Is there such thing as too big (get your mind out of the gutter)?

Kraftsman

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I've got a 2006 gt with a 2.3 roush tvs. I already have a twin 72mm tb, but stock roush cai. I was looking at the jlt super big intake with 148mm maf housing.
So my question is, is there any cons to an intake that big? Is there any pros besides getting all the air? I know itll have to be tuned. Thanks!
 

skwerl

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I suspect low rpm throttle response will suffer. Trying to negotiate parking lots without running over pedestrians may be difficult.
 

Kraftsman

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I suspect low rpm throttle response will suffer. Trying to negotiate parking lots without running over pedestrians may be difficult.
Ya it is a mustang though so taking a few pedestrians out wont surprise anyone.
It's not a daily either and barely sees low rpm so if that's it I'm ok with that.
 

1950StangJump$

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You're probably going to need to update the tune for the bigger air, right?

All other things held equal, more air means more power potential. But truth be told, the tune will probably stand to make a bigger difference up or down than the power potential of the bigger filter.
 

07 Boss

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Yes. There is such a thing as too big. Air velocity is just as important as volume. Too big, air moves slower. It’s about efficiency.
 

Juice

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It depends on how close you are now to pegging the MAF. If you are not close to the max air it can measure now, going bigger will have no effect.
 

DiMora

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Yes. There is such a thing as too big. Air velocity is just as important as volume. Too big, air moves slower. It’s about efficiency.

What Boss said.

To elaborate:

I had done a bunch of reading in the past...one of the items discussed was a giant Kenne Bell intake and throttle body (TB; a Mammoth of some sort) that had a giant oval monoblade throttle body (instead of a pair of round butterflies like most TB's normally use). The consensus was that it is great for drag racing only, but for daily driving or around town, it was too difficult to control....not enough "fine" control of low airflow.

There is certainly merit in having a giant air filter, inlet tube, and un-restrictive elbow on the blower, as all of those things - at WOT - allow you to get max airflow (and a commensurate amount of additional fuel)...the more you can jam into the cylinders efficiently at the proper A/F ratio, the more power you make until you hit the limiting factor. The engine / blower is just an air pump to the intake system, so at some point, having a bigger intake tube does you need good - as the engine / blower cannot ingest any more air than what the intake is offering.

The only way to tell if you are limited by the intake would be to add a bigger intake and / or throttle body (or both) and see if you make gains on the dyno or strip - while still maintaining drive-ability.

I do know for a fact that on a 2.3 TVS equipped car, there ARE gains to be made with a higher-flow blower inlet elbow and a Ford Racing 65MM or VMP 67MM throttle body if you are on a GEN I TVS (20-30 HP). Later generation TVS blowers have a high-flow elbow integrated into the case design. You can use any good quality high-flow air intake tube to feed that throttle body and elbow combo. Some guys use a GT40 inlet tube; some use a big JLT.

I have a 65MM and a VMP ported elbow that I'll be running when I drop in my forged stroker.

EDIT: Since you are on a 72MM TB already, an elbow should be the next upgrade - if applicable to your current blower.
 
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01yellerCobra

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It depends on how close you are now to pegging the MAF. If you are not close to the max air it can measure now, going bigger will have no effect.

Pretty much this. There's no real performance gain to going to a bigger MAF just because. You will lose low end resolution though. Which causes the part throttle issues Skwerl mentioned. In all reality you want to use as much of the MAF as possible. Without pegging of course. But the more points of resolution the better the car will drive.
 

PonyBoy

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I done a bunch of the same reading. I had already bought the Ford Performance monoblade TB and intake manifold. The reading made me nervous. So I am in limbo at the moment as I am waiting on my shop to have time to install a twin-turbo system before installing the upgrades. I am expecting the monoblade to be a bit difficult to tune, but to provide maximum results. Any thoughts?
 

DiMora

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I done a bunch of the same reading. I had already bought the Ford Performance monoblade TB and intake manifold. The reading made me nervous. So I am in limbo at the moment as I am waiting on my shop to have time to install a twin-turbo system before installing the upgrades. I am expecting the monoblade to be a bit difficult to tune, but to provide maximum results. Any thoughts?

It depends on what you are doing with the car. If it’s a street car, I probably would not run a monoblade unless my tuner was sure it would run well. If it’s a drag car, then whatever is fastest is best.
 

Kraftsman

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My car makes 18 psi and the maf housing is only the roush 110mm that came with the kit. I found an old cobra jet 123mm housing that was in a box in my garage I forgot I had, so I order a jlt intake tube that should fit it. My car falls on its face at half track. Some of it is due to heat soak, which is why I'm installing an ice box and vmp heat exchanger. I'm also going with a full 3" exhaust. E85 will also help with the heat soak but I'll need a return fuel system and bigger injectors for that so itll be a next winter project.
 

DiMora

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My car makes 18 psi and the maf housing is only the roush 110mm that came with the kit. I found an old cobra jet 123mm housing that was in a box in my garage I forgot I had, so I order a jlt intake tube that should fit it. My car falls on its face at half track. Some of it is due to heat soak, which is why I'm installing an ice box and vmp heat exchanger. I'm also going with a full 3" exhaust. E85 will also help with the heat soak but I'll need a return fuel system and bigger injectors for that so itll be a next winter project.

You can just use ID1300X injectors and a dual Boost-A-Pump on GT500 pumps and keep the returnless furl system.

Add a Stewart-EMP pump to your inter cooling system. Mod your VMP heat exchanger and icebox for 1” inlets and outlets and you’ll get 14GPM flow. If you run an icebox you’ll need to route it ice box->pump->intercooler—>heat exchanger->ice box. You must PUSH into the intercooler so your lines don’t crush. Use Pegasus racing hose couplers and 1” silicone hoses.
 

Kraftsman

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You can just use ID1300X injectors and a dual Boost-A-Pump on GT500 pumps and keep the returnless furl system.

Add a Stewart-EMP pump to your inter cooling system. Mod your VMP heat exchanger and icebox for 1” inlets and outlets and you’ll get 14GPM flow. If you run an icebox you’ll need to route it ice box->pump->intercooler—>heat exchanger->ice box. You must PUSH into the intercooler so your lines don’t crush. Use Pegasus racing hose couplers and 1” silicone hoses.
Thanks for the help.

Right now I have dual gt supercar pumps and a kenne bell dual BAP. If I upgraded to walbro 465's would I still need the bap?
 

skwerl

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I have a trunk mounted icebox that's been sitting on a shelf for years. Designed to fit in a S197 trunk. I bought it for my Bullitt but totaled the car before I got to install it.
 

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