Hiclone - the verdict so far.

[subanator]

IMHO, I had purchased and fitted a Hiclone to a Nissan 4wd a few years back, and to be honest, it did NOT reproduce the claims of increased fuel economy or power. I had a pod filter and extractors fitted prior to the Hiclone. Maybe to a standard fitted vehicle there may have been an improvement with this device.

I wouldnt waste my money again unless proven posted dyno results could show board members what they get for their money.

Anyway, with my mods with my Subaru of running a Weber and free flow aircleaner and exhaust, I achieve as good fuel economy if not better than original and more power. Dont think you would ever see a Hiclone fitted to a Weber of anyone recommending it either!

SUBANATOR

[tim_81coupe]

Steve,

subarursliberty was referring to a carbon fibre CAI kit also available from one of the sites listed above.

[Guest]

Here's a question - If I ordered one for an RX Impreza, I don't think it would fit my engine as I have 3" inlet ducting on there. Is there one available to suit a 3" pipe?

[subaduba]

When talking to the supplier I have found them to be very knowledgeable regarding what to expect considering the existing mods on a vehicle. They don't always recommend fitment if there are many other mods. They understand that there are limits to how much improvement can be achieved in some cases.

Subanator, for various reasons there are cases where the Hiclone doesn't seem to produce outstanding results. That's why they have a money back guarantee.

Please don't anyone think that I intend to exaggerate what this will do. I want to be balanced about all this. But I am prepared to give genuine feedback about my own vehicle's performance improvements. We have asked all of our customers to send us some feedback on what they think of the unit, and I will place this on our site.

Yes Tim, I did see the unit pictured, and it was definitely not the same thing. Seems alot of money for that thing, I haven't seen it before.

I don't want to engage in a sales process on this forum, please visit our site if you want to make a sales related enquiry. Re the 3" inlet MUDRAT if you send me the details privately I will talk to them and see what they recommend, ideally send a pic or two.

[subarursliberty]

Wow, a few replies in one day.

I'll try to cover some main questions.

Firstly, I'm not an expert on this product. But I'm told by the national distributor that THE most popular vehicles using Hiclones are Subarus! And that's all varieties including carbs - with and without turbos, efi's, all models. That's because many Subaru dealers around the country are recommending them.

Secondly, my 'seat of the pants' estimates are just that, and I am just relaying my own results so far. I only fitted the product on Monday, and I am told that the engine needs to settle for about a week before gauging the true results. That's because due to the better burning of the fuel, it gradually cleans the top end and exhaust valves etc. What I will do then is get it dyno tested with and without the Hiclone fitted to see the exact differences. I don't know why the skeptics here would trust my results though when just as true results are published on the Hiclone website. Some skeptics can't be budged no matter what.

But I can say that the car 'feels' better to drive. And on the fuel consumption issue, I'm doing what 99% of our customers will do - assess the results on the knowledge of their own vehicle. I don't need to get a dyno test to know that my car has more oomph and drives better.

Re the construction - it is made from stainless steel, and I was surprised to see it 'in the flesh'. It's definitely not a 'chucked together thing'. It looks very well engineered. I don't know what that black and yellow thing pictured in your post is subarusliberty, but it's definitely not a Hiclone.

On the issue of turbos - yes a turbo does move the air around, but the Hiclone is designed to deliver uniform turbulence, which I am told is the difference. It is also recommended to be fitted after the turbo for this reason.

Next, where did a stupid figure like $1520 come from? It costs $160, (and less from us) plus fitting (recommended to be done by a mechanic). If you bought 7 of them you might get somewhere near that, but then it would definitely be 'wank factor'.

Then, finally, yes we do make a profit by selling them - so do Subaru for selling cars, but I'm not going to sell my soul to promote a gizmo that I am under obligation to fully refund on if the customer isn't 100% happy with. I also have to pay the cost of freight to get the part back to the supplier. By the way, has no-one else ever promoted a product here that they sell?

I'm happy to answer any sensible questions in person by PM if anyone wants any further info.

Steve
http://www.4x4buyerstore.com.au

Hiclone Website: http://www.fuelsaver.com.au

As per my previous post below I think you need to reread it. $1520 came from the web site and is for the product below. I'm not trying to be smart but would like to know what the hell it does. I also know its not a hyclone. Once again I have seen an artcile on a V6 commodore and it did produce more power.

What the fn hell does this thing do to a ford focus that warrants $1520. It had better add 30+HP. I know its not a hyclone but its one of the airboxes thaey are trying to sell.

[subaduba]

Yes, sorry mate, I was a little rushed at the time and I didn't read your post properly. I don't know what that thing is, so I don't have any comment obviously. It may work, but you're right, it would have to produce some outstanding results to make it worthwhile.

By the way, here are a couple of photos of the fitment of the Hiclone in my EA82. Very simple to install.

http://community.webshots.com/myphotos? ... ity=RTrfvd

http://community.webshots.com/myphotos? ... ity=rTNNZM

[steptoe]

you have got to ask

why are manufacturers spending shiploads of dough on developing better fuel economy when Hiclone has the answer - in some cases.

I know and trust a machine shop owner who sells these and has good reports from club members on yanky V8s but cannot part with the dough to try for myself.

Money back warranty hmmm

I ahve not even been tempted to purloin the ones found when installling turbos on Diesels, rather not have someone accusing someone of theft.
Maybe next time would not hurt to 'borrow' for a trial.
They do not go back on turbo instal due to changed dimensions of ducting

[adam_rxturbo]

hey,

I thought i'd add in a little of my own input. I work at motorcare 4wd in brisbane, and we are queensland's major seller of hiclones. I've only been working there 2 years as an apprentice, but i'm a pretty cluey kid.

One of the main things we have to explain to customers about hiclones is that the results definately vary from car to car, its because no car is the same. And the main factors affecting current economy are - cleanliness/age of the engine and any higher flowing modifications. I guess a simple way of describing it is that the hiclone just helps out to get the car up to its potential efficiency standard. Its not really a modification that suddenly gives you 30kw or anything silly like that! It just helps it to run better and smoother and back up to near new condition.

I read a comment about turbos... If you think of the design of a turbo - its the inlet to the turbo that recieves a twirling motion of the air as it enters the fan, then as it leaves the fan, it is thrown outwards and causes turbulance into the intercooler/inlet manifold. The pre-turbo hiclones dont really help economy, but they can help the turbo spool up to 500rpm quicker!

My own plan for my RS liberty - EJ20T is to take it a step further and try and get 4 small hiclones and put one into each cylinder's inlet tract, so it gets the least turbulance to alter the spinning airflow before the injectors. But it will probably be a fair while before i manage to save up $600 to be able to go through with this idea

Cheers!
-Adam