Product Overview
The FMINDK38 is the cold air induction system for Ford’s latest generation 1.5-liter 3-cylinder ST engine. Like with all manufacturers in recent times the need to make smaller engines more efficient and more powerful has been an engineer’s top priority, this then creates a problem for the aftermarket manufacturers to improve what is already fitted to the vehicle, nevertheless this hasn’t stopped us at Forge Motorsport.
A large amount of knowledge and knowhow from past development with all Ford models was available to us, however this is a totally new power unit and we needed to spend an extensive amount of testing time to ensure we ended up with a product that gives genuine improvements over the standard air box.
The choice of filter was decided after weeks of real-world testing and hours on the dyno experimenting with different filter options. We found that our Forge pleated filter worked best with an increase in power and torque while maintaining the best filtration properties, the build quality of the filter is superb and carries a limited lifetime warranty. This performance filter has been designed with a high quality silicone coupling and W2 Stainless Steel hose clamps to join the anodized black machined billet velocity stack. The filter is made using a high quality, high flow, synthetic nanofiber filtration media which is pleated to maximise surface area and in turn increase air flow. You can find a replacement filter for this kit here.
The use of the velocity stack MAF sensor housing maximises as much smooth air flow as possible. Our skilled CAD engineers have simulated different MAF sensor housing models to create the best design for this kit. The illustrations below demonstrate the benefit of using velocity stack science and show the smoothed air flow into the MAF sensor housing and inlet tract from the air filter.
With the combination of both the filter and MAF sensor housing we saw total gains of 4bhp however this only tells half the story, if you study the data from the dyno graph you can see the increase in torque from 1500-3000 RPM and again at 4500 until the red line, in fact at 2200 RPM gains of 20NM are achieved. This is also the same with the BHP power figures, you are seeing gains sooner and at the latter stages of the rev range, making the engine perform stronger when you need it to. On a tuned vehicle this combination is an essential purchase as the OEM air box is found to be too restrictive to achieve the optimum power figures and smooth power delivery.
As a bi-product from FMINDK38 the acoustics from the 1.5 engine have been improved, there is now a purposeful induction roar under hard acceleration and a very addictive turbo flutter when you lift off the throttle. Not only to improve the aesthetics but to aid as a heat defence from the hot engine, we have provided a laser cut and powder coated aluminium shield, this surrounds the filter and incorporates the OEM air ducting to direct cold air to the intake.
This kit can be installed to the OEM intake pipe or can be paired with our own silicone intake pipe FMINLH21, the key here is to further smooth the airflow to the turbo and eliminate any metal pipework as this is susceptible to greater heat soak and a potential loss in power.
A commonly asked question is will this fit any other aftermarket or the inlet hose intake? The answer is yes it will fit other manufacturers inlet hoses and fits to the original Ford inlet hose.
- MAF Boss Manufactured from 6082 aerospace grade aluminium.
- Black anodised & powder coating for ultimate protection and durability.
- Forge Pleated performance air filter which has been designed with a high quality, high flow, synthetic nanofiber filtration media which is pleated to maximise surface area and in turn increase air flow.
- No engine management lights (EML)
- Increased air flow
- Limited Lifetime warranty
