How would it get in your carb if you had a functional a/c element in place? I'd put more faith in the silicone not peeling off in chunks than the OEM material. Besides, loose silicone getting sucked in the engine thru the carb is probably the least harmful foriegn object debris you could introduce. I take back what I said about it being a good idea... I think it's an excellent idea!

I'm gonna be a mythbuster next time I'm at the track and make several passes with my ram-air system hooked up, and several with it defeated. Will report results at that time. Even if there isn't enough "ram" effect to matter, you alwez want cooler outside air over hot underhood air. That's why the Volares and the like went to that system. I'd bet it helps emissions, too..... Dan?

D/W

_________________

If it ain't broke, fix it!

Well Dan why would you need silicone if you had a functional a/c element in place?

So silicone is better than OEM........interesting.

Silicone sucked through the carb being the least harmful foreign object debris you could introduce.....again interesting.

I guess Ma Mopar didnt have a clue.

Hey '74 Sport et al,
Here's my 4 cents worth.....
The air filter you need would be for (for example) a 1978 Aspen/Volaré with 2-bbl carburetor. Just so happens that 318 V-8 in the same car uses the same air filter. Fram CA160 is correct as others said too. Or use your other favorite brands.

That gasket you dug out of the air filter lid originally was some kind of foam rubber material but it gets squashed out and dries up and gets hard after 25-30 years which is how old these cars are now.

I used to use Fram air filters. One thing I noticed about the Frams ( and perhaps other cheaply made brands) is that the filter itself squashes down over time from pressure from the wing nut on top of air filter housing. This in turn causes extra pressure on that foam rubber lid seal causing it to squash out. After time passes the foam rubber lid seal dries out and get hard and stays in this compressed state. Now you buy a new air filter, Fram or other brand, and install it. Now your lid is sitting on top of the new filter as it should but the old dried up foam rubber lid gasket may not seal at this time. If you bought a cheap made filter, it will eventually squish down again to the point that the lid gasket again seals.

Are you all with me so far???

Go out and buy the correct filter of any brand. Also install a new foam rubber lid seal. I would NOT use silicone to fill the groove. The silicone sets up hard and will not compress. This is bad because when you get a filter that a tiny bit short or if it compresses down like the Frams do for me, you will end up with a situation where the lid will be sitting down on the silicone but the lid will not be tight on the filter and dirty air will bypass the filter and go into the engine.
It is necessary to have that compressible foam rubber gasket in the lid for this reason.

My 1979 Dodge truck with 318 V-8 uses the same filter. When I bought a new WIX filter for it I discovered the filter held up the lid because I could hear the engine intake noise in the cab. I went and checked and found the old foam rubber lid seal all squashed out and dried up. Inspection of the old filter from this truck and old Fram filters from my Valiants revealed the filter is squashed out and the screens around the inside and outside of the filter are collapsed a bit.

Conclusion.... The WIX and other sturdy filters do not squash out as easy. Fram and other cheap made filters squash out and also cause you lid gasket to get squashed. Now when you switch back to a sturdy filter the lid sits a bit higher (taller) but your now squashed , old, and dried up lid filter does not fill the gap with the new filter in place. The lid filter needs to be soft enough to adjust for slightly different filter thicknesses and production tolerances. If it leaks a tiny bit it will not matter much. The important thing is that the air filter element inside the housing be held snug enough so it seals and does not allow dirty air into the engine.

Johnny the name's Dennis, and I'm afraid I don't have a clue what your point is!

D/W

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If it ain't broke, fix it!

I'll grant you that's a good point, Craig. I still think it's a good idea, though. The silicone sure won't be as "incompressible" as the old hard seal. Even when new, they didn't have that much give to them, it's a pretty fine celled material. I think if you didn't overdo it on the silicone thickness, it'd be great. Plus the lid does distort a bit (enabling it to seal to the element within) when you "load" the wing nut...

D/W

_________________

If it ain't broke, fix it!

Excuse me Dennis,sorry about that.

My point is I don't understand why anyone would want to jerry rig(and to me that is jerry rigging) there car with inferior parts or products.when you can put the proper parts on from the factory.Heck 70Valiant offered him the correct part for nothing.Thats it.

