Swirl Flap Removal

What are swirl flaps?

Swirl flaps are located in the inlet manifold and are designed to create a tumble of air to assist combustion when the engine is under light load. Under light load the flaps close, causing air to swirl into the combustion chamber, helping to generate a leaner air to fuel ratio. Under higher loads the flaps are generally fully open and have little effect on performance and emissions.


Why should they be removed?

Due to the poor design, these flaps are a ticking time bomb. The swirl flaps can become brittle and fracture, or the rivets holding them together break. When this happens, pieces of metal are sucked into the engine and can cause catastrophic damage such as damaged pistons, injectors, cylinder head, turbos and valves.


What happens when they are removed?

In most cases the swirl flaps and connection rods are removed from the manifold and specifically designed blanking plates are fitted in their place

If the vehicle is fitted with an electronic swirl flap actuator the ECU is reprogrammed to disable it.