Cold Air Intake
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Joined: Dec 2020
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From: Stuart Florida
Cold Air Intake
Newbie here....I have lots of questions here is my first.
I just bought a C6 Z06 2006. It's all stock un-touch. Looking to do a few things to it. One is a cold air intake....I know some say its unnecessary that's ok.... I looking to put in MAGNUM FORCE STAGE -2 COLD AIR INTAKE SYSTEM. What I would like to know if I will be required to put the car on a dyno to be tuned with this intake. If that is the case I would like your input as to what intake would not require a tune.
I just bought a C6 Z06 2006. It's all stock un-touch. Looking to do a few things to it. One is a cold air intake....I know some say its unnecessary that's ok.... I looking to put in MAGNUM FORCE STAGE -2 COLD AIR INTAKE SYSTEM. What I would like to know if I will be required to put the car on a dyno to be tuned with this intake. If that is the case I would like your input as to what intake would not require a tune.
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I know that the Halltech MF103 system does not need a tune & is dyno proven to add a few hp
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In your area there is local Corvette Club, you might want to join them, and ask them questions, and see there car to get idea's and have fun cruisin with them and do social gathering.
Part of the fun of owning a Corvette.
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First off, a CAI will be one that puts the intake to the filter system outside the engine bay so it drawing in colder air that what is in the engine bay.
The reason for this, the hotter the air that the intake is pulling into the air system, the more timing is being pulled, and you lose HP.
Attachment 48334173
So seeing the tables, and the fact that the stock OEM air cleaner will out flow the needs of the engine, if the air going into the intake (past the MAF sensor since it has the air intake sensor in it), your going to lose HP. So no, a CAI is not going to gain you any HP via it flowing better (since the stock air filter already outflows the motors needs), but if you put worst case of it pulling in say 158* air (not uncommon for at a stop light with the engine bay just heat soaking since the car is not moving to do an air transfer through the engine bay, then you could loose up the 12 degrees of timing, and what the claims on most air intakes are all about.
As for needing a tune for a CAI, all depends, and it due to if the systems flow past the MAF is not clean/linners, and and may need a tune to just clean up the MAF tables for what the intake is pulling/verse what the MAF is reading for air flow past it.
Simply put, the best CAI intake for the C6 in regards to pulling outside air, is the Vararom intake system, since it puts the entry to the system out in the front noise of the car. So while sitting at the light right after burn out, it's dawning in the cooler air from the nose of the car, not the hotter air from the air intake instead. Hence both stock and that system will be pulling in about the same temp air by the end of the run for the same amount of power, but since the heat of the air at launch will be hotter from the engine bay inital heat soak with the hot soak, you will be leaving the line with more timing pull isntead. As for the huge con to the vararam air intake system, it is drawing it outside air from low in the nose of the fender, and more than a few motors running it have been destroyed when the driver drove through deep enough water to suck water into the intake system enough to hydrolock the motors. Hence water/fluid can not compress in the cylinders, and with enough water/fluid in the cylinders, it will bend the connecting rods.
Simply put, the system you are looking at does not draw it's air from outside the engine bay, so it not a CAI to start with. Next, stock air filter system already outdraws the stock motors needed air supply, so you not going to pick up any power since it can draw more air instead. Lastly, will you need a tune, maybe, and that just depends if the reading from the Maf is still liner as the stock system, or begin disturbed enough to be corrected in the tune isntead. Bluntly put, if you want to pick up power (hence not loose it from drawing in hotter engine bay air to cause timing retard), there is a tweak to slightly open the lower shroud so the stock filter can draw more cooler air in the location it sits, and the needed parts are only a few dollars to do such. As long as your don't pop it open to wide, will not have problems such as surging.
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-cold-air.html
______________________________________
Now since we are on the subject of the LS7, the huge problem with the motor in the C6, is the lack of room under the hood for the needed intake manifold to get the engine to breath correctly through the LS7 intake manifold to its redline of 7K. Hence air filter system is not the problem, but the restriction to the motor at the intake manifold that causes the HP curve to go dam near flat at 5.8K, and by 6.4K, the HP is dropping on the way to 7K.
Note: you can not throw a lot of boost at the LS7 since it cylinder liners are paper thin between the cylinders and too much boost will blow out the cylinder liners at these thin areas.
You can re-cam, long tube header, and use just enough boost to get the engine to breath correctly through the stock intake manifold to pull hard all the way to 7K instead (over 700hp on the conservation side).
