with no grille cover and duct in position with no grille cover.

So, it seems more likely the temp change was an overall drop in environmental temps.

As for the installation... that's a bit of a problem.

I knew I wouldn't have the locations to screw it, but I had hoped I would have SOMETHING to attach to. So, at the moment, my duct is attached by JUST ONE zip tie.

You see, the duct has four mounting positions. On each side near the top is a mounting position (two, one left, one right). Then along the bottom close to each side are two more. I managed to zip tie one corner near the H logo, while shoving the other corner into a tiny nook near the corner of the upper grille. The bottom is completely unattached... there's nothing to attach too with it being below the grille in the empty bumper area.

The duct itself is not hard plastic. The best I can describe it is... like the all-season floor mats. Sturdy, but flexible rubber.

Which means, that because the bottom isn't attached, it's probably flopping around at 70 mph. The only thing keeping most of it in the right shape and generally close to the "desired" angle, is my PIAA horn. My horn isn't in the same position as the stock horn... it juts out quite a bit forward. If I had the stock horn, the duct would be completely useless.

In conclusion... without a custom bracket of some sort (or a bumper+grille swap)... the duct can't even be theoretically effective.

 

Don't forget the 1" or so gap at the front of the hood. That will direct a good bit of air into the cooling duct as well, judging by the amount of salt spary in my engine bay and the front of the duct...

 

I just mounted the Accord horn Backward (still facing downward) with 2 brass washers between the horn and the body to keep the horn from coming into contact with the A/C condensor. Worked great and was a lot easier than extending the electrical.

 

Improvement on volume? The stock horn is, well, I'll put it this way: When I hit the horn button I hear a faint noise from somewhere far away and I go "that can't possibly be it, did I miss the button?" ... But I didn't.

 

nice, might try this after all.