violacleff Posted August 29, 2004 Share Posted August 29, 2004 Are there any major disadvantages to using stainless steel over aluminum? I bought SS piping, but after talking to the guys over at Road Race, I'm thinking perhaps I should have gone with aluminum for cooler air. Any opinions? BTW whats the justification for the price of silicone hoses? I had to pay $45 bucks for a 45 deg bend!! (don't really need an answer to that just bitching). One other thing. Is there any preferred brand or specific electric fan that is best for my setup, with 2 1/2" piping? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Z-Gad Posted August 29, 2004 Share Posted August 29, 2004 Aluminum dissipates heat more quickly than ss and it is significantly lighter as well. Shoulda contacted Hoover at http://www.turbohoses.com He takes of us Z guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bastaad525 Posted August 29, 2004 Share Posted August 29, 2004 Yeah a lot of people argue that the SS retains the heat too much and lessens your I/C's efficiency. I ended up going with SS myself... a lot of guys do use SS so I have to think it's not some really dramatic effect. I know when I put my hands against the pipe going into the I/C and pipe going out there is a HUGE difference there, for whatever that's worth. I really want to get one of these radar thermometers and see what the efficiency is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
violacleff Posted August 29, 2004 Author Share Posted August 29, 2004 Hmm I still have the piping in the box and receipt. Perhaps I should send it back and get the aluminum. I hate to do things twice. I will be running 15-16 lbs. of boost regurlarly. BTW, I did contact hoover. His guy said he was giving me the Z car discount. Well the price of the bend was $45 bucks. He never told me what the discount was, but the total with shipping was $50 I work in sales. I know what the special discount is. Retail price with the feeling that you got the special discount. Oh well at least I had a cool Z chat with the salesman. Anyway am I paranoid? Should I just do things right? Send the SS back and get aluminum? What do the rest of you guys think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clifton Posted August 29, 2004 Share Posted August 29, 2004 As long as the intercooler is aluminum and not SS I wouldn't worry to much. A 2-2.5" diameter pipe isn't going to disapate to much heat. The charge air is moving to fast for it to benifit from it. I used mild steel, it is thin wall so it's fairly light and is easier to weld than aluminum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted August 29, 2004 Share Posted August 29, 2004 What Clifton said... If the heat exchanging ability of the IC piping is critical to your installation, then your IC is too small. Aluminim tubing is used by the racing community for weight issues. You can come very close to the same weight with thin wall stainless or mild steel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SHO-Z Posted August 29, 2004 Share Posted August 29, 2004 There is no difference in the heat loss between Aluminum and SS from the surface to the air. The SS will hold more heat in the metal due the weigh difference and the thermal conductivity of the SS is about 30 compared to 117 for aluminum. Aluminum would be preferred from a heat transfer point on view. I really do not thing that you would see any significant difference in the air temp into the engine between the two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted August 30, 2004 Share Posted August 30, 2004 It's close enough to a wash, I say. Aluminum moves heat faster. Both in and out. Aluminum can heat the air faster and cool the air than SS. So in your case it should be a wash. As long as the IC is aluminum don't fret. At least with SS you wont get pitting and corrosion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bastaad525 Posted August 30, 2004 Share Posted August 30, 2004 Yep... all the reasons why I went with SS... because it will never corrode or deteriorate, it was easier to get welded, and the common consensus is that it wont make enough diff in intake temps to matter. Stick with the stainless bro. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt_Zorro Posted August 30, 2004 Share Posted August 30, 2004 I've been making stainless steel air intakes for the Lincoln LS for the last two or three months and the main disadvantage I've found is that it is hard on tooling. It'll wear out a bandsaw blade or a cutter on a lathe in no time. Advantage is that it'll look the same from now on without having to polish it all the time. It will weld nice if you know what you are doing and purge the inside of the tube when you weld it. Adios Amigos, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
violacleff Posted August 30, 2004 Author Share Posted August 30, 2004 I feel a lot better now. Well then, its off to get my piping beaded and polished. Thanks for the tips guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
violacleff Posted September 1, 2004 Author Share Posted September 1, 2004 OK, I take back what I said about the salesman giving me a "you get the z car discount" line over the phone. I just got my 45" hose from turbohoses.com and he did give me 20% off. I still can't figure out the justification of prices for silicone, but I guess that's the cost for performance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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