Holley 5th Gen Camaro Cold Air Intake Reviews

In the early days of hot rodding, gear heads would normally run their engines with no air filter at all to free upwards as much horsepower every bit possible. Merely with modern fuel injected engines, going filter-less more often than not isn't fifty-fifty an option, plus all the nasty junk can go sucked into your pricey engine. So we demand to run an air filter to protect our engine, but nosotros yet desire to move more than air to make more ability. Enter the tried and true cold air intake – the simplest fashion to free upwardly your intake tract, while keeping your air filtered before it reaches your engine, and for decades no other company has been more than synonymous with high period air filters than the legendary M&N.

The 5th Gen Air Intake category is a hotly contested one, equally it'southward an easy and cheap bolt-on. K&N and their sister company AEM Intakes offers several different performance intake options for the 5th Gen Camaros, and so nosotros decided what better way to find out which one makes the most ability than to exam each system on the dyno, on the same auto, with no other modifications skewing the results. Then we hooked upwards with our good friends at Sunshine Functioning in Killeen, Texas, to perform a Shootout of the entire K&N product line for 2010 and up SS Camaros.

The intakes that we tested were:

• Stock Panel Filter
• K&Northward Stock Replacement Drop-In Panel Filter
• K&N 63 Series Aircharger Intake System
• K&Due north Series 69 Typhoon Air Intake System
• AEM Cold Air Intake System

Baseline Power Numbers

For our exam, Mr. Brett Halstead, from Killeen, Texas allow us infringe his bone-stock 2010 Camaro SS, with the 400 horsepower L99 and 6L80E slush box, to run on the Dynojet with every intake that Thou&N makes for the fifth Gen Camaro. One time the guys at Sunshine Performance had the Camaro strapped down, nosotros did a few pulls to establish the Camaro's baseline numbers. The steam produced was 312.nine rear bicycle horsepower. All dyno testing was done with the hood upwards.

If you lot want to know how far you've come up, and so you lot have to know where you started. We strapped downward the red Camaro to the Dynojet with everything in place that it came from the factory with, and dropped the hammer. Our baseline rear-cycle ability numbers for this exam are 312.9 horsepower and 331.5 pound feet of torque. You're probably thinking this seems a bit low considering that the L99 is rated at 400 creepo horsepower, but this comes out to a 21.75% drivetrain loss which is definitely within the normal range for automated transmission cars.

• Baseline Rear Bicycle HP: 312.9 HP
• Baseline Rear Bicycle Torque: 331.5 Ft/Lbs.

Our baseline numbers were right on target for an L99 turning a 6L80E automatic trans.

The Camaro's stock air box gets the task done, but what kind of hot rodders settle for merely getting the job washed? In that location'due south horsepower to be had past ditching this black plastic.

K&N Stock Replacement Driblet-In Panel Filter

The surprise of our test group – 8 rear wheel horsepower from the uncomplicated K&Due north panel filter replacement.

Moving from the near basic components to the nearly advanced we started our exam with the K&N drop in console filter, which is a straight replacement for your stock paper filter, and fits right inside your stock air box. The install of the K&N panel filter was child's play – just unsnap your air box lid, pull out the old filter, and driblet in the new 1, and snap the lid back downwardly…and that's it. Oddly enough, nosotros found ourselves waiting longer for the Camaro to cool downwardly from the baseline dyno runs than it took us to install the M&Due north panel filter.

All dyno runs were washed with the hood up.  This was the subject field of fierce debate. We figured – hood closed was more realistic, but then once more, the value of fresh air coming in through the front of the Camaro was negated. At that place accept been a number of dyno tests on open up vs. closed hoods, only nosotros decided to go out them open up to equalize all of the tests (in our stance) and to help cooling.

Once it had cooled down a bit, nosotros ran the SS on the Dynojet and were rewarded with just over viii rear-wheel horsepower, and an even viii pound feet of torque thank you to the panel filter. This was a surprise to our test group – 8 rear wheel horsepower is stout for a simple console filter replacement. You'll detect that there is a little bobble in the dyno graph probably due to a tiny bit of timing retard – or the K&N panel might take made even more. This may have been more heat related than annihilation.

