I live in the Northeast and will be keeping my car on the road in the winter. Is the copper spacer necessary? What advantages does it offer?

 

You would need it. It keeps the throttle body warm and I think it has an on/off valve to shut it off. In temps below 50 F, your TB could freeze up. The copper will keep that from happening.

 

What he said..... three times

 

There's one version with a coolant on/off which you turn on when it gets to 50 F or lower to keep the tb warm. The one with the copper spacer you just install there is no on/off to worry about.

 

Tony of Motordyne has 2 methods of minimizing the temperature of the air as it passes through the plenum neck and into the plenum assembly.

1. The CCV a.k.a. Coolant Control Valve. This said valve is installed into the coolant line. It is then either turn on for flow or turned off to discontinue the flow of hot coolant. During times of warmer outside air temperatures, it is turned off. During times of colder outside air temperatures, less than 55 degrees F, it is turn on. It is turned on to afford coolant flow to the throttle body to avoid the potential of the throttle body butterfly from sticking due to the colder outside air temps.

2. The Copper throttle body spacer serves the same purpose. However, when the said is installed, it never requires to be either turned on nor off. Once it is installed you leave it alone.

The CCV assembly can be adjusted quite easily. Especially, if you have an after market Z tube. The G's OEM intake tube baffle block the CCV for easy adjustment. The CCV is positioned in such a manner that a long flat headed screw driver can access the valve for future on and off adjustments.

 

This is what I've been using for two years with my spacer. Copper gasket
does a better job of insulating your plenum. I also have the valve which I
haven't touched since I installed (off position) My G35 loves the cool weather
and the moist morning air we have here in Ca., at least in the winter.

 

The copper is never "necessary" but it does have its advantages.

The Iso Thermal systems in general are good from the standpoint that it allows your upper and lower plenum assembly to run a lot cooler than normal. Reduced from burning hot to moderatly warm. (30-60'F reduction)
On a 70'F day in souther California, the reduction in temperature adds ~2HP and reduces the tendancy for ping. If you are drivng in really cold weather there will be even more gain from the incomming cold air.

The normal Iso Thermal with the CCV must be switched on or off depending on atmospheric conditions. And when it gets cold outside, the CCV must be turned on. This heats the plenum assembly and the in flow of air at the same time.

With the Copper, you never need to switch it and when it does get really cold outside, you can take greater advantage of the dense cold air because the plenum is never heated.
Our engines love low intake temperatures!

If you lived in a place like Southern California, Texas or Florida, it never gets cold enough to take advantage of the copper. So there isn't much advantage to the copper here. But in the North East, I know how cold it can get. ....Insanely cold!

Cold air like this may not do well for a picnic but our engines likes it a lot.

 

Are the throttle body spacers sold in the group buy compatible with the md copper spacer? Can both be used together without problems?

 

Was wondering the same. That will affect whether i get the spacer with the ccv or the copper spacer.

 

Sure, it will fit no problem. There are already several in use.

 

Just be sure to put the bare Copper side against throttle body and put the ruberized gasket side of the Copper against the TB spacer.

No need to heat the TB spacer.