Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

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Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby wally409 » Wed Jun 01, 2011 4:43 pm

I have an opportunity to buy an stock aluminum 4-barrel (for Q-jet) intake from an '81 Camaro 305 in good shape. Other than weight saving (to put into my Vega), are they similar in performance to a stock cast 4-barrel 305 intake - better, worse or about the same? I appreciate your response. Thanks. :D Wally
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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby spencerforhire » Wed Jun 01, 2011 6:23 pm

Same performance, less weight; there's one under the hood of my old black GT still on the 400. Pick up the aluminum one and a cast iron one in each hand; I don't think you will ever even contemplate using an iron intake again.
The "fleet"-
72 Vega HB Drag Car -383/'Glide/9"(9.35@146.19)(5.94@117.28 1/8th)
77 Vega Estate wagon- project(someday)will have TPI305/T-5, S-10 spindles/axles
76 Vega GT- 400/4spd/9" retired from active duty(rusty)
06 Silverado 2WD ex.cab daily
03 Silverado 2WD ex.cab (retired)
06 Haulin' 20ft enclosed car transporter
06 GMC Canyon Shop truck
07 Colorado project( 5.3 4L60e swap)
99 Saturn SL1- wife's car
01 Saturn SC2- son's project
07 Saturn Ion Redline project
and 4 more Saturn "parts cars"
Note- the very act of listing all of these has made me realize I have some kind of problem.....

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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby ROB » Wed Jun 01, 2011 7:45 pm

Not only is the aluminum 20lbs lighter, but once you go aftermarket, you will see a performance gain too. Stock 305 will be nothing to brag about.

Rob
Last edited by ROB on Wed Jun 01, 2011 10:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby wally409 » Wed Jun 01, 2011 10:10 pm

Thanks - I appreciate your inputs. I think it would be best probably then to get a dual plane aftermarket intake. Any idea as to horsepower gain - if any? I'll install headers on them. Wally
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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby spencerforhire » Thu Jun 02, 2011 5:58 am

An aftermarket dual-plane will give you an increase in power over the OEM aluminum intake, with or without a set of headers; just how much is hard to pin down. But a word of caution- watch out for hood to air cleaner clearance; depending on what motor mounts you use, there might not be enough room to go any taller than stock height.
The "fleet"-
72 Vega HB Drag Car -383/'Glide/9"(9.35@146.19)(5.94@117.28 1/8th)
77 Vega Estate wagon- project(someday)will have TPI305/T-5, S-10 spindles/axles
76 Vega GT- 400/4spd/9" retired from active duty(rusty)
06 Silverado 2WD ex.cab daily
03 Silverado 2WD ex.cab (retired)
06 Haulin' 20ft enclosed car transporter
06 GMC Canyon Shop truck
07 Colorado project( 5.3 4L60e swap)
99 Saturn SL1- wife's car
01 Saturn SC2- son's project
07 Saturn Ion Redline project
and 4 more Saturn "parts cars"
Note- the very act of listing all of these has made me realize I have some kind of problem.....

Visit http://www.spencerforhire.ca
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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby Rickracer » Thu Jun 02, 2011 7:15 am

The Edelbrock Performer is a manifold that will work and provide gains on just about any motor, and they can be found very reasonable on Craigslist and/or Ebay, :th:
Rickracer
ASE Master Auto Technician, 36+ years
'76 Vega Notchback, Twin Turbo 355/TH350 (soon to be a Powerglide w/Brake), 4 link, Koni Coilovers, 3.50 geared 9" w/Spool & Moser Axles, drag only, best all motor 1/8 mile pass to date, 6.90@99mph, 6.57@107.0 on a 60 shot, Best 1/4, 9.66@139.78, still tuning...
Project Album: http://s68.photobucket.com/albums/i4/Ri ... 20Begins/'
93 S10 RCSB, Hyd. Roller Vortec head 363 ci SBC, 2800stall lockup 700R4, LS Front Brakes, Narrowed F*rd Exploder 8.8 disc brake 3.73 posi rear, 8.0s@89 mph, (all motor, haven't sprayed it yet...)and tows the Vega to the track too
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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby wally409 » Thu Jun 02, 2011 11:45 am

Thanks so much for all your input and recommendations. I appreciate it. Wally
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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby cammerjeff » Fri Jun 03, 2011 5:48 am

I would say that with a mostly stock engine, you will not gain much HP going to a 4bbl intake and carb, now if you change to a Q-jet, and tune it properly you will gain some MPG when you are not in the secondaries. It really depends on your plans for the car, if you plan on modifing the engine, like headers, upgraded exhaust, cam swap, or upping the compression ratio with pistons or smaller chamber heads with thinner gaskets, or some head porting, then an aftermarket dual plane intake will be your best route, if not the 1 or 2 HP differance you will see on a stock engine is probably not worth the extra $$$$$ for the aftermarket part. But if you find a great deal on criags list that can cancle that also.