The downside to boosting this way, is it will also cause the Torque to go max liners off idle, and if you through a LS9 with TVS2300 roasts the tires fast enough, the LS7 with it displacement and boost, will have another 200lb of torque more over the LS9 to really burn the tires off the rims off idle instead.
Bottom line, before you start moding the car/motor, do some HPDE events, and see if it really needs more HP , needs tweaks on the suspension, or just enough time in the car to learn how to use what is has to the fullest to begin with. In 95% of Z06 owners, its the later is what is needed, and a single not to mod on the car to begin with. (hence GM got the Z06 right from the start for road course work). As for the other 5% that do have the needed driving talent to keep the car on the edge on a road course track, GM has them covered in stock form with the Z07 instead.
________________________________________ ___
On the other hand, if you just want to pimp the car and waste money while doing it, then throw what every you want on the car, since its your money that is being wasted with no gains.
The reason for this, the hotter the air that the intake is pulling into the air system, the more timing is being pulled, and you lose HP.
Attachment 48334173
So seeing the tables, and the fact that the stock OEM air cleaner will out flow the needs of the engine, if the air going into the intake (past the MAF sensor since it has the air intake sensor in it), your going to lose HP. So no, a CAI is not going to gain you any HP via it flowing better (since the stock air filter already outflows the motors needs), but if you put worst case of it pulling in say 158* air (not uncommon for at a stop light with the engine bay just heat soaking since the car is not moving to do an air transfer through the engine bay, then you could loose up the 12 degrees of timing, and what the claims on most air intakes are all about.
As for needing a tune for a CAI, all depends, and it due to if the systems flow past the MAF is not clean/linners, and and may need a tune to just clean up the MAF tables for what the intake is pulling/verse what the MAF is reading for air flow past it.
Simply put, the best CAI intake for the C6 in regards to pulling outside air, is the Vararom intake system, since it puts the entry to the system out in the front noise of the car. So while sitting at the light right after burn out, it's dawning in the cooler air from the nose of the car, not the hotter air from the air intake instead. Hence both stock and that system will be pulling in about the same temp air by the end of the run for the same amount of power, but since the heat of the air at launch will be hotter from the engine bay inital heat soak with the hot soak, you will be leaving the line with more timing pull isntead. As for the huge con to the vararam air intake system, it is drawing it outside air from low in the nose of the fender, and more than a few motors running it have been destroyed when the driver drove through deep enough water to suck water into the intake system enough to hydrolock the motors. Hence water/fluid can not compress in the cylinders, and with enough water/fluid in the cylinders, it will bend the connecting rods.
Simply put, the system you are looking at does not draw it's air from outside the engine bay, so it not a CAI to start with. Next, stock air filter system already outdraws the stock motors needed air supply, so you not going to pick up any power since it can draw more air instead. Lastly, will you need a tune, maybe, and that just depends if the reading from the Maf is still liner as the stock system, or begin disturbed enough to be corrected in the tune isntead. Bluntly put, if you want to pick up power (hence not loose it from drawing in hotter engine bay air to cause timing retard), there is a tweak to slightly open the lower shroud so the stock filter can draw more cooler air in the location it sits, and the needed parts are only a few dollars to do such. As long as your don't pop it open to wide, will not have problems such as surging.
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-cold-air.html
______________________________________
Now since we are on the subject of the LS7, the huge problem with the motor in the C6, is the lack of room under the hood for the needed intake manifold to get the engine to breath correctly through the LS7 intake manifold to its redline of 7K. Hence air filter system is not the problem, but the restriction to the motor at the intake manifold that causes the HP curve to go dam near flat at 5.8K, and by 6.4K, the HP is dropping on the way to 7K.
Note: you can not throw a lot of boost at the LS7 since it cylinder liners are paper thin between the cylinders and too much boost will blow out the cylinder liners at these thin areas.
You can re-cam, long tube header, and use just enough boost to get the engine to breath correctly through the stock intake manifold to pull hard all the way to 7K instead (over 700hp on the conservation side).
The downside to boosting this way, is it will also cause the Torque to go max liners off idle, and if you through a LS9 with TVS2300 roasts the tires fast enough, the LS7 with it displacement and boost, will have another 200lb of torque more over the LS9 to really burn the tires off the rims off idle instead.