If you want to go on the modifications on your Camaro simple, and you plan on keeping your car for a long time, a K&North drop in filter might really exist a skillful investment that will pay you back every few months when you don't have to buy a new paper filter. Plus, 8 rear-wheel horsepower isn't bad at all for a full of about two minutes worth of work.

• K&North Panel Filter – Rear Wheel HP: 321.37 HP – increase of 8.iv rwhp
• K&N Panel Filter –  Rear Wheel Torque: 338.5 Ft/Lbs – increase of eight.0 ft/lbs

Not a bad piddling power bump for just replacing the stock filter. Plus, if yous can go along your foot out of information technology, the K&N panel filter might give you lot a few more than MPG's.

K&Due north 63 Series Aircharger Intake System

Before the Aircharger system tin go in, the old stock junk has to come out. The removal of the stock air box is very straight forward, just don't forget to remove the MAF sensor from the tube on the side of the air box lid. You are going to want to keep that.

Next upwardly in our test is the K&North 63 Series Aircharger Intake System. The M&N Aircharger consists of a molded black intake tube, a conical high-flow air filter, and a heat-shield. The intake tube is made of rotationally molded interlaced high-density polyethylene, which is particularly shaped to reduce turbulence in the intake for smoother, faster air flow. The conical air filter is designed to create more surface area to pull air through, too as take hold of more clay.

The Aircharger uses all stock mounting points and existing studs for a hassle and fabrication free install.

The install of the Aircharger system is very straight forrard.

Remove the stock intake and air box, and be sure to remove your stock MAF sensor from the stock air box lid – you lot will demand information technology for the new intake. The heat shield doubles as a barrier between the air filter and the heat produced by the engine, and the main support for the intake. The estrus shield bolts correct to the mounting points of your factory air box, so in that location's no demand to practice any crazy bracket fabrication or drilling on your new Camaro. K&Northward as well supplies nifty step-by-pace instructions and all the necessary hardware to install the Aircharger, so just accept your fourth dimension, and utilise common sense and you lot shouldn't have whatsoever problems with the install.

The Aircharger's heat sheild doubles every bit the intake's mount. Hither nosotros are bolting on the lower mounting bracket. The only part of installing the Aircharger that can exist a pain in the butt is getting the included hood seal formed around the top of the heat sheild.

With the black tubed Grand&N Aircharger installed on the Camaro and the engine block still warm to the touch from the previous dyno run, it was time to current of air up the L99 once again on Sunshine Performance'southward Dynojet. Our all-time run with the K&North Aircharger netted us 337.nine rear-wheel horsepower and 352.2 pound feet of torque – a cyberspace gain of 25 horsepower and most 21 pound feet of torque at the rear wheels. That's the kind of power gain that would definitely make a divergence in how the car feels on the street, and with a simple intake install we earned back all of power that the L99 gets shorted to the LS3 Camaro SS.

On the aesthetic side of things, the Aircharger system looks similar a very high quality OEM stock component nether the hood (with the exception of the polished filter cap), and looks like it belongs there. As well, when nosotros took the car to broad-open-throttle on our dyno runs at that place was a very noticeable deviation in the sound of the intake, and a very slight change in the exhaust note of the SS. Over all, the car just sounded more than aggressive.

• Baseline Rear Wheel HP: 312.ix HP
• Baseline Rear Wheel Torque: 331.5 Ft/Lbs

• K&Due north Aircharger – Rear Wheel HP: 337.9 HP –increase of 25.0 rwhp
• 1000&N Aircharger–  Rear Bike Torque: 352.26 Ft/Lbs –increase of 20.76 ft/lbs

25 horsepower to the rear wheels? Yeah, we'll take that...

K&N Serial 69 Draft Air Intake Arrangement

We decided that the gleaming polished aluminum Draft intake deserved the engine embrace to be included in its Glamor Shots.

