Notices
C5 General General C5 Corvette and C5 Z06 Discussion not covered in Tech

[Z06] Nitrous Danger

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Sep 19, 2005 | 09:23 AM
  #1  
hoogbest's Avatar
hoogbest
Thread Starter
Racer
 
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 341
Likes: 0
Default Nitrous Danger

From what I have read the fastest, cheapest, and least "messy" way to get perhaps 500+ HP out of my '03 Z is Nitrous BUT I keep reading about the risk of fire WHY! Could really use THAT info. Thanks in advance for you help.
Reply
Old Sep 19, 2005 | 09:30 AM
  #2  
EVIL_C5's Avatar
EVIL_C5
Uber Waxer
Supporting Gold
15 Year Member
 
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 8,651
Likes: 5
From: Hanover MD
Cruise-In 8-9-10-11 Veteran
CI 9, 10 & 11 Car Show Winner
St. Jude Donor '08-'10
Default

nitrous is like anything else, if you use common sense and pay attention your fine.

explosions are caused from fuel pooling in the intake. nitrous itself is not flamable.

if you run a rpm activated window switch, fuel pressure safety switch, throttle activation, and pressure release with blowdown tube you will be fine even in the event something happens.

never spray under 3000 rpm's and you wont have to worry about fuel pooling in the intake. dont run more than recommended bottle pressure. and if you start spinning on the nitrous, let out, the force of the nitrous coming in and out under a load is enough to break pistons....i know 1st hand.
Reply
Old Sep 19, 2005 | 10:07 AM
  #3  
X-ZZ4's Avatar
X-ZZ4
Team Owner
 
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 62,195
Likes: 28
Cruise-In II Veteran
St. Jude Donor '03-'04-'05-'06-'07-'08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15-'16-'17-'18-'19
Default

If you're talking 500hp at the motor use a dry kit like the NOS 5177. There is pretty much 0 chance of fire with a dry kit. And set to 100 or 125 hp, it is extremely safe, simple, and effective.
Reply
Old Sep 19, 2005 | 11:33 AM
  #4  
hoogbest's Avatar
hoogbest
Thread Starter
Racer
 
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 341
Likes: 0
Default Thanks Guys!

I appreciate your info. I may or may not do this but I have not street raced a new '06 yet and may not! If I do and end up getting my butt beat a couple of times then the pride of my '03 is at stake and I'll probably add nitrous just for that rare occasion when I need to dust a C6. Can I install the nitrous and just leave it there until needed?
Reply
Old Sep 19, 2005 | 03:37 PM
  #5  
t56gen3's Avatar
t56gen3
Burning Brakes
 
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 884
Likes: 1
From: McKinney TX
Default

Yep, I have mine for when I want to play. A bottle lasts me quite a while. Get all the safety devices, and change your plugs and you'll be fine. The LS6 loves the bottle!!
Reply
Old Sep 21, 2005 | 12:45 AM
  #6  
3 Z06ZR1's Avatar
3 Z06ZR1
Team Owner
 
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 20,933
Likes: 905
From: salem OR
Default

A vender said to get a wet kit, To be safe, Instead of the dry.
What do you think of that?
Reply
Old Sep 21, 2005 | 01:52 AM
  #7  
Chris.Shea's Avatar
Chris.Shea
Drifting
 
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 1,837
Likes: 0
From: . Kona, HI. Orem, UT. PSL, FL
Default

Reply
Old Sep 21, 2005 | 09:30 AM
  #8  
t56gen3's Avatar
t56gen3
Burning Brakes
 
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 884
Likes: 1
From: McKinney TX
Default

Originally Posted by Rock'en Silver 02
A vender said to get a wet kit, To be safe, Instead of the dry.
What do you think of that?
What's that saying--"opinions are like a--holes"??

Everyone has their own theory here. A wet ket is more tunable and will make more power. It is also more complicated to install, but it can be tuned more efficiently. You must have a window switch to be safe to prevent puddling.

