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I've thought this several times...thought about posting it here, but never did. Saw Tuned Performance's HSR copy intake for sale and stole his pic to ask what I should have asked awhile ago:
Why are we exposing the runners to Oil/oil temp air....the "oiled areas", with this intake?? That seams like intake manifold heat for no reason/benefit that *I* can see. It would be real easy to weld an aluminum plate on the bottom between the flanges, thus isolating the runners from the "oiled area" and it's temps...then chop out the side walls and let fresh air flow around the runners.
Down sides? I guess I'm thinking about the Kart here, mostly....I suppose under a hood, it'd make little difference.
Something like this might help, I have a street and performance ram intake. Same thing .You would have thought with it or the hsr they would have made a shield. I bet it would help. I’d be curious to know or if the engine heat just sinks into the intake regardless.
Interesting piece. Thanks for sharing that...I didn't know a thing like that was made, for SBC's.
Originally Posted by Tuned Performance
I’d be curious to know or if the engine heat just sinks into the intake regardless.
Great question. I'd submit that under a hood, it'd make essentially, no difference. Between water running through the intake casting itself and that heat transfer, and the ambient air temps under the hood surrounding the intake, I doubt the oil temps under the intake would add a meaningful amount of heat.
Since it IS a "tunnel ram" style intake though, it seems like it has a much better chance of sticking through a hood, or being out in the open as in a "hot rod"...and in that environment, I'd think that it would make a huge difference -especially if the side "walls" were cut out so that air could flow around the runners' full lengths. I think this b/c when I run the Kart, now, when I park it and touch the plenum/runners, they're typically ~100° on a warm/hot day...and cool to the touch on a cooler day....it's basically whatever temp the air is, that day. Plenum and runners. Base is quite a bit warmer, but not HOT, as it is under a typical hood. So anyway, as it relates to temps, the runners an plenum of the TPI are not a lot different than a Tunnel ram where the runners are totally out in the open, above a base or heat shield.
I think when I get to the HSR, I'm going to try welding and chopping, on it.
Ha ha ha....those are some good pieces. You're right that EW didn't like it! He was thoroughly turned off. And the numbers weren't great; 240ish at .4-.5 lift? It's amazing the things seem to produce as well as they do, in operation.
I wonder if there is a meaningful temp diff above it? 