And Hood clearance can be an issue as mentioned before. Double or tripple check the clearance before installing any intake.
Jeff R

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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby wally409 » Fri Jun 10, 2011 8:25 pm

Thanks Jeff. I appreciate your input. The engine came out of an 84 Pontiac with 110K miles and is a factory 4-bbl Q-jet with the 416 heads. It ran very well when I pulled it out of the car. I'm not going to race it - just use it as a daily driver (soon as I find the Vega I need) so I'll leave the long block as it is. I've taken the cast intake off it and have a set of Vega Hooker headers which I'll bolt on and get a dual exhaust system for it. I wonder if I should get an aluminum factory intake to reduce the weight? They're available on ebay or craigslist for 25 to 50 bucks. it sounds like the dual plane Performer intake might be over-kill. I won't run a stock water pump with a belt-driven fan and get a electric fan instead and get rid of the smog stuff. I think it should be a decent runner and fun to drive. Any other low-buck performance tips would also be appreciated. Wally
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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby Rickracer » Sat Jun 11, 2011 8:44 am

The Performer is not overkill, the mixture distribution is WAY better than any factory dual plane intake, and that alone is worth the price of admission. Used Performers can be found of fleabay for as little as $40, and only about $125 new. :wink: 8)
Rickracer
ASE Master Auto Technician, 36+ years
'76 Vega Notchback, Twin Turbo 355/TH350 (soon to be a Powerglide w/Brake), 4 link, Koni Coilovers, 3.50 geared 9" w/Spool & Moser Axles, drag only, best all motor 1/8 mile pass to date, 6.90@99mph, 6.57@107.0 on a 60 shot, Best 1/4, 9.66@139.78, still tuning...
Project Album: http://s68.photobucket.com/albums/i4/Ri ... 20Begins/'
93 S10 RCSB, Hyd. Roller Vortec head 363 ci SBC, 2800stall lockup 700R4, LS Front Brakes, Narrowed F*rd Exploder 8.8 disc brake 3.73 posi rear, 8.0s@89 mph, (all motor, haven't sprayed it yet...)and tows the Vega to the track too
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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby MonzaRacer » Sat Jun 11, 2011 4:35 pm

Now if you dont mind a different name I have a Weiand Accelerator dual plain used for sale $50 plus shipping and I believe it will also fit Qjet. And I think it might have been polished or smoothed in the past. or this may just be what it looks like.
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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby cammerjeff » Sun Jun 12, 2011 8:02 am

I never said that a good after market duel plane intake would not improve performance, it will, but without adding a good flowing exhaust system ( with or without headers ) a cam, and with almost all 70's cars changing the rear axle ratio to something more performance minded (most cars from the mid 70's have very high ratio's my 78 Sunbird wagon had 2.56's and the change to 3.73's alone made the car much more fun to drive!!!!!) If you car still has the stock ring and pinion in it, and it is 2.56-2.92 rang I would seriously consider that change 1st. A change to a 3.42 or 3.73 ring and pinion is a good 1st step.

Just my 2 cents worth.

As a kid starting to drive in the late 70's, I had a very nice 76 Grand Prix, 350 Pontiac 2 bbl, TH-400, and a Posi 2.42 rear axle stock, I changed out the intake and Carb 1st, as that is what I was told would really wake up the car!!!!! I got a stock Pontiac 400 intake and Q-jet off a 75 T/A, I didn't replace the Fuel pump with a 4bbl pump, The car went from running 18.30 to 18.38 after all the work. I installed a 4 bbl pump, and now ran 18.33. Got the Q-jet redone for the smaller engine, and fixed the problem with the secondary air flaps opening to soon, that got rid of the BOGG in the secondaries, and the rich mixture, now I was running 17.88!!!! At least it was finally faster!!!!! Duel exhaust got me sounding great, and running around 17.5, a cam change got me into the high 15's, I then finally swappped out the rear axle for one with a 3.23 posi, suddenly the car really woke up!!!!! I was now running 14.20's, and the low and mid range of the engine felt like I put a new motor in the car!!!! For the time my 4000lb luxo boat was still dirt slow, but at least it would not get beat by a V-6 Camaro any more!!!!

That is when I learned to start from the back 1st, I think I could have seen the 1 second or so performance pick up with just the axle change. I spent alot of time and $$$$ playing with the intake and carb, and I did learn alot, the secret is to not get fustraited and always treat it like a learning experiance.
Jeff R

1971 Catalina Freeway Enforcer
77 Astre Formula, some day soon powered by a 215 Buick V-8
1973 4-speed Lemans Safari STOCK!!!!! 1978 Catalina Safari
2006 Mallet Solstice, 6.0 LS2, 6-speed manual
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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby rocketride » Sun Jun 12, 2011 4:32 pm

"If you car still has the stock ring and pinion in it, and it is 2.56-2.92 rang I would seriously consider that change 1st. A change to a 3.42 or 3.73 ring and pinion is a good 1st step."

I agree. I remember an article in one of the car magazines from the 70's. Top 10-20 performance upgrades or something to that effect. The first recommended upgrade.....new gears in the rear end.

Jon
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Re: Stock cast intake vs. stock aluminum intake

Postby 283vega » Tue Jun 14, 2011 5:55 am

Stay away from the 3.73 gears unless you going with an overdrive trans or tall 15 " rear tires.Too many rpms for highway trips. :lol:
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