A dry kit is simpler and will make slightly less power, but won't have the puddling problem. A window switch wouldn't be necessary per say, but I'd always recommend one. With this setup you are relying on the car's PCM to compensate for fuel. With the wet kit you can jet the fuel yourself.

I have friends that run both without issues. If you only want a smaller shot (say 100 or less) I'd probably run a dry shot before the MAF, and have it tuned on the dyno. If you are looking for more consistent power and tunable setup and 100+ shot, then go wet.
Reply
Corvette Stories

The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts

story-0

10 Ugly Corvettes That We Still Kinda Love

 Joe Kucinski
story-1

Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer

 Brett Foote
story-2

10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)

 Michael S. Palmer
story-3

8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems

 Pouria Savadkouei
story-4

10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years

 Joe Kucinski
story-5

How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972

 Joe Kucinski
story-6

Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!

 Michael S. Palmer
story-7

Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!

 Joe Kucinski
story-8

150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter

 Joe Kucinski
story-9

8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time

 Verdad Gallardo
Old Sep 21, 2005 | 10:57 AM
  #9  
Michrider's Avatar
Michrider
Safety Car
10 Year Member
 
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 3,563
Likes: 2
From: Dallas Tx
Default

Dry kits totally safe? Maybe less risk of fire, but with N20 its really a pressure explosion that is your worst case. Ask this guy how safe he feels nitrous is. Peeled his car and garage open like a grape.
http://www.enhancedhealth.com/nitrousexpress.htm

I think if you stay away from bottle heaters, it's quite safe.
Reply
Old Sep 21, 2005 | 11:14 AM
  #10  
t56gen3's Avatar
t56gen3
Burning Brakes
 
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 884
Likes: 1
From: McKinney TX
Default

Originally Posted by Michrider
Dry kits totally safe? Maybe less risk of fire, but with N20 its really a pressure explosion that is your worst case. Ask this guy how safe he feels nitrous is. Peeled his car and garage open like a grape.
http://www.enhancedhealth.com/nitrousexpress.htm

I think if you stay away from bottle heaters, it's quite safe.
I think a heater is absolutely necessary to get the best consistent performance out of a nitrous system. That being said, you need to wire it per their recommendations to prevent human error causing explosions. The NX heaters are pressure regulated (not sure about others.) When the pressure gets to 1100 psi, they shut off (assuming the sensor is wired properly!) With a dry kit less pressure only really means less power, because the car's PCM dynamically adjusts air/fuel ratios on the fly. With a wet kit, your fuel pressure and volume is relatively consistent, but with varying bottle pressures your N2O would be dynamic. Since recommended pressure is 1050 or so you'd want to tune at that pressure. Anything less would cause it to be rich and degrade performance. Best practice is to pay attention to what you are doing when doing anything with nitrous.
Reply
Old Sep 21, 2005 | 12:20 PM
  #11  
dragon84's Avatar
dragon84
Drifting
25 Year Member
Conversation Starter
All Eyes On Me
Liked
 
Joined: Sep 1999
Posts: 1,574
Likes: 2
From: Orlando FL
Default

According to How To Install and Use Nitrous Oxide by Joe Pettitt, ISBN 1-884089-22-4:

"A fuel-injected dry manifold system uses a spray nozzle to deliver nitrous oxide only to the intake. The additional fuel is supplied by increasing fuel pressure when the nitrous system is activated. It's called a dry manifold system because there isn't any fuel present in the intake manifold. A dry manifold is safer than a wet manifold because nitrous by itself is not explosive. It's when you mix nitrous with fuel in the manifold that you get spectacular manifold and hood removals."

