Hey folks, looking for a little education on intake manifold and throttle body porting. My 01 ZO6 currently has the OEM LS6 intake and throttle body. Interested in porting them for a bit of power, and am curious which route to take. I've contacted a local place with a flow bench to get an estimate from them.

Would it be better to order an aftermarket intake and throttle body and run those as is, port those, or continue with the idea of porting the originals? Why?

Here is my setup:
01 ZO6
AES Forged LS6 346ci
AA Vortech V3 Si (3.4pulley @12psi)
Speed Inc SI2 Blower Cam
LG Pro 1 3/4 Longtubes
No Cats
BB Bullet Exhaust
SD Tuned (638rwhp/550rwtq)
Alky Control Meth Injection (soon...)

Thanks!

 

With forced induction a ported manifold is way more trouble than it's worth. Porting the throttle body, IMO, is a waste of time whether you are NA or FI; just not enough to gain by doing so.

A FAST manifold will net you more power but I've heard stories of them coming apart under boost. I have no first hand experience with them that is just what I've heard.

 

Definitely the kind of info I was looking for. I don't hear many people talking about it in the FI world, so I'm curious if it's even a worthwhile thing to do. What kind of problems are people having with ported OEM intake manifolds?

 

I asked some of the top FI tuners if I should port my intake/TB and they all told me it was a waste of time and money since, once the working volume is up to pressure, subtle flow differences are not significant. They advised me to spend my dollars elsewhere.

 

I have heard similar things from various people "in the know". I'm still going to have a FAST 102 ported to the fullest before installing one on my car. I'm going to have the stock throttle body ported instead of going with an aftermarket 102 because I've heard of problems in high boost, high horsepower applications with flutter. Not sure if that's a real problem or not but there does seem to be some consensus on the aftermarket flutter potential problem. We've stepped up to an F1-A supercharger for this season but even that supercharger is going to really struggle to provide the performance we're looking for and I'm sure a fully ported manifold and throttle body are going to be necessary to achieve said goals. 5.30's @ 130: Here we come.

 

smokinstorm, I should qualify my statement by saying that the advice I got applies to the standard FI upgrades typical of street and weekend track machines that the tuners I talked to install systems on. At your level, optimizing performance means pulling in every CFM possible.

 

Since I've got the LS3 style top end, it seems as though porting mine is the least effective out of any of them. Just my luck, right? Going fully stupid on the porting will hopefully be worth 8-10 horsepower over a non ported FAST 102 as I plan on having the stock throttle body ported as well. This is an extreme example as this is going to be going on a built, big cammed, 370cfm head flow 408 with an F1-A Procharger spinning it right at, or just beyond maximum impeller speed. I've got a number in my head of 1100 RWHP I'd like to try to hit and it's going to take every trick in the book to help that little F1-A get there. We pulled 809 RWHP on this car out of a P1SC-1 so we've got a little history or making more power than is normal with a given supercharger. Just need a couple thousand extra dollars right now. Sponsors? Sponsors? Bueller? Bueller? Bue.....

 

I'd love to sponsor a build like that but I'm still actively pouring money into my less ambitious version.

Best of luck hitting your goal.

 

Personally wouldn't run a Fast on that build but that's me.
I can't speak to numbers increases as I never ran my current setup any other way, but I run a ported stock throttle body (LS2). Also run a stock LS2 intake, which I wouldn't call ported but I did smooth out all the uneven flashing in the runners. Easy to do yourself.
These things may play a part in my car dynoing higher, or at the high end, of similar builds. Can't say for sure.

