Ram Air

[Vettefan87]

I have recently bought a 1987 black convertible it has 51,000 actual miles it runs great but i want it to be faster. I was looking in Mid America about Ram Air, the book says up to 15 horse and 10ft lbs of torque. Does anyone have experience with this? And is it worth the 300 bucks, also outside of Ram Air what are some other easy mods i can do to my vette? Thank you for your advice.

 

[Edmond]

Are you talking about the thing that replaces the front license plate and moves air directly into the air filter?

 

[Vettefan87]

It is really called Vortex Ram Air Induction System and replaces the stock air cleaner box. It is not the Air Diffuser Scoop.

 

[Ken]

I have no direct experience with the units, but it seems to me that there would be cooler air available to the intake with such a setup, and cooler is always better. I have actually considered such a setup for mine, although I think we could come up with a less expensive way of doing it. It seems to me that anyone with a modicum of sheetmetal experience could build a box for a lot less.

However, calling it "Ram Air" is somewhat misleading, in that the only "ram" effect you'll see will be at speed, and at a high rate of speed at that, in order for the incoming air to have a full "boost" effect.

 

[Edmond]

You'll also have to do some cutting to your shroud, which some people don't like to do.

There is a discussion that "The Claw" offers great results in terms of induction.

 

[vettn94]

I have the Breathless Ram Air on my 94. Other than the poor quality of the unit itself it works great IMO. Cutting the shroud is easy, and if you ever go back to the stock air box it will cover the hole. If you still don't feel good about cutting your shroud BPP sells them already cut or you can buy another one and cut it yourself. IMO this setup is better than the SLP claw because it's drawing air from under the car. The claw still sucks in alot of hot air from under the hood. I would think the claw is not much better than an open lid and K&N. just my .02

 

[tntcorvette]

I agree with vetten94. Dont waste your money on the slp claw. I'de just cut the air filter lid and install a K&N filter.

I run the http://tpis.com AirForce cold air system. I got it used in perfect shape for like $175 or so and it works pretty darn good, mainly at elevated speeds above 45 mph.

I personally do not care about my car being stock because it is not so for me cutting the air shroud was not an issue at all.

 

[tntcorvette]

BTW, what part of Indiana are you from/in? I live about 4 miles from Hammond and always go there to get less expensive gasoline.

 

[Ken]

Geez, that is some poor design quality there. It doesn't even seal properly to its own framework it seems. :eek

I think we could come up with an aluminum deal that'd work as well. The aftermarket unit is pricey due to the cost of the molds I imagine.

_ken

 

[tntcorvette]

Geez, that is some poor design quality there. It doesn't even seal properly to its own framework it seems. :eek

I think we could come up with an aluminum deal that'd work as well. The aftermarket unit is pricey due to the cost of the molds I imagine.

_ken

The quality of the BPP does suck, based on the pictures. I hear the C5 unit is much better, but of course this is the C4 area.

 

[UB2 SLOW]

However, calling it "Ram Air" is somewhat misleading, in that the only "ram" effect you'll see will be at speed, and at a high rate of speed at that, in order for the incoming air to have a full "boost" effect.

I have the breathless on my car. I put it on the dyno and saw a little gain across the board. Then I put a leaf blower in front of the intake box to simulate air moving into the box. I picked up anywhere from 1-5hp across the board and it smoothed out the power band. So in my opinion its a good deal.

 

[vettn94]

I did see a consistent small improvement in my mph the last half of the 1/4 mi with the addition of the BPP, so Ken is right you really don't see the full benefits unless your at higher speeds. The problem with this setup IMO is the material used for both the box and the bellows is too thin.
This is what happened to mine:

I specifically made sure NOT to overtighten the clamp in order to prevent something like this from happening. When I called Breathless about the problem they called me an idiot and refused to do anything about it, well unless you call offering to sell me a new box at full price trying to help. After I posted on the CF about it alot of others found they too had the same problem so I guess EVERYONE overtightened the clamp :eyerole . Finally after MANY complaints and MUCH prodding BPP came up with a fix and sent it out to customers free of charge.

They have the right idea just didn't make the parts right.
One of these days I have to fix the box where it seals to the shroud.

 

[Vettefan87]

Well i live in South Bend, so i will have a few months to think about it. Thanks guys.

 

[Mad-Mic]

i went with the cut air box and a K&N. i also did the TB bypass at the same time and descreened my MAF sensor. with these 3 mods i noticed a good difference in WOT response and pull.

look at my mod list and you'll see i don't have many but am running in LS1 territory. i'm trying to break 12's consistently on a stock motored, stock TPI, stock tranny/stall, and stock 2.59 gears i think in the spring i should break into the 12.7 range with a few bolt on's i have sitting here like my TPiS longtube headers

 

[tlong]

Ram vs. SLP Claw

I went with the Claw because of doubtful seal on the K&N cut lid. The 3 round filter K&N SLP is a tight seal, looks great and does get cooler air up there. It whistles like a jet at idle and helps the Corsas scream when goosed. The design is less restictive than the stock air box.

A license plate scoop or Vortex may ram at 45-50, but the hp gain is small for destoying the shroud. You have to turbo or supercharge to get the positive pressure and that is a financial comitment as well as an engine blowing possibility.

The best solution would be Callaway vents in the front bumper to reduce heat and flow some cold air, but that hinders the clean look. I thought the SLP was the best solution to stock intake replacement which isn't bad in the first place.

 

[tntcorvette]

Doubtful seal????

It is the factory lid, just cut open to expose the air filter.

 

[tlong]

I refer to replacing stock paper filter with a K&N filter. There is no reason to cut the lid otherwise. Stock replacement fits great.

The foam strips and grease supplied with the K&N are a joke, and don't seal in a stock airbox cut or not. It doesn't seem to be the right size, squishing out (is that a word?) here and there.

Maybe mine was defective. I didn't like it and went with something else. It's like any other modification. It doesn't have to make sense, as long as I like it!

 

[tntcorvette]

here is a picture of my TPIS Cold air intake


http://corvetteactioncenter.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=1276

 

[tntcorvette]

I guess so. My K&N filter works fine with my old cut lid combo and now with my TPIS cold air intake.

 

[Mad-Mic]

I refer to replacing stock paper filter with a K&N filter. There is no reason to cut the lid otherwise. Stock replacement fits great.

The foam strips and grease supplied with the K&N are a joke, and don't seal in a stock airbox cut or not. It doesn't seem to be the right size, squishing out (is that a word?) here and there.

Maybe mine was defective. I didn't like it and went with something else. It's like any other modification. It doesn't have to make sense, as long as I like it!

i beg to differ! the cut lid lets alot more air in and my K&N filter didn't have a problem sealing. just tighten down the screws and you'll be fine