Intake Plenums Alum Vs Plastic??
08-15-2006, 08:11 AM
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Intake Plenums Alum Vs Plastic?? ive built alot of cars (never a ls1) so this is my first, but why do alot of people make a huge deal about heat soak on a alum plenum???
98% of the ls1's out there have gas on them and with nitrous there is no heat soak, and a buddy locally just installed a bbk and we noticed a huge power gain and it was only 399.00 vs 800-900 for a fast??
and not to mention if and when you ever have a backfire a plastic plenum is trashed and with a alum it just blows off the lid.
someone clue me in?
98% of the ls1's out there have gas on them and with nitrous there is no heat soak, and a buddy locally just installed a bbk and we noticed a huge power gain and it was only 399.00 vs 800-900 for a fast??
and not to mention if and when you ever have a backfire a plastic plenum is trashed and with a alum it just blows off the lid.
someone clue me in?
08-15-2006, 08:55 AM
#2
98% of LS1's have nitrous? I'd have to say 97% of them must be hiding, cause I don't see those kinda numbers. Aluminum intake is the way to go if you're that worried about it blowing up. The FAST will make more power than the BBK by a long shot on a N/A motor and has burst panels on the bottom for nitrous backfires. That price difference is a drop in the bucket for some people building max effort setups.
Composite intakes do have less heat soak (no matter if you believe in heat soak or not, there's going to be less of it), they weigh less, and they bolt down and conform to the heads (say you've milled your heads a bit). Nitrous in a composite intake is going to stay even colder and work even better.
As we developed more advanced plastics, we were able to make them reliable enough, strong enough, cheap enough, and light enough to put on our engines. It's possible that people were just too afraid to try it.
Was the LS1 the first to have a composite intake bolted to the heads? Not sure. Do 90% of new motors have them (Hemi, Ford, Etc.)? Yes.
Composite intakes do have less heat soak (no matter if you believe in heat soak or not, there's going to be less of it), they weigh less, and they bolt down and conform to the heads (say you've milled your heads a bit). Nitrous in a composite intake is going to stay even colder and work even better.
As we developed more advanced plastics, we were able to make them reliable enough, strong enough, cheap enough, and light enough to put on our engines. It's possible that people were just too afraid to try it.
Was the LS1 the first to have a composite intake bolted to the heads? Not sure. Do 90% of new motors have them (Hemi, Ford, Etc.)? Yes.
08-15-2006, 09:14 AM
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[QUOTE=TheBlurLS1]98% of LS1's have nitrous? I'd have to say 97% of them must be hiding
????
i can honestly say that i have never been to the track and looked under a hood of a ls1 car and NOT seen nitrous (and im not talking about a 12-13sec car), and here in columbia sc everybody has it (vettes, gto's, trans am's, camaros',etc)
but thanks for your input, but what im looking for is proof of whp loss, like a dyno comparison going from a plastic plenum to a aluminum and showing before and after results.
????
i can honestly say that i have never been to the track and looked under a hood of a ls1 car and NOT seen nitrous (and im not talking about a 12-13sec car), and here in columbia sc everybody has it (vettes, gto's, trans am's, camaros',etc)
but thanks for your input, but what im looking for is proof of whp loss, like a dyno comparison going from a plastic plenum to a aluminum and showing before and after results.
08-15-2006, 10:59 AM
#6
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the FAST 90/90 setup is the way to go for nitrous, H/C, FI, shoot even just a full bolt-on car. you're not gonna blow it up. the motor will likely blow before the intake manifold. the FAST 90mm intake manifold isn't "plastic" per say, not the junk plastic you're connotating. it's a lightweight, space-age polymer - it's a composite, so it's strong. when you get right down to it, carbon fiber is a composite and that's damn strong. kevlar is plastic. it'll take a bullet better than steel. composite does not equal weak.
it's worth the money with high-horsepower applications.
it's worth the money with high-horsepower applications.
08-15-2006, 11:24 AM
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this is turning into a definition of materials.
what whp gain will a fast plenum have over a bbk plenum? (kinda like headers, is it worth paying 1000.0 for long tbes that give you 30whp or pay 300.00 for a set that gives you 27whp) kooks vs pacesetter for example!! is it worth it??
anybody here have a bbk plenum or something comparable?? and are you happy with it?? and what whp gains have you had from it?
what whp gain will a fast plenum have over a bbk plenum? (kinda like headers, is it worth paying 1000.0 for long tbes that give you 30whp or pay 300.00 for a set that gives you 27whp) kooks vs pacesetter for example!! is it worth it??
anybody here have a bbk plenum or something comparable?? and are you happy with it?? and what whp gains have you had from it?
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08-15-2006, 11:41 AM
#8
Seems to me that heat would play a bigger role in low RPM then at higher RPM. If you have access to both, perhaps just logging the IAT would be helpful in understanding what is going on. I have often wondered the same thing. From a weight standpoint, what is the difference? That is one concern I would have only because the Magnusen on a Vette seems to really degrade the handling due to the extra weight.
08-15-2006, 03:52 PM
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i agree, and the IAT was exactly what i meant when i was talking about spraying, if there is only 5-8 degrees in temp due to "heat soak", the nitrous will more than cover that and then some
08-15-2006, 05:33 PM
#10
I'm about to put a BBK intake on but have to fix some things first... I missed the dyno day to get a base test w/ LS1 intake manifold. So it will be awhile. What number gains did your friend put down with his BBK compared to what?
08-15-2006, 09:42 PM
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Originally Posted by Zentenk
I'm about to put a BBK intake on but have to fix some things first... I missed the dyno day to get a base test w/ LS1 intake manifold. So it will be awhile. What number gains did your friend put down with his BBK compared to what?
