SHDY 5.7

Ok, I'm in the process of doing all the "free mods" to my 98 z. One of the mods that was mentioned to me, was removing the thick screen from the MAF sensor. It does appear to be fairly restrictive.

Now, let me clarify a few things before I ask my question! I'm not asking if this in fact adds horsepower, or to see proof. Let's be realistic, the difference in power from any free mod isn't going to be drastic. I know this.

When I posted that I was going to remove it, I got told not to! Now, after some research, I notice some say to do it, and some say not to do it. Please keep in mind, this car is not my daily driver, its my weekend cruiser.

So, my question is, what is ur view on this mod? Why do some say to remove it, others say not to?

Please tell me ur view on it, and why.

Thanks,
Dale

johnLs1camaro

iTrader: (28)

i would not, i drive my car 10 times a year maybe and theres times ill pull my lid off and see the screen catching debris that would be going in my engine.

djfury05

iTrader: (30)

It will run better with it in. The purpose of it is to reduce turbulence before it passes over the sensors. Do not do it. There is no benefit. As you said yourself you won't be able to notice anything so why do it anyways? Wasting time and effort on nothing.

Evidence of the screen serving its purpose. http://www.hptuners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=26546

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

Agreed.

I'm not sure why people are so insistant on messing with these MAFs. They work best when all their original design elements are in place.

M1tch

I took my screen out and its fine. Just run a regular air filter not a K&N because the paper type filter silicon and other contaminants better. The corvettes don't have a screen and i heard replacement MAFs don't have one either so I don't know why people advise against it. My screen had a few bugs stuck to it but i bought the car with 90,000 miles so i expect it. Make sure your air intake is sealed good and the only place for the engine to breath is through your filter.

therealcreeper

iTrader: (37)

I'll descreen the MAF the day I grind down my o2 sensors so that the exhaust flows better. I don't see a reason to mess with it, if you really want to eliminate the "restriction" replace the whole MAF with a straight piece of pipe and tune the car in speed density.

M1tch

Ok to respond to the stupid comments on this thread look at 90% of every other vehicle on the road and see if they have a screen in front of their maf. Every GM and FORD vehicle i've ever owned or have done maintenance on does not have a damn screen in front of the MAF. They have an intake then shortly after is a MAF. Rangers for example were known for their MAFS getting residue on them which would cause detonation and you would clean them with alcohol and a q tip.

ExtremeTurboSystems

Agreed. It will not yeild any horsepower worth mentioning and can cause idle issues sometimes. A good air filter should be cetching the dirt not the screen on the MAF. Its simply there to help the MAF calculate air flow smoother. Some people have problems with idle after they remove it, some don't.

TheBlueKnight

iTrader: (4)

Whoa! Flash back to my testing video in 2009, haha...

http://www.streetfire.net/video/ls1-...ing_643805.htm

WhiteKnight '01

You said yourself, removing it won't add any noticeable power, and it could cause some problems. You can drive the car 5 times a year and run into the problem where debris somehow goes through your filter and goes straight into your intake, and the screen isn't there to catch it.

Also, I'm pretty sure I heard that the screen is there to help swivel the air around, which sends it into the intake faster. Just leave it on. If you want to mess with the intake or MAF stuff, just get a ported and polished throttle body, that's about 3-5 ACTUAL HP right there.

M1tch

Swiveling the air better now damn I have heard it all ! I can't believe GE or Pratt and Whitney hasn't heard about this swiveling effect! Does it help on carbs too ?

The screen just creates more turbulence and causes a pressure drop and restricts airflow. Now does it take away gobs of horsepower? No. Will you notice it? Probably not. Does it hurt? Absolutely not. I can get all scientific but it won't cause any issues. I daily drove my car without a screen or a tune after a header install and from all the bullshit i see on ls1tech you think my motor would've blown up. Descreening it will NOT give you idle issues and will only help provide a decreased pressure differential between ambient (outside air pressure/barometric pressure) and your intake. (more power)

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

Actually the screen is there to reduce turbulence and smooth/direct the airflow. Removing it has the opposite effect.

Those of us that have been around these cars since the early days ('98-'99) will recall a few examples of people seeing some slight idle oddities with a descreened MAF. A big deal? Nope. But it was there for some. I never tried it myself for that very reason, and the fact that I've never seen anyone gain anything from removing it - so why bother?

I did try some aftermarket MAF ends once, about 10 years ago when that was a popular thing to do. I put them on a A4 car and noticed some negative difference in shift feel (I was not the only one to notice such things) as MAF readings are one of several sensor inputs used in calculation of certain auto trans operations (I believe the issue here was line pressure calculations). I noticed no improvement of any kind, so I put the stock ends back on and everything was normal again.

I don't bother messing with stock MAFs any longer. They work just fine as issued by the factory. If you need more airflow for a high HP application, go with a larger MAF that is calibrated for it's size and then tune accordingly.

M1tch

There is no proof of it reducing turbulence. It is a restriction of airflow. The Ducting is what directs airflow. There are different types of ducts to do different things (increase velocity/pressure). If screens reduce turbulence and direct airflow then you would see one in front of every turbine engine and on the top of every carb.

djfury05

iTrader: (30)

Clearly your not a tuner.. read this and educate yourself

http://www.hptuners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=26546

jimmyblue

iTrader: (11)

The "screen" works by creating local turbulence in each
of the little channels. The square-law (or higher order)
drag is what evens out the airflow. The pressure drop is
substantial. Unlike most of the people offering opinions
I have gone as far as measuring it, and found it to be
nearly the same pressure-drop as a stock lid+silencer.
People pay good money to fix -that- loss.

I've been running a descreened 85mm Delphi for a very
long time now, and it's needed no real tuning; the stock
Z06 table works fine there. But I have a very straight
inlet tract. I would not claim to predict what somebody
else's lineup would see. Some lids were said to affect
descreened MAFs more than others, but that's all second
or thirdhand.

I'd recommend that if you can't tune it yourself, don't
go hacking on hardware.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

An interesting read:

Strange that some of these people have seen significantly improved consistancy by adding something that you seem to imply can only hurt. I think the key here, as mentioned by jimmyblue, is the specific routing and design of a given induction tract.

SHDY 5.7

Well, I appreciate all the opinions given. Seems to be a good debate. Now here's my view.....

Im going to test both and see what happens.

djfury05

iTrader: (30)

The screen doesn't just pop out it has to be cut out. So unless you have another maf sitting around its going to be pretty permanent. Not sure if you thought about that?

jimmyblue

iTrader: (11)

Screen will pop out easy if you remove the front piece
and set it in a dish of paint stripper overnight. Then it
will also be easily re-installable with a bit of epoxy
should you change your mind.

SHDY 5.7

I got my stock maf with the screen, and my buddys with no screen.