Bottom line, before you start moding the car/motor, do some HPDE events, and see if it really needs more HP , needs tweaks on the suspension, or just enough time in the car to learn how to use what is has to the fullest to begin with. In 95% of Z06 owners, its the later is what is needed, and a single not to mod on the car to begin with. (hence GM got the Z06 right from the start for road course work). As for the other 5% that do have the needed driving talent to keep the car on the edge on a road course track, GM has them covered in stock form with the Z07 instead.
________________________________________ ___
On the other hand, if you just want to pimp the car and waste money while doing it, then throw what every you want on the car, since its your money that is being wasted with no gains.
Last edited by Dano523; Nov 26, 2021 at 05:39 PM.
Instructor
Joined: Aug 2021
Posts: 215
Likes: 74
From: Saskatchewan, Chinada
Great advice right here! 👍
First off, a CAI will be one that puts the intake to the filter system outside the engine bay so it drawing in colder air that what is in the engine bay.
The reason for this, the hotter the air that the intake is pulling into the air system, the more timing is being pulled, and you lose HP.
So seeing the tables, and the fact that the stock OEM air cleaner will out flow the needs of the engine, if the air going into the intake (past the MAF sensor since it has the air intake sensor in it), your going to lose HP. So no, a CAI is not going to gain you any HP via it flowing better (since the stock air filter already outflows the motors needs), but if you put worst case of it pulling in say 158* air (not uncommon for at a stop light with the engine bay just heat soaking since the car is not moving to do an air transfer through the engine bay, then you could loose up the 12 degrees of timing, and what the claims on most air intakes are all about.
As for needing a tune for a CAI, all depends, and it due to if the systems flow past the MAF is not clean/linners, and and may need a tune to just clean up the MAF tables for what the intake is pulling/verse what the MAF is reading for air flow past it.
Simply put, the best CAI intake for the C6 in regards to pulling outside air, is the Vararom intake system, since it puts the entry to the system out in the front noise of the car. So while sitting at the light right after burn out, it's dawning in the cooler air from the nose of the car, not the hotter air from the air intake instead. Hence both stock and that system will be pulling in about the same temp air by the end of the run for the same amount of power, but since the heat of the air at launch will be hotter from the engine bay inital heat soak with the hot soak, you will be leaving the line with more timing pull isntead. As for the huge con to the vararam air intake system, it is drawing it outside air from low in the nose of the fender, and more than a few motors running it have been destroyed when the driver drove through deep enough water to suck water into the intake system enough to hydrolock the motors. Hence water/fluid can not compress in the cylinders, and with enough water/fluid in the cylinders, it will bend the connecting rods.
Simply put, the system you are looking at does not draw it's air from outside the engine bay, so it not a CAI to start with. Next, stock air filter system already outdraws the stock motors needed air supply, so you not going to pick up any power since it can draw more air instead. Lastly, will you need a tune, maybe, and that just depends if the reading from the Maf is still liner as the stock system, or begin disturbed enough to be corrected in the tune isntead. Bluntly put, if you want to pick up power (hence not loose it from drawing in hotter engine bay air to cause timing retard), there is a tweak to slightly open the lower shroud so the stock filter can draw more cooler air in the location it sits, and the needed parts are only a few dollars to do such. As long as your don't pop it open to wide, will not have problems such as surging.
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-cold-air.html
______________________________________
Now since we are on the subject of the LS7, the huge problem with the motor in the C6, is the lack of room under the hood for the needed intake manifold to get the engine to breath correctly through the LS7 intake manifold to its redline of 7K. Hence air filter system is not the problem, but the restriction to the motor at the intake manifold that causes the HP curve to go dam near flat at 5.8K, and by 6.4K, the HP is dropping on the way to 7K.
Note: you can not throw a lot of boost at the LS7 since it cylinder liners are paper thin between the cylinders and too much boost will blow out the cylinder liners at these thin areas.
You can re-cam, long tube header, and use just enough boost to get the engine to break correctly through the stock intake manifold to pull hard all the way to 7K instead (over 700hp on the conservation side).
The downside to boosting this way, is it will also cause the Torque to go max liners off idle, and if you through a LS9 with TVS2300 roasts the tires fast enough, the LS7 with it displacement and boost, will have another 200lb of torque more over the LS9 to really burn the tires off the rims off idle instead.
