[LTZ Chev's]

Ok. So I have another thread about wanting to open up the exhaust on my 10 LTZ V6. I also want to do a CAI. But, as seems the case for Malibu aftermarket, I am having a hard time finding anything. I have looked at previous threads on this subject and have a question....

Can I simply remove the "stock" air intake, gut it to make it less restrictive (my manual says it has 9 sound attenuators in it, which "sounds" to me like air "road blocks"), make sure the air flow sensor stays intact (hopefully eliminating any "lean condition" codes from popping up) and run with it? The position of the intake on my 3.6 seems optimal as is to pull in cold air if i chop the 1/2 of the air box off closest to the right tire, utilizing the part of the air box closest to the motor as a heat shield so to speak and attach a K&N cone filter somehow?

Is this too nube a question? Has it been tried?

Let me know, I would love to do this when I open up the exhaust.

Thanks in advance for the responses (hopefully....)

 

[Silver LTZ]

You could try that, and it SHOULD help. But most likely you won't feel a thing, and if it throws a code you gotta get a new airbox.

 

[elcompaLalo]

I've heard of a mod like that being done on the OEM intake of a newer Silverado. Those sound attenuators were clipped off and then patched up the holes with a plastic welder. I know it is hard to say something like that is easy to get a hold of but with the proper tools I don't see why you can't make it happen on the Malibu's OEM intake.

Of course, you might want to get one to experiment with and keep your original in case something goes bad.

 

[LTZ Chev's]

I've heard of a mod like that being done on the OEM intake of a newer Silverado. Those sound attenuators were clipped off and then patched up the holes with a plastic welder. I know it is hard to say something like that is easy to get a hold of but with the proper tools I don't see why you can't make it happen on the Malibu's OEM intake.

Of course, you might want to get one to experiment with and keep your original in case something goes bad.

That is a good idea. I will start keeping an eye out at the junk yards and see if I can find a 2008+ 3.6 liter and pull one out to mess with. UNLESS someone decides to manufacture one for our community! HINT HINT K&N, are you listening, can you see me????????

 

[Silver LTZ]

HINT HINT K&N, are you listening, can you see me????????

Never gonna happen. We had a huge thread and had about 50 members email them. Nothing....

 

[CJOliver90]

Dont know if this helps you guys since it looks like you have the 3.6 but for those with the 3.5 V6 K&N part number 69-7202-1TTK, will fit i have it on mine with no issues.

 

[EnvoyBu]

Does it sound a little different?

 

[Joeyavhu]

I have a Chrome Intakes CAI from eBay, its pretty good. It was $60.00 but is constructed from very good quality materials and has not let me down once.

 

[EnvoyBu]

I have a Chrome Intakes CAI from eBay, its pretty good. It was $60.00 but is constructed from very good quality materials and has not let me down once.

Any videos?

 

[Joeyavhu]

No, only of the exhaust, and it didn't have the intake then. Ill make one, you probably wont be able to hear the intake much though, the exhaust is pretty loud

 

[CJOliver90]

Does it sound a little different?

Yes you can clearly hear a difference, louder and throatier, and if used in conjuction with a throttle body spacer, you can hear the whistle really well when reving past 3k. sounds great.

 

[CJOliver90]

Also if anyone is going to buy it, K&N wanted $321.00 but i got it on amazon for 250 shipped. and it came in original sealed packaging. and backed up by amazon, so no worries

 

[thomasthetank]

http://www.crabintakes.com/products.html

This site actually sells a cold air intake kit for the 3.6l vvt for the g6. It looks to me to be the same setup as in the malibu. Any thoughts on whether this would work for us with little or no modification?

 

[DrivenDaily]

If it fits it shouldn't pose any issues. Apparently the V6 is more tolerant of mods to the intake than the I4. The factory intake is already a CAI. Its air comes from the right inner fender. The delivery tube is plastic and has a couple little "bottles" welded onto it in strategic locations. They help reduce noises similar to blowing across the top of a Coke bottle creates them, but in reverse. A crab tube will be smoother inside (we hope) so it should reduce turbulence some, and the bends should be smoother since they're formed instead of the factory accordion-style POS. The crab also eliminates the "bottles" so it should also be a cleaner looking installation.

