AIR Removal? Pros? Cons?
They break off because 500 degree air moving rapidly out of the engine at high pressure is pushing against the block-off plate when they're blocked off. Eventually, years of high temperatures and high pressure weaken the little tiny tubes, which are by far the weakest link in the headers. In some cases, the tubes blow off. It doesn't happen when they're not blocked off because that pressure escapes through the AIR system. There is no pressure build-up.
This is the reason why I haven't removed my AIR system yet. It's already been tuned out and I've had the block-off plates for almost a year and a half along with a plug for my lid. I'm just afraid of the tubes blowing off. I should have bought the race version. I would have saved money, too
This is the reason why I haven't removed my AIR system yet. It's already been tuned out and I've had the block-off plates for almost a year and a half along with a plug for my lid. I'm just afraid of the tubes blowing off. I should have bought the race version. I would have saved money, too
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From: Philly
You totally misunderstood my post. I'm saying the point of the AIR system is to warm up the catalytic converters faster, not to put "clean air" into the exhaust. It's warm air that's key. The AIR pump shuts down at operating temps. It's the EGR system that works continuously and works by recirculating warm air into the engine to reduce emissions. The way you wrote your description of the AIR system was very unclear.
Last edited by ChocoTaco369; Dec 26, 2008 at 11:03 PM.
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From: Philly
Right, but every post I've ever seen of the AIR tubes blowing off has been in cases where the AIR system has been removed. I'm willing to bet it's because putting the block-off plates on moves the point of greatest pressure inside the flimsy AIR tubes, making them more prone to failure as opposed to the AIR system being present. I tend to have bad luck with stuff and it would be just my luck that the AIR tubes would blow off my headers after I blocked them off.
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Joined: Jan 2006
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From: Philly
You totally misunderstood my post. I'm saying the point of the AIR system is to warm up the catalytic converters faster, not to put "clean air" into the exhaust. It's warm air that's key. The AIR pump shuts down at operating temps. It's the EGR system that works continuously and works by recirculating warm air into the engine to reduce emissions. The way you wrote your description of the AIR system was very unclear.
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Here is another one that just had it happen. It does seem to usually happen to the people that have the AIR fittings blocked off. If I were to do it again, I would just buy the race headers without any AIR or EGR fittings.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/generatio...le-header.html
https://ls1tech.com/forums/generatio...le-header.html
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From: So.Cal.
The tube break-off may be due to 2 things combining to produce the breakage:
1. the welding of the tube on the primary may have made the primary brittle due to incorrect heat and/or contamination during welding;
2. without the AIR plumbing attached, the tubes may resonate with engine vibration and this resonance may eventually break off the tube in combination with 1. above (resonance is the frequency at which an object vibrates very easily and with large amplitude; determined by 1/mass and length); the AIR plumbing dampens the vibration so the resonance does not occur (the resonance frequency is moved away from the the engine vibration frequency).
1. the welding of the tube on the primary may have made the primary brittle due to incorrect heat and/or contamination during welding;
2. without the AIR plumbing attached, the tubes may resonate with engine vibration and this resonance may eventually break off the tube in combination with 1. above (resonance is the frequency at which an object vibrates very easily and with large amplitude; determined by 1/mass and length); the AIR plumbing dampens the vibration so the resonance does not occur (the resonance frequency is moved away from the the engine vibration frequency).
Last edited by joecar; Dec 28, 2008 at 06:10 AM.
