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1980 L48 Need REAL advice

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Old Mar 23, 2003 | 10:50 AM
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Default 1980 L48 Need REAL advice

Wife has the 1980 and she wants to go to an Edelbrock Elite Dress up package. Now the question, WHAT SIZE air cleaner fits this leaving to STOCK HEI in place ? :confused:
Want to order from Summit BUT want the correct part the 1st time. Thank You :cheers:
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Old Mar 23, 2003 | 10:51 AM
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Default Re: 1980 L48 Need REAL advice (LRPMAN)

A 14x3 air cleaner works fine...at least on my '76
:cool:
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Old Mar 23, 2003 | 11:35 AM
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Default Re: 1980 L48 Need REAL advice (SanDiegoPaul)

A 14x3 on yours, GREAT. Does that mean that the 1980 HEI Distributor Cap is the SAME as yours? Size I mean. :confused: I have very little clue on the Corvette. :cheers:
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Old Mar 23, 2003 | 12:11 PM
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Default Re: 1980 L48 Need REAL advice (LRPMAN)

A 14x3 on yours, GREAT. Does that mean that the 1980 HEI Distributor Cap is the SAME as yours? Size I mean. :confused: I have very little clue on the Corvette. :cheers:
Should be the same.


[Modified by ORVette, 9:13 AM 3/23/2003]
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Old Mar 23, 2003 | 02:02 PM
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Default Re: 1980 L48 Need REAL advice (LRPMAN)

I bought a chrome 14x3 from the local parts store for my '79. The previous
owner had some kind of stock air cleaner (not the right one) on it and wouldn't let the hood close right. But mine works fine with the HEI.
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Old Mar 23, 2003 | 02:26 PM
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Default Re: 1980 L48 Need REAL advice (7T9L82)

I would love to run a different air cleaner on my 1980, but I will tell you why I don't.

The stock setup for the 1980 has a dual snorkel air cleaner that brings in cold air from above the radiator.
Those plastic ducts also seal between the radiator and the underside of the hood. They also keep air from just going up the face of the radiator and over the top, and forces it to go through the radiator.
SO, with the fact that those ducts help the cooling of the car, and they provide cool air directly to the air cleaner (free HP), I have decided to keep mine.

Function before form for my engine.
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Old Mar 23, 2003 | 09:17 PM
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Default Re: 1980 L48 Need REAL advice (BSeery)

I was also thinking that the cooler air would be better for performance, and you also get the side benefit of the Thermac system for better cold temperature warmup.
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Old Mar 24, 2003 | 12:53 AM
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Default Re: 1980 L48 Need REAL advice (BSeery)

Interesting post BSeery... I have an 79 L48, and I was wondering if I should replace the dual snorkel air cleaner and get rid of those plastic ducts, on my car the ducts look kinda loose, small and useless... (to me <--newb!)

I was thinking that perhaps a new air cleaner with a K&N filter, might make for a nicer look and for more air flow...

Do you think some kind of a custom baffle/barrier would serve the same purpose sealing the gap and pushing the air flow through the rad ?

Or should I just fix/tighten up the ductwork and keep the dual snorkle configuration... (the person before me didn't take great care of the car)

I guess my question is, could the same HP/Cooling objectives be achieved
in another simple configuration? Is the dual snorkle truly more effective than an open sided filter? I am a regular driver, not a racer.

Thanks in advance...
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Old Mar 24, 2003 | 04:37 PM
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Default Re: 1980 L48 Need REAL advice (Northwest79)

Dual snorkle is very good. Open element is not as good due to the reasons described. All kidding aside GM engineers knew what they were doing -- why do you think C5s have a similar system?

A previous owner of my Vette kept the stock system but replaced the air cleaner lid with a chrome one and added a authentic-looking sticker that says "350 Turbo Fire" -- looks neat.

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