Has anyone ever left their cover intact on a Camaro? I kind of like the whole stealth/not-modded look, but I don't want to kill performance. This will not be a max performance car, but should still be in the 6-700whp range. There are still two holes for air to get in, so I was wondering if anyone has done it and logged their intake temps to see if they were still ok. I'm getting close to buttoning it up, so it's either cut up the bumper or leave it.

Setup:
02 SS M6, forged pistons and rods LS1, LS6 heads, VTC2 cam, Huron Speed V2 kit. I plan to get it all running on pump gas, then switch to E85 once I get all the fuel system parts. Pics...



Here's a quick pic with the cover over it...

 

boy that isnt much air flow at all to it . Ive seen a few guys cut up the grill and it looks really nice.

I guess if i were you i would try it that way and see what happens, then if your not happy go back and fix it over the winter.

 

Winter?! What's that? LOL. I live in Tucson, AZ. It does cool down a little though.

I do like some of the cut out bumpers the guys around the forums here have done, especially the ones that cut around the SS to make a custom cover like this guy (Super Slow SS on ls1tech)...



Anyway, I was just wondering if anyone else had done it because I'm about to try unless someone who has done it has some good evidence that's it's not a good thing to do.

You can't see it in the picture, but there is room between the bumper cover and the intercooler for the air to come through the holes and get to the center part.

 

Mesh grill or something like that blacked out will give a stockish appearance. Personally I wouldn't want to restrict the flow of air through the intercooler, keep it open as possible.

 

I ran my turbo 02 SS with the front bumper intact at 7-8 lbs. for the last two years and my IAT's never got over 90 degrees with a 4" CX racing A2A. I did however cut it last night for the added air flow to the radiator. If your gonna be running low boost (5-8 lbs.) and want the stealth look you'd be fine but if your gonna be in the 10 lb. plus range like I will be you'll want to open it up.
This is how I did it so the fascia wouldn't sag, I'l add a SLP insert at some point to help clean it up.

 

Here is what I did on bumper to keep it as unmolested as possible. I used a 5" hole saw...

 

Those are some nice ways to do it for sure.