Or you can use black silicone wich keeps flexible after cure, the one used to form gaskets.

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Mopar Muscle is well defend by Slant Six!

Valiant Duster 1971

I didn't say one was better than the other, just that the silicone is a good idea, in my opinion. One man's "jerry rigging" is another's "ingenious solution", I suppose. ...why, I bet you think the ram air setup I made for my Duster using sink drain traps, JBweld, fiberglass goo and tin cans is some seriously sleaze-bag, clap-trap rigging!

D/W

_________________

If it ain't broke, fix it!

Ok Dennis Hug.......Hug........I feel better!!

No,your right Dennis to each his own.

Ram Air don´t appears to be of much use in a 1bbl Duster, but I adapte a Chevy 2000 Cold Air Induction system, and it really works!

_________________
Mopar Muscle is well defend by Slant Six!

Valiant Duster 1971

Details, pics?

Wow! I had no idea that my simple dilemma of finding a good fitting air filter element would solicit such passion.

First, I must explain that the 1bbl lid I "Jerry rigged" was done about two years ago, before I realized that web sites such as this one are troves of boundless information.

Second, the lid is stashed near my feet under my desk. After close inspection just now, the black silicone is still soft and pliable, where my fingernail will depress it approximately 1/8" and it rebounds to its original shape. I will grant you that it is stiffer than what the original foam seal would be, but it is there to stay, and is not very likely to peel off and get sucked in. As noted above, the filter element should seal off tightly against the lid and not allow anything to slip by, especially chunks of silicone. I realize the gap is really not that great; nevertheless, it is there for hot underhood air to seep in through.

Third, regardless of the quality of element construction, if I crush one under the load being spread over the surface area the filter provides, I need to back off on the wing nut a little. In fact, that fairly proves my point that the element is too tall, if it must crush in order to compress the lid seal. I would more likely expect the opposite - the lid seal must crush in order to draw the lid down to make contact with the top of the filter.

Fourth, bear in mind that my stock 2bbl air cleaner lid has no seal along the perimeter. I am taking up the offer from Phil for his extra seal, so I can see how that affects the gap left between the lid and the base when using the FRAM CA160 element that I bought. Again, I can tell you, there is about an 1/8" gap to make up. That's OK, if the seal hangs down below the bottom of the lid's lip. If the seal is thin and recedes up in the groove above the lid's lip, it will never make contact with the base. Everyone follow that?

Fifth, as far as the "cold air intake" goes, it's just a whim I wanted to explore, since I already have some of the pieces. There was something I read here and on other boards about cold dense air being better for performance than hot thin air. I know we are talking about a fairly stock 6 cylinder daily driver, not a speed record breaker, but isn't that what we promote here all the time... getting the most out of our lowly slants?

Last, I did go back and try several filter elements and concluded that a Purolator A40103 may actually fit better than the FRAM CA160. The inside and outside diameters fit the lid's recess perfectly, and the height allows the lid to just almost close completely. With a new lid seal, I think it will close up tighter than a kitten's eye.

Peace brothers,
Jerry

p.s. I guess, Johnny, you really can say the 1bbl lid was "Jerry rigged", since that is my name.

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There's a difference between ignorance and stupidity.
Ignorance is not knowing any better.
Stupidity is knowing, yet doing it anyway.

Dennis, just remember, if you see no change, or go faster, with the ram air defeated, you might have to adjust the carb jetting, due the the change in air density. To really be scientific, it would be best to use an A/F meter, so you can optimise the jetting, under both conditions.

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Charrlie_S
65 Valiant 100 2dr post 170 turbo
66 Valiant Signet 170 nitrous
64 Valiant Signet
64 Valiant 4dr 170
64 Valiant 4dr 225

True. Now it's getting complicated...

D/W

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If it ain't broke, fix it!

Hey, you want to be a "myth buster", do it their way. Why do it the easy way, when you can make complicated?

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Charrlie_S
65 Valiant 100 2dr post 170 turbo
66 Valiant Signet 170 nitrous
64 Valiant Signet
64 Valiant 4dr 170
64 Valiant 4dr 225