The next system nosotros tested is the K&N Series 69 Draft Air Intake System, with a polished aluminum intake tube that measures a full 4 inches in bore on both the filter and throttle body ends.

The intake tube is mandrel bent to prevent flow impeding kinks, and is roughly the same shape as the Aircharger, placing the air filter in the aforementioned position on the drivers' side of the engine bay. Other than the polished aluminum intake tube, the only observable difference between the Typhoon and the Aircharger is a small deviation in how the MAF bolts upwardly to the intake tube. We compared the rut shields that come with both systems, and they are no doubtfulness the verbal same slice. Nosotros fifty-fifty cross checked the part numbers for the conical air filters included with both the Typhoon and Aircharger, and they are the exact same number.

And so – this every bit a difference of small pattern changes – and materials – aluminum versus plastic.

Since the install of the Typhoon is the exact same process as the Aircharger arrangement, and we are pretty quick learners, we in one case once more found ourselves really continuing around waiting for the engine to absurd down from the previous dyno runs subsequently we had the Typhoon intake installed on the Camaro. While we were waiting, we couldn't help only comment on the fact that the polished Typhoon intake looks spectacular under the hood of the SS. Only if there is one thing nosotros've learned during our fourth dimension working on cars, information technology'southward that just because something is shiny doesn't necessarily mean it volition make you whatsoever more power.

Due to our vast intake install experience (...or simply considering it is almost the exact same process as the Aircharger...) nosotros were able to become the Typhoon intake bolted together in a matter of minutes, and had to let the engine cool down before nosotros did our test pulls.

So, is the K&North Draft intake all style and no substance? Well, as information technology turns out yous can have your under-hood bling with enough of ability to go with information technology. With the Draft, we gained just under 24 horsepower, and over 23 pound feet of torque over stock – that's just 1 horsepower less than the Aircharger, and 2 pound feet of torque more. Our best dyno numbers for the 1000&Due north Draft on the L99 SS were 336.9 horsepower, and 355.i pound feet of torque.

Let's just say, that power gain is probably inside the statistical variance of our dyno. However, if you want to ignore variance, the plastic air charger out powered the aluminum tube intake past one hp, only cruel short by a few ft/lbs.

• Baseline Rear Bicycle HP: 312.nine HP
• Baseline Rear Wheel Torque: 331.5 Ft/Lbs

• K&N Typhoon – Rear Wheel HP: 336.9 HP –increment of 24.0 rwhp
• K&Northward Draft–  Rear Wheel Torque: 355.16 Ft/Lbs –increment of 23.vi ft/lbs

The Draft isn't just some other pretty face up - its got the muscle to support its proficient looks.

It should also be noted that for any reason the results of our tests exceeded Thousand&Due north's absolutely bourgeois power estimates of approximately 18 rear wheel horsepower for both the Draft and Aircharger intake systems. Purchase hey, in that location's nothing wrong with being an over achiever, specially when it comes to horsepower, correct?

AEM Cold Air Intake Arrangement

AEM includes everything you lot need to install their full length cold air intake on your 5th Gen, even a replacement washer fluid canteen and an extended MAF harness.

To mix things up a scrap, we also threw in AEM's full length cold air intake into the shootout.

The AEM common cold air intake is a flake of a different brute; instead of placing the filter in the engine bay behind a heat shield like most other intake systems for the fifth Gen Camaro, the AEM snakes the filter all the way down into the driver's side fender, where it can have admission to the coolest ambient air possible, with the thought being that cooler and more dense air will naturally make more power. Now, that being said, nosotros were on the dyno, not the street.

Would this slightly longer intake path produce less ability due to additional restriction, or would the common cold-air location provide a more dense air accuse? Would it even matter on the dyno – because dyno's aren't race tracks and certainly not streets where it really matters.

Certain the AEM Intake takes a few extra steps, only its really non that bad. Because of the way Sunshine's dyno is gear up, nosotros were able to do the install without even taking t car off the dyno lift. To get the filter downwardly in the fenderwell where information technology tin take hold of the coolest air possible, the AEM intake'southward install is a bit more involved.

