Throttle body spacer

[jerdog]

Thinking of giving one of these a try to boost performance on the TV. Anyone have experience with these or have any input?

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by jerdog

Thinking of giving one of these a try to boost performance on the TV. Anyone have experience with these or have any input?

And... what is it supposed to accomplish?

Lower the resonant frequency of the intake plenum? Make the MAF/air cleaner assembly harder to service?

[Camper_bob]

I've heard they're a gimmick, but I've always been intrigued. I'm interested to hear if anyone has any first-hand experience/feedback. I've often thought about putting one on DW's XTerra.

[Iraqvet05]

I've heard they are a gimmick too. If you want a little more performance from a GM, look into Black Bear Performance reprogrammed ECMs. I installed one last year and it made a noticeable difference in my 6.0.

[RedHorse1]

What is your TV?
IMHO most simple bolt-on engine performance enhancers are mostly snake oil. Surf forums discussing your TV and see what other folks are adding, what benefits they "claim" they get and what application the vehicle sees (highway, city, towing, racing...).
I owned an '06 Mustang 4.6 for a few years and considered adding a cold air intake which would also require re-tuning the computer. At the end of the day I decided against it. Since I was pushing 60 yrs I figured it was fast enough as-is. My point is to gain 15-20 hp I would wind up spending $1000 or more.
And my "resonant frequency of the intake plenum" was low enough.

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by RedHorse1

...snip...And my "resonant frequency of the intake plenum" was low enough.

No joke. The intake runners are tuned so that when the shock wave in the incoming caused by the closing of the intake valve(s) bounces off the back of the throttle plate, the reflected shockwave helps push more air into that cylinder.

Of course that is most effective when the engine is operated at the correct RPMs.

So, if you increase the distance from the intake valve(s) to the throttle plate, the shockwave will take longer to reflect back, therefore lowering the RPM's that allow the most efficient operation.

Save fuel? Increase performance? Confuse the Computer? Make it harder to work on? Make money for the pushers?

Yes, I'd like to hear some 1st hand accounts too.

[jerdog]

Thanks guys. I was thinking it was a gimmick. I'll save my money and time.
I wanted to put a K&N intake system on it like I had on my 2000 Silverado but it is not legal here in good old Calif. I just put a K&N filter in the stock air box and that will have to suffice.

[jerdog]

Originally Posted by RedHorse1

What is your TV?
IMHO most simple bolt-on engine performance enhancers are mostly snake oil. Surf forums discussing your TV and see what other folks are adding, what benefits they "claim" they get and what application the vehicle sees (highway, city, towing, racing...).
I owned an '06 Mustang 4.6 for a few years and considered adding a cold air intake which would also require re-tuning the computer. At the end of the day I decided against it. Since I was pushing 60 yrs I figured it was fast enough as-is. My point is to gain 15-20 hp I would wind up spending $1000 or more.
And my "resonant frequency of the intake plenum" was low enough.

I have a 2013 GMC 1500 Sierra with the 5.3L engine

[rangerdoc]

Originally Posted by jerdog

Thanks guys. I was thinking it was a gimmick. I'll save my money and time.
I wanted to put a K&N intake system on it like I had on my 2000 Silverado but it is not legal here in good old Calif. I just put a K&N filter in the stock air box and that will have to suffice.

Not legal? I know there are a lot of car guys that modify their cars out there and still pass inspection. Get your self a handheld tuner so you can get the most out of your engine. But yeah, don't waste your money on the spacer. That is one bolt on I refuse to do to my car. I bet there is a super charger out there that would fit your engine!!!

[DocBrown]

Peruse various GM forums about this. Pretty much everything I've read suggests that any physical mods need to be accompanied by programming mods to the PCM.

[TWP723]

Better off with a K&N Filter Charger.

[jerdog]

[QUOTE=TWP723;355223]Better off with a K&N Filter Charger.[/QUOTE

I do realize that, having had K&N filters in all my vehicles for the last 20 years.

If I knew of a way to get around the stringent smog laws here in the land of fruits and nuts, I would do the system.

[Gone campin]

I have been tuning GM fuel injected cars and trucks for over 10 years and I can tell you that the spacers make negligible difference - I tried one on the dyno one night just for giggles on a relatively stock Camaro. The concept of increasing the intake manifold volume behind the throttle body causing an increase in torque is correct, but the volume increase that spacer makes isn't enough to make a difference. If you look at the design difference in intakes, the truck intakes make more torque than the cars because of the volume difference and runner length difference - but the car intakes make more upper RPM horsepower.

It is also true (to some extent) that you have to tune the computer to see ALL of the gains of modifications like cold air kits and exhaust mods - you will get some of the gains without tuning. Big modifications like cams/heads/superchargers/turbos all require extensive computer tuning.

As for tuning, be careful with the handhelds - if you don't know what you are doing, you can hurt your engine. I can vouch for Blackbear tuning - he knows what he is doing.

And, so you can see that I know what I'm talking about - attached is a pic of my street driven Trans Am (now sold) that regularly ran mid-9's at the track - built it and tuned it myself

[PlayersZ28]

GC is right, majority of bolt-ons will only add a small amount of horsepower and you'll need a sensitive butt to tell the difference. Most of the performance gains are found in the bottom line of companies such as K&N and not in your vehicle. You will get a small mpg gain out of an intake and exhaust but you'd have to drive the wheels off it to get a payback. The stock ECM can handle the changes from exhaust and intake without a tuner. I've tuned a number of GM's and I use HPTuners, plugin units with canned tunes are a waste of money on a gasser.

[Seann45]

If the spacers really worked to improve mileage don't you think the manufactures would put them on at the factory to improve corporate fuel numbers??!!

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by Seann45

If the spacers really worked to improve mileage don't you think the manufactures would put them on at the factory to improve corporate fuel numbers??!!

Can this not be said for virtually any aftermarket improvement? It seems like since fuel prices went up and even before then, people have been looking for another mpg. And the Feds have been pretty aggressive with fuel economy standards. Seems like if there were an aftermarket part or process ou there that could make a difference, it would only be a matter of time before the OEMs find a way to make it work on production vehicles.

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by Seann45

If the spacers really worked to improve mileage don't you think the manufactures would put them on at the factory to improve corporate fuel numbers??!!

Point!

Set and Match.