Blackwing Air Box?
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 223
Likes: 0
From: Casper WY
Blackwing Air Box?
I live in Wyoming. The closest real corvette shop I have found is South of Denver Co. about 5hrs away Called Rocky Mountain Corvette. I am going there to get some work done ie: headers, cai, tune etc. next month. They carry the Blackwing airbox. Is anyone familiar with that air box? How does it perform? I have not heard anything about it on here so I was hoping for some input on it. Thanks.....Craig
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 2,090
Likes: 51
From: Georgetown TX
Much written in this forum on the subject. It will give you many hrs of reading if you do a search. I know, because I spent weeks reading it and doing the research. The consensus on this forum is that you basically have 3 choices: Vararam, Callaway or LPE. These are top performers and true cold air intakes. Most believe the Vararam has the slight edge in performance, but some guys fear water ingestion because of the low scoop design. Callaway and LPE are very close in performance and some prefer their appearance under the hood. I am told that the Callaway filters are a little easier to change. Good luck w/ this one!
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 1,533
Likes: 0
From: az
if you are going to go with a non bottom breather, k & N is the cheapest one. blackwing, halltech and K & n are all the same. just make sure you open up the area right next to the front grill for more outside / cooler air for your new air filter.
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 223
Likes: 0
From: Casper WY
I live in Casper. I have looked and looked and it seems that Rocky Mountain Corvette is the only true Corvette only performance shop i've found? I have talked to Alex there a few times and he was most helpful. I am going to try and go there the middle of next month and have the mods done that I decide to do. I hope for the best. Really don't trust anyone here to do it? They have a pretty informative website as well with different performance packages etc. to choose from. Check it out or check back with me after the middle of next month and I will let you know how it went......Craig
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 223
Likes: 0
From: Casper WY
So it sounds like the bottom breathers are the best. Must be for the ram air effect while speed increases. Was somewhat concerned about the comments on the fit and finish of the vararam? Was leaning towards and lpe. I imagine they are all pretty close as you said but every bit helps so maybe I will have to recheck out the vararam and do some more research on build quality etc. Thanks for the info....Craig
Le Mans Master
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 5,762
Likes: 4
From: Chandler Arizona
So it sounds like the bottom breathers are the best. Must be for the ram air effect while speed increases. Was somewhat concerned about the comments on the fit and finish of the vararam? Was leaning towards and lpe. I imagine they are all pretty close as you said but every bit helps so maybe I will have to recheck out the vararam and do some more research on build quality etc. Thanks for the info....Craig
Tech Contributor
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 14,950
Likes: 264
From: St. Louis, MO
St. Jude Donor '08
One think about my Vararam I noticed when I do IAT scanning. In the staging lanes I was at 93 deg. vs. 84 ambient. My buddy's stock Z06 intake was 152 deg. same day in the lanes. This makes a HUGE difference in timing as I've posted in several other threads given the stock tune that pulls 11 degrees of timing with IAT over 100 degrees.
I think the Vararam has the edge here since it literally sucks air from in front of the bumper, far away from the radiator. I would love to scan a Breathless equipped car, and will do so on my next test day and report back. It draws air from in front of the radiator too, but much closer to it (right next to it).
Of course this edge is gone by 80 mph when either system will register ambient air.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!
Michael S. Palmer
10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know
Joe Kucinski