I'm just quoting here. I'm still sorting out all the different options. I got this book to learn about the different nitrous set ups.
Reply
Old Sep 21, 2005 | 02:37 PM
  #12  
t56gen3's Avatar
t56gen3
Burning Brakes
 
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 884
Likes: 1
From: McKinney TX
Default

Originally Posted by dragon84
According to How To Install and Use Nitrous Oxide by Joe Pettitt, ISBN 1-884089-22-4:

"A fuel-injected dry manifold system uses a spray nozzle to deliver nitrous oxide only to the intake. The additional fuel is supplied by increasing fuel pressure when the nitrous system is activated. It's called a dry manifold system because there isn't any fuel present in the intake manifold. A dry manifold is safer than a wet manifold because nitrous by itself is not explosive. It's when you mix nitrous with fuel in the manifold that you get spectacular manifold and hood removals."

I'm just quoting here. I'm still sorting out all the different options. I got this book to learn about the different nitrous set ups.
While this applies to most cars, especially up until the last few years, it's somewhat dated. Most new cars are returnless fuel systems, which doesn't give you the ability to manipulate the fuel pressure regulator. My 2004 (and I'm betting the others are the same) don't work this way. But if you spray before the MAF on these cars the PCM will compensate with fuel, there is just a split second of time between the nitrous kicking in and the fuel being added, causing you to go lean for a brief moment. If your car is rich enough as it sits this really isn't an issue. If you car runs leaner, then this could be dangerous. This is why smaller dry shots are safer.

Wet kits can puddle, that is very much a fact. That is why anyone using one should have a window switch. At WOT at 3000 RPMs there is more than enough vacuum to prevent puddling.
Reply
Old Sep 23, 2005 | 11:08 PM
  #13  
JasonblkZ06's Avatar
JasonblkZ06
Instructor
 
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 139
Likes: 0
From: DFW TX
Default

Originally Posted by Michrider
Dry kits totally safe? Maybe less risk of fire, but with N20 its really a pressure explosion that is your worst case. Ask this guy how safe he feels nitrous is. Peeled his car and garage open like a grape.
http://www.enhancedhealth.com/nitrousexpress.htm

I think if you stay away from bottle heaters, it's quite safe.
That guy is an idiot, he bypassed and dissabled some common sense safety things. THis has been floating around for ever. Left his warmer hooked up with no auto shut off and disabled the valve or something like that.
Reply

Get notified of new replies

To Nitrous Danger





All times are GMT -4. The time now is 08:59 AM.

story-0
10 Ugly Corvettes That We Still Kinda Love

Slideshow: 10 ugly Corvettes that we still kinda love.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-06-03 10:34:17


VIEW MORE
story-1
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer

A lot of money has changed hands at the online auction house over the years.

By Brett Foote | 2026-06-03 10:21:50


VIEW MORE
story-2
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)

Slideshow: 10 great gifts Corvette enthusiasts actually want for Father's Day!

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-06-03 15:43:40


VIEW MORE
story-3
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems

Slideshow: These are the quirks, annoyances, and oddly lovable problems that every Corvette owner eventually learns to live with.

By Pouria Savadkouei | 2026-05-28 09:31:39


VIEW MORE
story-4
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years

Slideshow: 10 reasons why the C6 Z06 is still a performance benchmark after 20 years.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-27 17:20:09


VIEW MORE
story-5
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972

Slideshow: How much horsepower every Corvette engine lost in 1972.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-27 16:54:53


VIEW MORE
story-6
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!

Slideshow: How to Protect A Convertible Top: 10 DOs & DON'Ts

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-04-03 00:00:00


VIEW MORE
story-7
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!

Slideshow: The 10 most explosive Corvettes ever built based on power-to-weight ratio.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-20 07:23:03


VIEW MORE
story-8
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter

Slideshow: From C1 to C8 we compare every Corvette generation by the numbers.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-12 16:54:12


VIEW MORE
story-9
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time

Slideshow: Some Corvette pace cars became collectible legends, while others perfectly captured the look and attitude of their era.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-05-11 09:50:51


VIEW MORE