Bottom line, before you start moding the car/motor, do some HPDE events, and see if it really needs more HP , needs tweaks on the suspension, or just enough time in the car to learn how to use what is has to the fullest to begin with. In 95% of Z06 owners, its the later is what is needed, and a single not to mod on the car to begin with. (hence GM got the Z06 right from the start for road course work). As for the other 5% that do have the needed driving talent to keep the car on the edge on a road course track, GM has them covered in stock form with the Z07 instead.
________________________________________ ___
On the other hand, if you just want to pimp the car and waste money while doing it, then throw what every you want on the car, since its your money that is being wasted with no gains.
The reason for this, the hotter the air that the intake is pulling into the air system, the more timing is being pulled, and you lose HP.
So seeing the tables, and the fact that the stock OEM air cleaner will out flow the needs of the engine, if the air going into the intake (past the MAF sensor since it has the air intake sensor in it), your going to lose HP. So no, a CAI is not going to gain you any HP via it flowing better (since the stock air filter already outflows the motors needs), but if you put worst case of it pulling in say 158* air (not uncommon for at a stop light with the engine bay just heat soaking since the car is not moving to do an air transfer through the engine bay, then you could loose up the 12 degrees of timing, and what the claims on most air intakes are all about.
As for needing a tune for a CAI, all depends, and it due to if the systems flow past the MAF is not clean/linners, and and may need a tune to just clean up the MAF tables for what the intake is pulling/verse what the MAF is reading for air flow past it.
Simply put, the best CAI intake for the C6 in regards to pulling outside air, is the Vararom intake system, since it puts the entry to the system out in the front noise of the car. So while sitting at the light right after burn out, it's dawning in the cooler air from the nose of the car, not the hotter air from the air intake instead. Hence both stock and that system will be pulling in about the same temp air by the end of the run for the same amount of power, but since the heat of the air at launch will be hotter from the engine bay inital heat soak with the hot soak, you will be leaving the line with more timing pull isntead. As for the huge con to the vararam air intake system, it is drawing it outside air from low in the nose of the fender, and more than a few motors running it have been destroyed when the driver drove through deep enough water to suck water into the intake system enough to hydrolock the motors. Hence water/fluid can not compress in the cylinders, and with enough water/fluid in the cylinders, it will bend the connecting rods.
Simply put, the system you are looking at does not draw it's air from outside the engine bay, so it not a CAI to start with. Next, stock air filter system already outdraws the stock motors needed air supply, so you not going to pick up any power since it can draw more air instead. Lastly, will you need a tune, maybe, and that just depends if the reading from the Maf is still liner as the stock system, or begin disturbed enough to be corrected in the tune isntead. Bluntly put, if you want to pick up power (hence not loose it from drawing in hotter engine bay air to cause timing retard), there is a tweak to slightly open the lower shroud so the stock filter can draw more cooler air in the location it sits, and the needed parts are only a few dollars to do such. As long as your don't pop it open to wide, will not have problems such as surging.
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-cold-air.html
______________________________________
Now since we are on the subject of the LS7, the huge problem with the motor in the C6, is the lack of room under the hood for the needed intake manifold to get the engine to breath correctly through the LS7 intake manifold to its redline of 7K. Hence air filter system is not the problem, but the restriction to the motor at the intake manifold that causes the HP curve to go dam near flat at 5.8K, and by 6.4K, the HP is dropping on the way to 7K.
Note: you can not throw a lot of boost at the LS7 since it cylinder liners are paper thin between the cylinders and too much boost will blow out the cylinder liners at these thin areas.
You can re-cam, long tube header, and use just enough boost to get the engine to break correctly through the stock intake manifold to pull hard all the way to 7K instead (over 700hp on the conservation side).
The downside to boosting this way, is it will also cause the Torque to go max liners off idle, and if you through a LS9 with TVS2300 roasts the tires fast enough, the LS7 with it displacement and boost, will have another 200lb of torque more over the LS9 to really burn the tires off the rims off idle instead.
Bottom line, before you start moding the car/motor, do some HPDE events, and see if it really needs more HP , needs tweaks on the suspension, or just enough time in the car to learn how to use what is has to the fullest to begin with. In 95% of Z06 owners, its the later is what is needed, and a single not to mod on the car to begin with. (hence GM got the Z06 right from the start for road course work). As for the other 5% that do have the needed driving talent to keep the car on the edge on a road course track, GM has them covered in stock form with the Z07 instead.
________________________________________ ___
On the other hand, if you just want to pimp the car and waste money while doing it, then throw what every you want on the car, since its your money that is being wasted with no gains.
