So California has been getting more than it's fair share of rain lately, and I've been taking advantage of it in my Renegade. I checked the air filter box today, and lo and behold, the bottom portion (Intake side) has a nice coat of mud. The filter itself isn't too bad on the bottom, and it's completely clean on the top, so it seems to be doing it's job. Also, the top half of the box (Past the filter, toward the engine) is completely clean. Not even dusty. So, my question is two parts. 1) How bad is it to have mud getting into the lower portion, providing the top portion stays clean? Is that pretty normal, or is it a sign that I'm just pushing it too hard? 2) I noticed on my friend's Wrangler that the intake to the air filter sits much higher. Would it be possible to extend the intake and make it higher on the Renegade? I know that the next logical step if I'm doing a lot of wet stuff would be a snorkel, but I'm not quite ready for that, and I'm hoping to find a good intermediate solution to keep my Renny safe.
I know after taking the front grill & bumper system off to put a winch bumper, the intake behind the grill has about one inch of back & forth play. If you unbolt the air box and put one inch spaces between it and its mounting point you could raise it one inch.