 

I started out with a FAST way back in the day and really liked what I got out of it. It was a MAMO ported FAST 90/90mm throttle body on a stock LS1 motor in a 2000 Camaro. Jeff Creech of Carolina Auto Masters fame did the install and tune for me. The general consensus was that the intake wouldn't do anything for me as the added airflow was just not needed on a stock motor. Well, the car dyno'd at 308 to the tires on the dyno at Jeff's shop with the LS6 intake and 333 after with the FAST 90/90. I've been a big fan of them ever since. Also, to me anyhow, they're aesthetically pleasing. In speaking with Tony Mamo again and also with another reputable intake manifold porting business, both seem to think a fully ported FAST 102 for the LS3 and throttle body will be worth 20-25 horsepower over the unported LS3 intake on the car now. Is it cost effective? Hell, no. Switching to an F1-X or even an F1-R and still using the same brackets I already have will be worth a lot more power than switching intakes at roughly the same cost to me when referring to the F1-R anyhow. But getting restrictions out of the engine, increasing efficiency and making the same power at one or so PSI less boost has always been what I shoot for. That's all this intake is really going to do in my application. Like I mentioned, this current F1-A is going to need all the help it can get so this intake is going to be a part of the build. I'll post up before/after dyno numbers when it gets put on.

 

The previous experience you had with a Fast is a different animal. Why spend that kind of money for something that has a chance of failing under high boost. There are many example of it happening. I would agree 100% with it, and with porting, on a N/A build.
Anyways, curious to see the results. Just keep in mind a stock manifold is more than capable of your goals.

 

i wouldn't dick with the fast either. if your going to be throwing coin at an intake get a good quality sheet metal like RCI, Wilson, Shaun, ect. Here is my LS2 after it saw 30 psi;

 

Yikes... no backfire or anything ??

Most of us wont see 30lbs.... I guess you found the limit..

 

no backfire. DA was -1100 and i guess my ysi-b liked it a little too much. i was talking to a few shops that were at the quick 30 and they said they usually see them go at 25 psi.

 

how are you going to bolt an LS1 throttle body onto an LS3 FAST 102?

 

Thank you for letting me know about this. I absolutely want to keep the intake manifold under the hood I have without having to cut a hole, hence my desire for the fast vs a tunnel ram style. I'm planning on making 23-24 pounds of boost and considered the FAST safe at that level. Can you give me some more details on your combo that failed? Engine size? FI style and RPM you were turning the motor when this happened? This has given me a bit of concern and I want to follow up on this before throwing 2 grand at something that's actually going to do more harm than good in the long run. I just like the way the black FAST 102 LSXR intake looks. Forgive me for considering something so foolish in a build like mine.

 

If that's for me, Pete, I've got an LS3 throttle body.

 

The FAST 102 is rated and pressure tested to over 100 PSI....I have never seen one burst into pieces from boost.....ever....and I have seen and ported more of these than anyone else on the planet....I pioneered the process in 2004 or so and still sell and port a bunch of these to this day

The sheet metal stuff on a street car....not so good....you kill the TQ in the middle and unless your planning to spin the engine to somewhere in the vicinity of 8K its the wrong manifold.....just looks cool and looks "racy" cause that's what it is (a piece better designed for a true high RPM race engine).

A properly ported FAST will destroy it in average power at anything up to 7000 RPM which is the most RPM (or should I say the typical RPM) most of the folks reading this are concerned with.

Hope this helps clarify a few things for some of you....I have seen a few other posts about a FAST coming apart under boosted conditions and its all false/bad information that permeates the Internet....these intakes are extremely rugged design....one piece base with independent runners that are O-ringed sealed and bolted in place. I don't work for FAST....I don't get money to help promote their products. My allegiance is to my customers and helping them with the best parts that make the most power....its hard to beat the FAST 102 in a cathedral port application....the MSD is close but its better suited to higher RPM and doesnt beat the FAST till 6500 or higher giving up a decent amount of under the curve power. For some applications that might still work OK but the FAST 102 properly ported and modified is still the gold standard for most cathedral applications.



Regards,
Tony

 

Same hold true for LS 3 square port style, Tony? Best Mamo ported intake up to around 7000 (6800 for me)? That's my application.

 

Yes...if your turning it higher (7600 ish) you could consider the medium length runner LS3 option but up to 7K (or even 7200) the standard length runner is the best choice

Have me port the intake if you want to get the most from it with either runner design

-Tony