TMoNeE

iTrader: (1)

Ive heard some conflicting stories so I want to poll the audience. I have an edelbrock drop base open element installed, but i didnt remove the silencer ring.. I was told that since I have a drop base, not to remove it... is that correct or should i remove it because it greatly improves air flow

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89 RS 305 TBI
Edelbrock 14x3 OE intake, Hypertech Chip, Street & Strip shift kit, flowmaster exhaust w/ high flow catco cat.

ONEFINE8T9

u know i really dont see the big craze over the open element thing. I know the stock is like a 2 inch inlet and the open element has so much more intake room but the difference is that the little gap the factory installs picks up cool air where as the open element picks up very warm air. Isnt cold air what makes performance? It just amazes me that there is so much more talk about an open element and its really not worth it. To me it just wastes space on the boards. sorry i had to add that

89RS355

Hey OneFine, your right. I've got an open element and a cowl hood. At stoplights in the summer I can see the road waving from the heat coming out of the cowl. Heat that is going right back in the engine from the open element. I am sure it is a drawback performance wise with regular street driving.

But....the cool thing is, not everything you do to a car is all about the speed. I personally love the smile it puts on my face when I give it the go pedal. Sound bad, but I love the sound and carb. look as well. It's worth sacrificing a few ponies to make me smile. I think what would work for you is the dual-snorkel inlet, way more functional than open airand still looks pretty damn cool.

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Jerry

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89 RS Lt Blue T-Tops T5
355 Crate, Compucam 2040
Pst Front Hotchkis Rear
Edle. TES 3" Flowmaster
Harwood hood, bla, bla, bla...
94 Z28, LT1 6M, Black
Most of the bolt-ons
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Mark305TBI

The whole thing is which one get's more oxygen into the engine? Cooler, more dense air through the 12 square inch (I was guessing it was about 6"x2") snorkel intake opening, or warmer, less dense air through the 132 square inch (14"x3") open element? On a stock engine it probably wouldn't make a huge difference, but add headers, exhaust, and/or engine mods...

-Mark W.
'88 SC Camaro w/ 305 TBI

91Bird305

Andy89RS said something before about cold air induction and how it really isn't cold air I think. Next time I see him online I will send him to this post. I think he has a lot of info that could be contributed. All I know, is an open element or the cold air induction is better then the stock snorkel setup.

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Eric Natzke
91 Firebird 305 TBI
"It Ain't Stock"
http://members.aol.com/j007golden/91firebird.html
For info on certain parts or mods go to the site below
http://members.aol.com/j007golden/modeval.html

88'camaro305TBI

iTrader: (2)

I noticed a big difference when i put the open air element on, but i don't know whether its better than cold air induction or not. I see a lot of improvement over stock especially in the upper rpm's. I would still prefer the open element though because of my cowl hood.

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88 305TBI
Mods:Hooker Aerochamber 3" exhaust, gutted kitty, March pullies, no smog, 180 thermo,
14x4 K&N, 3.42 gears,
Eibach springs with KYB's all around,
Harwood cowl hood, Z-28 wing, fresh paint(black)
120,000 miles, 5spd, T-tops
Run a best of 16.7 @85mph before gears

92 RS, 305TBI, auto, 3.08 gears, 180 thermo, glasspack (no muffler)

88'camaro305TBI

iTrader: (2)

i forgot to add that the reason people tell you not to take out the silencer when you have a drop base is because something will probably be in the way. You can just take it out and see if the element will fit without any obstruction, if not, put the silencer back on. Another reason i can think of is because the drop base element might be too close to the engine, therefore sucking in more hot air.

BlackBird305

Timonee,

I've got a drop-base open element on my ride and i left the silencer ring on becuase the drop was the same as the one on the stock assembly...in my case if i removed the ring the filter would drop to low and interfere w/the throttle linkage and wouldn't clear the distributor...good luck

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91 Pontiac Firebird...305 TBI
black, t-tops, auto
K&N 14x3 open element air cleaner, 3 inch high flow cat, 3 cat-back into a flowmaster 40 series, kenwood head unit, pioneer 5 1/2's, Infinity Kappa 6x9's, 2 JBL 10's...more mods soon!

PhantomChamp

I just bought my 91 Formula recently, the stock snorkel on it is way too restrictive. Slow throttle response is the main problem. I took the whole air cleaner off for a test drive and could notice a huge difference. Warm open air is better than tiny-snorkel cold air any day.

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THREE
ZERO
FIVE
CUBIC
INCH
WARP
DRIVE

pimpintheRS

the open element is way better then the stock air cleaner. cold air induction isnt really going to happen with the stock air snorkel it isnt getting enough air to matter and how cold is this air really? go to an open element but if you really need cold air do the dual snorkel.. i dont think you can remove the silencer ring but i might be mistaken.
Shawn

Mark305TBI

You get rid of the spacer if you've got a flat bottom air cleaner. You keep it if you've got a drop-base. The drop-base won't clear the throttle linkage and other connectors on the TBI unit (I think someone mentioned this earlier, but I'm saying it again for good measure). I don't think the flat bottom base will clear the hood with the spacer on...not for sure though. The whole purpose of the flat bottom, however, is so you can get rid of the spacer and open up the area around the injectors and throttle bores.

-Mark W.
'88 SC Camaro w/305 TBI

snflupigus

spend 15 bucks, get a open element, if you dont like the way it feels/sounds. take it back right away, guess what. youll keep it.

Get Blown ?

89RS355 how about making your cowl functional? If you don't know how read about the basics from this page.

http://198.77.210.76/tech/coldair/coldair.cfm

Next for every 10* change in intake charge is a 1% gain/loss of your total HP. 10* hotter, 1% loss and visa versa.

But the real question you should ask yourself is how much that crummy 12x2" filter and OEM single/dual snorkel restricts your air flow vs sucking hot air from a 14x3" filter.

Hell even an open element using a Purolator 14x3 paper filter flows around 700+cfm, more then enough air for a stock bore TBI unit.

http://www.fordmuscle.com/archives/2...rs/index.shtml

Personally I'll stick with my open element, besides it gives you a few options down the line. IE functional cowl hood/tear drop hood, RamAirBox or a custom box with twin outlets ah la RamAirBox wannabe.


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1989 Camaro RS LO3 WCT5 0-60' 2.34 1/4 15.8@87mph
http://350.StreetRacing.org
The posi unit breaker.