I guess I'm lucky. When I put my snorkel on I gained 2 mpg and that's figuring it out by hand. And if anything I had my foot in the throttle a little more afterwards cuz my seat of the pants meter felt some extra power :-)

 

Also had a small increase in mpg with AEV, but negligeble. I've driven thru tropical depressions with the AEV on, never had a drop of water hit my K&N filter.

Given the dusty conditions the OP described, the pre-filter would definitely help. There is a reason military vehicles run a pre-filter.

 

even with a snorkel Id still be scared as hell to run my jeep through deep water. Any water scares me, water and engine/eletrical just don't mix. Im not a huge fan of how they look either. But thats just my opinion.

 

The loss comes from resistance to air flow in the snorkel pipe.
However, the loss can be 2~3 Bhp for a well designed snorkel, and NOT 2~3 Mpg, which is not noticeable in fuel consumption.

A pre-filter would clean the air from dust etc' much better.
The Donaldson is the best (probably the 3").

 

For those of you with the AEV snorkel there is another option to the pre filter they sell. The Donaldson TopSpin H002437 is a self cleaning system unlike the AEV pre-filter and looks cooler I think (especially if painted all black). Actually, Donaldson is the same company that makes AEV's pre-filter for them.



ht tp://www.amsoil.com/storefront/topspin.aspx

 

I used to be against snorkels because:
A. They can be damaged easily by trees (I thought)
B. They give people a reason to try their jeep underwater without fixing all the other items first
C. Didn't like the look


I was converted.. I now have an AEV snorkel on my JK why..

• My filter on my JK was getting very dirty
• I asked for people to post photos of a broken snorkel and no one could
• I dunked the front corner of my TJ in the spring once by mistake when a creek bed was changed drastically over the winter

What I noticed about the snorkel:

• I stayed the same or went up slightly
• Cutting isn't bad at all there is tolerance
• I can't even see the snorkel from the drive seat
• The aev snorkel blends in well with my dark coloured JK
• The snorkel is very very tough and while it could still get damaged I think I'd be taking out metal at the same time if i hit it that hard.
• I've had no issues with rain or snow. The filter box has never had water in it and I did check it a lot when I first installed the snorkel.
• My filter stays much much more cleaner.

Negatives:

• Look isn't for everyone
• Costly
• Limits other mods: Racks, light bars, light mounts, etc
• It does catch lots of bees

My experience is only based on the AEV snorkel.

 

Some rain water can get into the intake, but would collect at the lowest point along the pipe, which is lower than the filter box. That low point should have a drain.

Using a pre-filter prevents water from getting in form any direction and regardless of how strong is the wind.

 

For those who don't like the looks of a snorkel, there's the Rugged Ridge modular snorkel -- you can go for the low mount, which is good for everything except dipping the whole hood underwater. For that, put on the high intake extension...
It requires minimal cutting and no cutting of the hood or fender.
The '12 model is supposed to be marketed after SEMA.

I've seen snorkels get torn by branches. The Rugged Ridge modular snorkel sticks out less.

I'm waiting for the '12, and intend to paint it with the Jeep color so it'll have even less 'presence'.

 

i have my almost brand new K&N filter and my stock airbox. ahhhhh ok , I'm pulling the trigger! won't be able to install it until december, off to northern Alberta, Canada for a month. i will be itching to get home !!

AEV takes the win for my 11' sahara. i like the looks and the install is pretty simple. if my mileage was to go down, it should increase with my gears and tune anyways!

 

I was thinking of running a snorkel with my Ripp supercharger setup.