95 Cold Air Intake System

[Burnnrubber]

Thats the piece..

Yes I refered to that piece as a shroud. I believe your air intake would be well forward of the radiator, thus it should intake cool air prior to the radiator.

 

[MikeLT4]

Yes, the air intake is forward of the radiator. Underneath that shroud is where the air flow comes from the bottom of the front end of the car. And isn't that shroud directing the air flow to and through the radiator? And if I cut a hole in it, then am I not taking some of that airflow away from the radiator? And if so, would that not be detrimental to the cooling of the water process?

Oh, as far as I know "Cold Air Induction" is just a fancy way of saying air intake. I never heard this term until I got a vet.

 

[Burnnrubber]

Cold Air Induction

Easy Mike, You are correct it would divert a certain amount of air from the radiator. Just might affect cooling enough to cause a problem. It looks to me like the Breathless Performance package does just this, as their box seals off the engine compartment on top & draws the air thru the shroud.
As to cold air induction being specific to Corvettes, it is not.

 

[Matts95LT1]

Slp system

How hard is it to install an slp intake (3 coned claw)? Has anyone installed one? I have the tags off my stock 95 for the winter and am thinking on doing it myself in the garage. The vortex rammer says it requires a cut in the radiator shroud, and some of you have mentioned that you liked the slp intake, just wondering how hard this install could be.
matt
;stupid

 

[Burnnrubber]

Cold Air

Matt,

MikeLT4 should be able to answer your questions; he has had both systems installed on his 96 LT4 recently. If you do go with the "Triple Threat" I would not cut the radiator shroud without sealing it back off on the engine compartment side, or you will lose cooling air to the under hood compartment, get no ram air effect & still draw hot air from the engine compartment into the induction. The "Breathless Performance Vortex Rammer” cuts the shroud but then seals it off so the air is directed into the radiator & air cleaner box only. The "Triple Threat" does look better & if you boil it all down I would guess the performance difference between these two units would be negligible. From a purely technical standpoint I would opt for the "Vortex Rammer" in my mind the largest performance gain will be in the cooler denser air, not the ram air affect.

 

[MikeLT4]

installing the SLP

Had the stock air and we all know that story.

Next step - install K&N and cut the stock louvers off the cover. An improvement, but looks like crap if you enter any vet shows.

Next step - do the Vortex. An involved process to install. But, yet another improvement on performance and sound. However, I found that I needed to clean the filter every month or two. Keep in mind that I live around the sandy beaches of west coast FL.

Next step - get the claw. Found a friend that wanted a Vortex, sold him mine, swapped shrouds with him and installed the claw. Maybe a half hour to install. Attached the 3 filters, fastened the claw to the shroud with 2 of the 3 stock air box bolts, connected the smog tube, attached the duct with the existing clamp, and done. The result, yet another step of improvement in performance, and an even better sound.

By inspecting the air passage ways of the stock, Vortex, and claw, the claw's passage ways are larger, and the least restrictive. No twists, turns, and just the slightest of bends. For the most part, once the air enters the claw it's pretty much a shot into the engine.

Can't wait to sit on a dyno and see if the performance increase is real or if it's just wishful thinking.

Running out of space with this posting, I'll followup with Part 2.

 

[MikeLT4]

SLP Part 2

Is the claw breathing in mostly hot engine air ?? Probably yes when I'm just sitting and idling. When moving, I'm sure that the cold air coming in from the front is pushing most of the hot engine heat towards the rear of the engine compartment. And I'm sure that a fair amount of cold air is making it's way to the claw from the various openings, "cracks", and seams in the nose of the car.

Another piece of the puzzle for me to help keep the engine compartment cooler are the Greenwood louvers I have installed in the hood.

The C4 engine compartment is pretty well sealed. Seals around the wheel wells and a seal at the base of the windshield. About the only escape for the heat is through the bottom of the engine compartment and underneath the car. As we all know though, HOT air RISES.

The louvers at the top of the engine compartment provides an escape for this RISING heat. I can actually see the hot air coming out.

So now, the cold air rushing in from the front and pushing the hot air back has yet another escape route for the hot air.

Not only are the louvers functional, but I think they look pretty good too.

I think they run about $275 from Greenwood, and then there is painting and installation.

 

[vms4evr]

Yes I cut the shroud way down near the nose where the 3 Triple Threat filters live. They get a lot more air. Given the way air flows thought the shark mouth and to the radiator I would say there is very little air being diverted from the radiator. The filters get air out of that stream because they are sucking air. The radiator doesn't do that. I would suspect that there is some hot air from the radiator fans blowing that the K&Ns will pick up. My fans hardly ever run so it isn't a problem for me. I did consider making a small diverter out of a piece of sheet metal to rivet under the hole. That way there would be 2 seperate channels. 1 for air to the filters and 1 for air to the radiator. And it would deflect hot radiator air from the fans. When summer time comes I'll see if it hurt anything. So far it hasn't changed my operating temp or done anything negative. Just more air that is much easier for the filters to get. Without that hole they get air from the sides. Hardly any from the front. There is no place to get air. I may even consider sealing them like the Vortex and other 'rammer style' but I really don't think it is necessary. If all else fails I can put the original piece back in the hole. So far no complaints.
Graham

 

[Burnnrubber]

Good point

I like the point you make about the extra maintenance required with the "Vortex Rammer Box". I assume that & water ingestion on a rainy day is exactly why the factory did not draw air directly from that area. The fact that it is was drawing a large amount of debris does mean that it was sealed well & functional though. Your louvers will promote airflow thru the engine compartment and that’s a good thing. They look great also. When you get it on the dyno let us know what the numbers are. Keep up the good work the car looks great!

 

[Matts95LT1]

intake

Hey Guys.
I go back and forth every day on this topic. Its either the vortex rammer or the 3 cone claw intake. I get positive comments on one, then just as many on the other. Back and forth back and forth. Price is not the concern here, being that they are pretty close. But I want to get more bang for my buck, and somthing that doesnt require cutting up stock parts. Unless its for a good cause that will last, then I have no problem. I have decided to get sombody to install it for me, not being very mechanicaly inclined. Any imput would be great. I am going to get the Corsa Cat back system in the comming month or two, and I want a good quality intake to compliment it. Sorry to ask this question again, but being my first vette, I see aftermarket parts everywhere, and need some experience in my corner.
thanks
matt

 

[vetsvette]

vortex

I've had my Vortex a year and a half now. Filter still looks new. I pulled it while I had it on jack stands recently. I've made two trips to Florida since installation. On the way to the Rolex 24 last year got caught in a downpour and it rained most of the weekend. No problems. Went to NCM last Labor Day weekend and it rained halfway there and all the way back (10 hours one way) and still no problem with ingesting water. The installation is very simple. They supply a template to show you what to cut. They also offer a precut shroud if you want to save the original. I've got the clear box with the red filter so it goes well with my red plenum.
L8R

 

[Burnnrubber]

Interesting

Well that is interesting. I prefer the design (sealed box) of the Vortex unit. If you did not have a problem with debris or moisture, & they provide a template, I think I'll give one a try. Do they provide a smooth boot to replace the factory accordion type?