KappaSphere RED LINE Intake

[JohnD]

Well, it finally came in, and I got it fitted to SPIRIT this morning. I don't know if they will call it a "Cold Air Intake" or not, but it's the same sort of dowacky that is available for the Normal SKY except it is all bent and fit to mount on the other side.

It looks real sharp, and removes a lot of junk from under the hood.

Here are the first five photos - I have plenty more to follow, but this should give you a good idea of "before" and "after". The picture of the two units side-by-side will give you an idea of how much plastic junk was removed from under the hood!

But as of now I have the first pre-production part, it's mounted, and it fits! And, now my car huffs and puffs much more through the Blow-Off Valve. It sounds cool!

More photos (Including installation process) HERE.

[RedSky1]

Any price estimate? or ETA for ordering?

[kwayne]

sound clips too--please

[JohnD]

I will let the KappaSphere guys handle the pricing and availability issues.

As for the sound, I don't think it makes very much difference at all by the time the exhaust comes out the Magnaflow 3.0 inch in the back. Although you are talking to a nearly-deaf guy, so I am probably not the best judge of differences in sound. The only real difference in sound that I hear is in the huffing and chuffing of the blow-off valve... THAT is VERY different now.

[Antonio]

Originally Posted by JohnD

Well, it finally came in, and I got it fitted to SPIRIT this morning. I don't know if they will call it a "Cold Air Intake" or not, but it's the same sort of dowacky that is available for the Normal SKY except it is all bent and fit to mount on the other side.

It looks real sharp, and removes a lot of junk from under the hood.

I have tons of photos, but I need to reduce them and sort them and post them which I promise to do later today.

But as of now I have the first pre-production part, it's mounted, and it fits! And, now my car huffs and puffs much more through the Blow-Off Valve. It sounds cool!

Did they happen to do any HP testing, or have any estimations? Has throttle response changed at all?

Also could you better describe the change in Blow off valve sound? If possible, video w/ sound is best

Thanks man

[akinmb]

what's the word on performance?

[JohnD]

I posted performance based on the ugly, non-polished prototype part. I will post those again below. These were done with the stock exhaust.

My buddies at Magnaflow are waiting on a crazy bend to complete their high-flow catalytic converter for the 3.0 inch exhaust system. As soon as that comes in, SPIRIT will go in and get that installed. By then it will have "learned" the new intake. Magnaflow, I am sure, will dyno SPIRIT again - this time with the combination high-flow cat, 3.0 inch exhaust, and KappaSphere intake. (They might even re-install the factory airbox to test just the Magnaflow components, too, but that's up to them.) And they are VERY good about posting dyno results, so I am sure we will all have some exciting news to review as soon as they get their wacky bent pipe.

But for now, here are the performance gains on the KappaSphere Red Line intake:

[JohnD]

Originally Posted by Antonio

Did they happen to do any HP testing, or have any estimations? Has throttle response changed at all?

Also could you better describe the change in Blow off valve sound? If possible, video w/ sound is best

Thanks man

HP posted above. Throttle response seems about the same (at least so far.)

In terms of the sound of the blow off, now if the car is under boost when I pop the clutch or ease off on the gas I get a very distinct "Huff!" sound. You are driving, accelerating, and the Magnaflow is starting to roar when the boost kicks in... "vroooOOOOOM - Huff!" when you ease up on the gas... I don't know if that makes any sense or not.

In my Normal SKY with the GM CAI and Borla exhaust if you pop the gas real quick you get a "sucking sound" as the car gasps in the air. The sound on the Red Line sounds almost exactly like that, but it happens as the engine is winding down having eased up on the clutch or accelerator (versus as the engine begins to wind up when you pop the gas on the Normal SKY.) I don't know if that helps or not, but that's the best I can describe it.

As for a video, I am currently technologically impaired (having invested in still camera gear recently.) I will try to use my little MP3 player as an MP3 recorder - I am told it can do that. But that project will have to wait until the weekend.

[Antonio]

hmmm, 10HP and 10lbs of torque off stock exhaust. I'm guessing slightly smaller numbers with the Magnaflow, but still nice improvements for just an intake.

That high flow cat is definitely the deal maker. The new cat should greatly improve the 2 together.

[JohnD]

Pics added to top of thread... More close-ups and installation photos to follow.

Also, please note - this is a pre-production part that I am testing out. The actual production could vary in any number of ways. This is just to give you an idea of where product development is now at this point in time.

And, I gotta tell you, it's pretty amazing to see this stuff behind the scenes. All the little details about getting the right bushings and clamps and hoses and stuff. Soooo many little things that take so much time that you never think about and certainly never get to see...

The KappaSphere guys really are top-notch, and they want to make sure that it is absolutely right. That's something that I am willing to pay for.

[Roadie Rob]

If I took my old Fujita, dual CAI and cut the chrome pipe before the split, it would be close to looking like this - including the orange Fujita badging. (pic 1)

Also, the setup is just like my new Hahn intake. Same bend, same position on my intake. Wokrs great on mine! (pic 2...my Sky after I sent my car to BALCO for some topical cream with Mr. Bonds )

[Superman]

Very cool news, John! Can't wait to see what the final product and price are like. Fairly decent gains there. You should notice a little bit of difference in the 'pep' of the engine if you're gaining 11 ft. lbs of torque.

[SpecRaceM5]

We had the pleasure of having John bring his Redline to our shop yesterday morning. The end result was fantastic. The sounds this car makes now are not for the faint of heart. The movement of air is comparable to a category 5 hurricane. Maybe not quite but it sure does sound awesome. I made the mistake yesterday of telling John that the BOV was making the strange new noise he heard, when in fact it is an internal waste gate. The more you spool up the turbo, the louder the waste gate sounds off when you let off the gas. It is releasing pressure build up from the turbo. The reason it is more noticeable now is because the greater volume of air being sucked in by the turbo. More air = more power! Hopefully we will have a production piece in here very soon with the last of the little tweaks. John is right in that it takes a lot of work to develop a new product, especially one of this magnitude. We appreciate everyone's patience.

Brian

[Ernest]

Interested, if it isn't to pricey

[williams.2277]

Brian that doesn’t sound right to me, the waste gate is in the exhaust, it opens to let exhaust flow from the manifold to the exhaust system with out going threw the turbo. It doesn’t release pressure from the turbo on the compressor side. I think the sound you here when you close the throttle plate after being under boost is the Bypass Valve it functions just like a blow off valve but instead of releasing the air to the atmosphere it releases it back to the low pressure side of the compressor housing. The reason you hear it more is the stock intake muffled the sound and with the new intake there is nothing to muffle the sound. This is not a bad thing; some people pay for that sound, check this out.
http://www.takakaira.co.jp/accessori...ightpager.html

[JohnD]

Originally Posted by williams.2277

This is not a bad thing; some people pay for that sound, check this out.
http://www.takakaira.co.jp/accessori...ightpager.html

That is HILARIOUS!

(Sound's like mine, too!)

[masssrt]

nice numbers, like 15 whp all across, and the af curve looks alomost smoother! I'm impressed by these things!

[mikecronis]

Were these dyno charts coppied from another website or are they your own? They look too clean to be actual scans from printouts.

[JohnD]

Originally Posted by mikecronis

Were these dyno charts coppied from another website or are they your own? They look too clean to be actual scans from printouts.

Those are my own. I have the hardcopy printouts, and I scanned them in our our flat bed scanner. They are numbers as recorded on SPIRIT.