I would tend to think an improvement in overall flow at high RPMs could be achieved by taking the stock airhorn off the outside of the airbox and making the hole larger.

 

[that other chevy guy]

hey there! i got a question about this CAI situation...im driving 140 ish miles to work everyday (all very boring highway) with mine and im looking to increase mpg while also enabling some extra ponies under the hood. does anyone know of a real change in mpg or are we talking just performance. im figuring a CAI would help with mpg due to the lack of restriction on the intake....but i know every strong motor likes its clean cool air

 

[Drunken Elvis]

A cold air intake will not increase fuel economy.

 

[DrivenDaily]

You already have a CAI, but as you mention, it is full of restrictions and noise-abatement paraphernalia. Any time you improve the flow of the air you'll benefit somehow, although with the intake tube it may be negligible.

I took the intake horn that is inside the fender off of my current car. Now between 2000-2500 rpm I'll get a slight groan that I can hear inside the cabin but I doubt anyone outside can/will hear it.

My plan for the air tube is to move the battery to the trunk and shorten the entire tube by having it pull air from the driver's side of the car, where the TB is. Kinda makes me think the designers designed the car for the 4-cylinder, and since the TB is in the center of the engine it was a coin-toss on which side to put it. But then they built the V6 and had to come up with an air supply, and lo and behold it was clear over thar in another county! Sure, they could have reversed the intake manifold but that would have required more beans than the bean-counters had so they opted for more plastic and routed it right across the radiator (heat source) and above the catalytic converter (heat source).

 

[duercos]

You already have a CAI, but as you mention, it is full of restrictions and noise-abatement paraphernalia. Any time you improve the flow of the air you'll benefit somehow, although with the intake tube it may be negligible.

I tool the intake horn that is inside the fender off of my current car. Now between 2000-2500 rpm I'll get a slight groan that I can hear inside the cabin but I doubt anyone outside can/will hear it.

My plan for the air tube is to move the battery to the trunk and shorten the entire tube by having it pull air from the driver's side of the car, where the TB is. Kinda makes me think the designers designed the car for the 4-cylinder, and since the TB is in the center of the engine it was a coin-toss on which side to put it. But then they built the V6 and had to come up with an air supply, and lo and behold it was clear over thar in another county! Sure, they could have reversed the intake manifold but that would have required more beans than the bean-counters had so they opted for more plastic and routed it right across the radiator (heat source) and above the catalytic converter (heat source).

Interesting) But why did you remove the intake "horn"? what purpose does it serve though?) It has a few weird compartments and an opening that faces the bumper inside.. I still don't get their idea of it)

BTW why don't you swap airbox with the battery? shorter cables is better)

 

[DrivenDaily]

Putting the battery to the rear will help balance the weight distribution to aid in slightly better handling. If I use a large enough positive cable to the starter and then something similar up to the existing location for the fuse box, I don't think there will be enough of a voltage drop to worry about, and then I've removed the entire battery from the engine compartment. That makes the whole thing easier to do since I can move the battery for one project and then do the air box later on instead of having to do both at the same time.

I took the horn off to reduce any restrictions getting air into the air box. Eventually I expect to make the hole bigger and maybe add a "velocity stack" to smooth the airflow past the sharp edges, but that's not a certainty.

The idea behind putting all those chambers is to dampen noises. It's part of the NVH effort. I like the noise.

 

[duercos]

Putting the battery to the rear will help balance the weight distribution to aid in slightly better handling. If I use a large enough positive cable to the starter and then something similar up to the existing location for the fuse box, I don't think there will be enough of a voltage drop to worry about, and then I've removed the entire battery from the engine compartment. That makes the whole thing easier to do since I can move the battery for one project and then do the air box later on instead of having to do both at the same time.

I took the horn off to reduce any restrictions getting air into the air box. Eventually I expect to make the hole bigger and maybe add a "velocity stack" to smooth the airflow past the sharp edges, but that's not a certainty.

The idea behind putting all those chambers is to dampen noises. It's part of the NVH effort. I like the noise.

That's true, but on the other hand, it'sa FWD car, which will benefit under front load when accelerating (better grip) and during snow season. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the airbox though, even though mine is 4 cyl and my intake pipe is shorter, I will remove those plastic cubes and a "horn" and just make a duct from the fog light hole straight to existing airbox..