Painted LS6 pics :)

[rapter34]

I just got my LS6 intake on just wanted to post some pics. I painted the lid and air box gloss black as well I just have to wait to get a good pic when its light out.

http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa271/madcityTA/IMG_1198.jpg
http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa271/madcityTA/IMG_1197.jpg

[lvbroham1]

Looks Good!

[01ws6er]

Looks GREAT!!!!

how long did it take you, and what paint did you use? Any wet sanding? I'm thinkin about painting mine when I do my lifter/ cam swap.

[rapter34]

I used Duplicolor rattle cans. I did wet sand it was a pain but it made i look a lot nicer. it took about 3 weeks because you have to let the primer and the paint cure for a week. thats why i did it in the winter. hope that helps.

[kev70ss]

looks good, how long did it take to sand off the texture?

[allbaugh_04]

I'm in the process right now and it's not easy.

[rapter34]

take your time with sanding. you want to be happy with something that you will see every time you open your hood. I used 100 grit, 350 grit, 600 grit. than wet sanded with 2000.
O here are some pics with the lid and airbox the pics did not really come out that well but you get the idea.
http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa271/madcityTA/engine2.jpg
http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa271/madcityTA/engine1.jpg

[Firebirdjones]

Hmmmm,,,,why would anyone want to paint the intake????:think:

Once you do that your intake looses alot of it's ability to disipate heat,,,,one of the reasons GM went with plastic in the first place.

I know you guys are trying to make it look good but,,,,,
Just seems counter productive to me.

[allbaugh_04]

does a layer of paint really hold in that much heat?

[rapter34]

all I know is that someone on here painted their FAST intake and still got 35HP gain off it. I really don't think the paint makes that much of a difference.

[allbaugh_04]

all I know is that someone on here painted their FAST intake and still got 35HP gain off it. I really don't think the paint makes that much of a difference.

yea, lets hear more stories like this

[ubnsmkd]

very clean loooking under ur hood nice job

[Firebirdjones]

does a layer of paint really hold in that much heat?

Yes it will retain heat with paint,,,how much is hard to say, but it does seem counter productive to me to diminish the affect of dissipating the heat in anyway, shape, or form.

It's one reason why people stay away from the Weiand intakes,,,,made of aluminum. They retain more heat than the plastic intakes.

When ever you powder coat, or paint the plastic intakes it won't allow them to dissipate heat as well.

This was looked into many many years ago on old gen 1 motors with aluminum intakes. People like to powder coat them, clear coat them etc....because bare aluminum is hard to keep looking nice and they were easier to clean. But they retained more heat as a result.

I don't see why the plastic would be any different.

As far as HP,,,you probably wouldn't see a difference on a chassis dyno, with the hood up etc....or an engine dyno either,,,,,,
Where the difference would come into play is day to day driving with the hood shut, sitting in traffic, shutting the motor off and heat soaking it, starting it 15 minutes later,,,,,,,that sort of thing. The race track is where you would see the affects of heat soak.

It's common knowledge that heat and fuel/air intake don't mix well.
Anything to do with the air intake system and fuel system you want to keep as cool as possible. It's ability to dissipate heat is also another factor to consider. Just something to think about.
Probably doesn't matter for most with mild street cars. But it's an interesting subject to me that I haven't seen discussed here. And there are an awful lot of people here coating there intakes.


Oh, sorry to distract attention away from your original intentions. Intake looks great, takes alot of work. Cheers.

[Firebirdjones]

Here's an idea.....

Get one of your buddies that doesn't have an intake coated,,,,run both cars until hot and park them side by side.

Shoot the intakes with a heat gun every 5 minutes or so and see which one,,,,if any,,,,retains heat longer. This would probably be more real world. Just thinking out loud here... :dunno:

[allbaugh_04]

i'm sure it does. i'm not saying it doesn't, i know it can't be much of a difference though

[rapter34]

all i know is that from the LS1 to a Painted LS6 is a big difference at the higher ends. the minimal loss from the paint I feel is worth it looking good. I talked to my mechanic friend and he said that the paint I used transfers heat pretty well. he said the most I would be losing is like 2-3 HP. its up to each individual person I guess. any way im happy with the outcome.

[LS1buckey]

looks real good man. would the heat transfer be an issue with painting the air box?

[allbaugh_04]

all i know is that from the LS1 to a Painted LS6 is a big difference at the higher ends. the minimal loss from the paint I feel is worth it looking good. I talked to my mechanic friend and he said that the paint I used transfers heat pretty well. he said the most I would be losing is like 2-3 HP. its up to each individual person I guess. any way im happy with the outcome.

I don't even think it'd be that much..but i have no clue. I just finished painting mine...I'll start a new thread tomorrow and show the results...it looks pretty good

[rapter34]

the most annoying part was once I took all the time to make the paint perfect. you scratch it when putting it in because its so crowded under the hood.