I realize this intake thing has been beat to death but...

I heard that the LS3 Intake and filter are as good as you can get.

Is that true, or is there some gains to be had from an AirRaid with open shroud.

Thanks for any input.

 

I have a Z06(same air breather as the LS3 except that I don't have the silencer box on the side). I run it with the stock Donaldson PowerCore filter element(the best on the market). I did install a Vette-Air scoop to get "cold" air into the air breather, but had to fabricate a flat diffuser plate to get rid of the resulting surging. I installed the wings from an Airaid unit to the top of the radiator shroud, to block most of the underhood heat from the engine compartment, from getting to the air breather when the car is sitting at a light.

 

Halltech Killer Bee 103 (maf forward)
Vararam
Airaid
K+N


In no particular order, should perform better than the stock (major improved airbox over previous versions) air box.

You will never see a Katech, LG or any other vendor car with a stock airbox.

 

Unless you are going to do other things for performance...I would leave it alone.

 

Of course you won't, there's no profit in leaving stock parts in place.

 

Get the Attack Blue from TKO...

 

Thanks guys,

With a replacement filter costing $85, I thought I would spend a few more and get some some additional gains.

 

Back to back dyno runs on a stock Z06 showed a Attack Blue filter gained 2 HP over the stock GM Donaldson Z06 filter and a GM Donaldson PowerCore ZR1 filter element showed at 4 HP gain over the stock Z06 unit.

As the LS3 uses the same Donaldson filter as the Z06 with 505 HP, I would think it would easly flow enough air for 430/436 HP. Plus the LS3/LS7 GM Donaldson filter element is good for 45,000 miles under normal driving conditions.

 

I've probably read a hundred posts & thought long & hard on this, but I'm still no expert, nor do I have any 'scientific' data. It really comes down to personal preference & what the vehicle is used for;

If you're doing a cam, high-flow exhaust, etc, then increasing intake flow w/ K&N type open filters may make sense. The OEM's strive to get the most possible performance from cars like the corvette, but they rarely spec these open type filters, the new Shelby500, etc being the exception.

I understand the stock Donaldson filters trap more/finer dirt & grit, although perhaps not flowing as much as a Haltech, Vararam, K&N, etc. If you plan to keep the car forever this may be a concern, but not as much if you trade cars out frequently. The amount of dust & dirt your filter ingests(if you drive dirt roads or dirt driveways, etc) is a consideration.

My practical experience is in the offroad motorcycle racing world, where the washable dual-foam filters, Twin-Air, Uni, etc are preferred over the more open 'K&N type' filters b/c they trap more dirt. There's substantial real world examples of increased valve seat & engine wear from using these open type filters in dirty environments. We ran dual-element foam filters in the Baja1000, but I use K&N's on my street bikes, & in my cars for years, because they rarely, if ever, see dirty environs.

But the more I read, the more I feel the stock filters breathe/flow sufficiently, while protecting engine internals better, & the trade off of open filter elements minimal performance increase isn't worth the increased engine wear, for me. Again, this is all just personal preference, my .02, etc.

 

Is the Donaldson unit only available through the Stealerships?

 

I guess the question is, is there a substantiated/proven case where a K&N or attack blue replacement filter has caused an engine failure due to lack of filtering? I really dont know if there is or not. Also a dyno test is only half the story as the real gains on any good CAI, (which the stock one is a true CAI IMO and only needs a better flowing filter and an opening for more air to get to it), is that at higher speeds the better flowing filter will net better gains, which a dyno cant really represent.

I bought the attack blue and cut an openeing in the shroud to allow more air in and feel this is as good as any aftermarket CAI that can be bought. You can go one step further and by the scope to get a more forced air to your cutout hole but that might cause turbulance in the MAF, so I didnt do it but some have and have had no problems.

The bigger your rear hole is the bigger your front hole has to be. lol.

 

Does this mean the biggest a-holes also have the biggest mouths?

 

some claim 17 hp with the k & N and bridge...i thought the airaid was about the best bang for the buck..but i'm not sure you really make more power over a stock setup//

 

Some folks here might benefit from reading this:

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...d.php?t=410836

 

It appears that Donaldson replacement filters are being sold by other companies(re-labeled). WIX, NAPA, & Fram show the identical filters.

 

I just recently swapped my stock filter setup (Z06 air bridge and stock Z06 filter) while on the dyno with my Airaid setup.

Stock I put down 378rwhp, 5 minutes later with the Airaid CAI on the car I did 2 back to back runs and put down 385rwhp. Car actually richened up just a little and with a custom tune prob would pick up another 2-5rwhp just cleaning up the WOT/PE map.

So with that, it counters what all the naysayers say about the Donaldson filter being the best and not leaving any room for gains on the table. The Airaid setup picked up 7rwhp over stock.

 

most definately

 

I hear what you're saying & to a certain degree concur, however...

I've dyno'd a few bikes & cars, they all made more power on each sucessive dyno run, the 3rd dyno run showing a significant increase over the 1st run, like 10+ rwhp. Shutting down the motor & letting it heat-sync for @ 10 mins between runs let them truly reach peak-power operating temps. This was initially a surprise to me, that motors don't make their true power until they're really hot.

So I would take this into consideration when comparing your first to your 2nd dyno run. I'd be interested to see results on three runs w/ the stock air intake one day, then 3 runs w/ the Airaid the next day..air & motor temps being consistent.

 

From everything I've read, I think the LS3/7 filter flows enough air for moderate power levels. For actual gains, you're main objective should be to get cooler air to it. So I guess if you are going to make a switch, get the unit that pulls in the most cool air...?

 

Just my opinion; Donaldson, Goggle them. They know what filtration is all about.