But to become the filter down in the fender, away from all that power robbing engine heat, takes a bit more piece of work on your behalf. In reality, the install of the AEM system is not that bad, only it is a lot more work than whatever of the K&N systems we tested.

Check out our full story on the install of the AEM Common cold Air intake for all the details, but the basics are that you will need to jack upwards the automobile and remove the driver's side front wheel, accept loose the fender well liner, remove the stock windshield washer bottle, snake the AEM tubing down into the fender, and mount the new washer canteen that AEM includes nether the hood. That is definitely an over simplification of the install process, just but know that it isn't all that bad, it just takes more time than most other intakes.

And once more, check out our install story for all the pace-by-step details.

The AEM intake should be able to scoop some serious air when the car is in motion, just be sure to scout out for puddles of water for obvious reasons. In the instructions AEM recommends that you don't drive with this intake in inclement weather.

Don't instantly disregard the AEM organisation, because the ability it gives upward to the K&N intakes might be gained dorsum in real earth, on-the-road driving conditions.

 So, did all that extra work pay off on the Dynojet? Well, the best answer to that question would be "Yes, and no."

Our exam SS equipped with AEM intake system spun the dyno to the tune of 330.1 horsepower and 347 pound feet of torque.

That's down almost 7 or 8 horsepower and the same amount of torque from the K&North systems, only still a proceeds of 17 rear-cycle-horsepower, and fifteen.v pound feet of torque over Camaro'due south stock numbers. (This is right in the ball role of the gains AEM says you should see with their intake.)

Don't instantly disregard the AEM system, because information technology wouldn't be a stretch to say that most of the power this arrangement gives up to the K&North systems might be gained back in real earth, on-the-road driving conditions, where fast moving ambient air is actually flowing beyond the filter like the organisation is designed for, rather than sitting stationary on the dyno. Plus, whatsoever estrus from the engine compartment wouldn't impact the cold-air location like the standard M&N cold-airs.

Flatly – nosotros should do some runway and real-globe testing to reply this question fully. All the same, in the hateful time, know that on a static chassis dyno, the cold-air intake produced less power than the engine compartment intake most likely due to the longer air path.

• Baseline Rear Wheel HP: 312.9 HP
• Baseline Rear Wheel Torque: 331.5 Ft/Lbs

• AEM Cold Air – Rear Bike HP: 330.10 HP –increase of 17.2 rwhp
• AEM Cold Air–  Rear Wheel Torque: 347.08 Ft/Lbs –increase of sixteen.5 ft/lbs

Corking numbers, but non bang-up compared to the shorter K&N intakes. Just the AEM should gain some of that power back when the automobile actually has cool air moving across the filter when you're driving.

Determination

While it's pretty crawly that you can add effectually xx rear-wheel horsepower to your Camaro just past bolting on an intake organisation, we would love to run into just how far a little bit of tuning would go in maximizing the power potential with whatsoever of these intakes.

Plus, allow's non forget the compounding effect that other mods, such equally headers and a cat-back would take on further freeing up the whole system to gain even more ability.

Overall, we accept to concord with the common sentiment that a cold air intake is one of the all-time bang-for-your-cadet, too every bit blindside-for-your-time bolt-ons that you can do with your fifth Gen Camaro. Cheque out K&N and AEM's websites for more info on how yous tin can become your engine to get with the flow.

The "Rouge Racer" held up similar a champ during our half mean solar day dyno test, and didn't give united states a flake of problem. Thanks over again to Brett Halstead for letting the states crush on his SS in the proper name of scientific discipline, and to Sunshine Performance for all their aid with our shootout.

Just for fun, here is an overlay of all the all-time dyno runs from each intake system.

santoyobineir.blogspot.com

Source: https://www.lsxmag.com/tech-stories/engine/dyno-test-4-kn-vs-aem-5th-gen-camaro-intake-options/

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