Hey guys, I'm looking to get a Z-Tube very soon and I want to make sure I have it down right on sound and performance.

If I go with the plastic Z-tube, the air should be cooler than that flowing in from a polished z-tube correct? Will a polished z-tube affect my car that much to the point where I would feel a difference over a plastic z-tube?

I've read that the metal intakes will pull heat from the engine bay and heat the air inside going to the engine. If this is the case I'll go with the plastic z-tube and stock air filter. I prefer the stock filter over the k&n drop in because it catches more dust/dirt from going into the engine.

the reason i would choose the polished z-tube is primarily over aesthetics more so because it gives the engine a little bling that it's missing with the hulky cover.

thoughts?

 

i prefer plastic..but thats just cause i dont like "bling"
IMHO i think one chrome thing in your engine looks kinda off
unless you plan on chroming you entire engine lol then its just
out of place if you ask me
but to each their own, so whatever floats your boat

but you wont feel any difference with a ztube anyway

you might THINK you feel a difference cause of the improved sound lol

but this mod is almost purely for the sound benefits

then again if youre planning on keeping the stock air filter i really dont think theres any point in getting a ztube at all. i doubt it will make a sound difference..

anyone with ztube + stock air filter care to chime in?? lol i DOUBT there is a single person on this forum that has a ztube with stock air filter though..

ztube + k&n is a VERY popular combo amongst people on this thread..ive never really heard any complaints about this..i have this set up too and i love it

 

The weight reduction from taking a **** will have more of a difference than from changing from OEM Z-tube to polished. And I"m also with aHero4Eternity... I'm also not one for "bling". I'd rather show off with real motor mods than eye candy.

But to each their own, whatever rocks your socks.

 

Well my initial concern is to do it for the sound benefits. The reason why I want the stock filter was because I seen a graph that showed the amount of dust/dirt K&N filters allowed into the engine. Over time this makes for a very dirty engine.

If it must be the K&N drop in then so be it tho. LOL

 

If its for sound, then this isnt the mod for you. I'll be impressed if you can actually hear difference. For sound just get a popcharger or Stillen intake (like I did) and be done with it. As for having a dirty engine... you'll be fine with your regular engine maintanance. When I first got my Stillen intake and motordyne 5/16 spacer, I was REALLY happy! At WOT, it was a monster! I loved it! But after a while, it gets boring. You might end up like most people and get bit by the mod bug and start changing out your headers, cats, and exhaust

 

i heard a sound difference with my k&n plus ztube. not huge difference but noticeable. take the power duct off then the sound is much better at WOT. lastly, a 5/16" spacer will give you an agreesive sound.

no power duct = free sound and fun!
(theres a lot of debate on whether it hurts your low end torque tho..i dont feel any difference) as for temperatures..at idle you may be running a little warmer but once you start going again youll get cooler air and everything should be fine

 

polish........depends on what kind of look you are going for

 

Unless your going to have other items under hood
that are polished I'd go with the regular Z-tube.
You need to decide what "LOOK" that your going
for.....bling or cool!

 

You're wrong on two things there..

First, I do have the polished z-tube with stock filter AND it does make a VERY!! noticable difference above 4k RPMs.

 

like what Raize2k said... you will notice a sound difference... because the ztube eliminates the sound baffles (or whatever you want to call it) that the Gtube comes with (the baffles make it quieter)

 

i didnt notice any difference at all. maybe its just me. i assumed i didnt hear any difference cause the stock air filter allows less air flow..but in my defense i did say i doubt theres any sound difference..nothin written in stone here guys just offering my two cents. perhaps it does make a sound difference and im just deaf

as for feeling differences..i doubt it as well. IMHO i personally think it might feel more powerful b/c its louder and we generally think more sound = more power which is true in a lot of cases..

butt if your butt-dyno says so..then sure i guess

but IMHO this kind of mod is all mental..

but whatever i dont wanna argue about this..

if you wanna go ztube + stock air filter be my guest

good luck with everything

 

You're wrong on so many things. When I changed to a Z-tube, my butt-dyno showed about 7hp increase. Then I put a K&N sticker on it, and gained about 5hp on top of that. When I swapped out for a pollished tube, it was actually an increase over the Ztube WITH THE STICKER! I'm thinking about upgrading to a carbon fiber tube... and I"m expecting a whopping 25hp increase and for it to sound like a supercharger... just because I spent more money

You know what, I just thought of something. Sound is created by vibration of air. What if someone were to take something like an ARC intake chamber and custom fit it into a G35 intake system! I might try this! I think I might have an ARC intake chamber lying around somewhere that might do the trick. Larger volume means more air vibration, which will create a deeper louder tone!... and it would look intimidating as hell!!!! As for performance... tubes dont matter. Z tube or G tube... no improvements even show up on a dyno. The improvements are all theory, and so small that a dyno cant tell.

 

^^holy crap you scared me. i read that firt sentence and was like oh ****..am i gonna get flamed? haha damn dont scare me like that "You're wrong on so many things" is something i never wanna hear lol

 

so i'm off the buy some stickers. LOL

anyhow, I'll lurk around some more and try to see what the general consensus is from those with this mod. It seems as though it's one of the first things people do, until they realized they should've gone another route, like a CAI