edelbrock air gap divider and FITech

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LJ67barracuda340

LJ67barracuda340

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Since I had to take the 340 apart again i'm thinking of cutting the divider on my Air Gap down 1/4" to maybe get a better more balanced signal to the FITech throttle body. Has anyone had bad (or good ) results with this operation. I dont have the hood clearance to use a spacer.
thanks Larry
 
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Thanks,, I'm not really looking for any performance gain just getting a good signal to the FITech. Right now the space is the thickness of the gasket, .0625 more with the spacer. Do you feel either is enough for the MAP sensor signal or wouldn't it matter even if it was sealed off to only 4 cylinders. I hadn't fully learned yet but it seems to go rich AFR's really easily.
 
The new batches have been produced with it cut down already from Edelbrock and I have seen it done on intakes for GM and Ford too. The early run didn't have it notched.

airgap plenum.jpg
 
LJ67barracuda340 said:
Thanks,, I'm not really looking for any performance gain just getting a good signal to the FITech. Right now the space is the thickness of the gasket, .0625 more with the spacer. Do you feel either is enough for the MAP sensor signal or wouldn't it matter even if it was sealed off to only 4 cylinders. I hadn't fully learned yet but it seems to go rich AFR's really easily.
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Is this a known problem? Been following all of the FItech/Sniper conversations, but this is the first I have heard of this and I have an older air gap.
 
plumkrazee70 said:
Is this a known problem? Been following all of the FItech/Sniper conversations, but this is the first I have heard of this and I have an older air gap.
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To address all above...
Its more piece of mind. There have been no documented issues i have found where cutting down the divider helped with any issues. Its simply an observation that if the divider is sealed to the TB, it could only be pulling from 1/2 for a MAP signal. Does that matter? doesn't appear so. EFI typically doesn't care if its on a dual, single, or divided.

I'd run it as is, if you want to play with lowering the divider, i'd buy the spacer first. but thats all for the user to make the call on.

fyi...customers lower their dividers all the time, yes, but if you buy a new SB airgap right now...its going to look like this. I have never opened the box to find one cut down already.
c893725b-4fee-40ab-beec-01105ede55e7

RPM Air Gap 340/360 Intake Manifold Edelbrock 7576 - Pace Performance Parts

upload_2017-5-12_13-47-7.png
 
Johnny Pace said:
To address all above...
Its more piece of mind. There have been no documented issues i have found where cutting down the divider helped with any issues. Its simply an observation that if the divider is sealed to the TB, it could only be pulling from 1/2 for a MAP signal. Does that matter? doesn't appear so. EFI typically doesn't care if its on a dual, single, or divided.

I'd run it as is, if you want to play with lowering the divider, i'd buy the spacer first. but thats all for the user to make the call on.

fyi...customers lower their dividers all the time, yes, but if you buy a new SB airgap right now...its going to look like this. I have never opened the box to find one cut down already.
c893725b-4fee-40ab-beec-01105ede55e7

RPM Air Gap 340/360 Intake Manifold Edelbrock 7576 - Pace Performance Parts

View attachment 1715046887
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not an expert by any means, but everything I`ve read says they work best w/ an open plenum single plane. have done a fair amount of research on this, I have a fast 2.0 on mine, w/ a hogged out torquer 2 under it. A lot of people just don`t know for sure, like me.
 
famous bob said:
not an expert by any means, but everything I`ve read says they work best w/ an open plenum single plane. have done a fair amount of research on this, I have a fast 2.0 on mine, w/ a hogged out torquer 2 under it. A lot of people just don`t know for sure, like me.
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The Fast isnt exactly in my top ten, neither is a torquer....but to digress, I'd say probably 70 percent of fitech units in the field are on dual planes.....a fitech or sniper simply "doesn't care". We send these out the door installed on engines all day. And I can tell you, none of them have single plane intakes, and none of them have any issues in the field. I fully acknowledge the thought process of an open spacer to equalize the sides, but I have yet to see it really matter.
 
Johnny, I understand and have read the FITech statements, but they don't exactly address the divider issue. If I get it installed again it's for the last time ,,,I hope. Thanks for the help,, I guess I'll just have to make a choice between the spacer and cutting the divider and that'll be that. Leaning toward leaving it alone.
 
Get yourself a 1/2" open spacer and try with and without.
 
Where does the sensors reside in the FiTech TB? Is open/closed going to effect flow to that sensor..
 
Opening it won't change anything because as long as the flow is a consistent reference, the unit tunes around that.
 
r
Johnny Pace said:
The Fast isnt exactly in my top ten, neither is a torquer....but to digress, I'd say probably 70 percent of fitech units in the field are on dual planes.....a fitech or sniper simply "doesn't care". We send these out the door installed on engines all day. And I can tell you, none of them have single plane intakes, and none of them have any issues in the field. I fully acknowledge the thought process of an open spacer to equalize the sides, but I have yet to see it really matter.
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----------I don`t have a lot of time on my engine yet, but I have no problems w/ the fast 2.0, so far. the torquer is the best for hood clearance I can do. The aircleaner is about 3/8" from the bottom of my 6 pack scoop. the four corners runners of the torquer are the low flowing ones, especially the rear, equalize them and its not as terrible as you think. will out flow an rpm , which is taller. I just don`t have room for it or anything else, unless I go to a smaller air cleaner. I think 505 cubes need a good flowing filter.---just another combination, and opinion. the 2.0 has 8 injectors in it, I don`t like the dual plane just for that reason to start with.
 
famous bob said:
r
----------I don`t have a lot of time on my engine yet, but I have no problems w/ the fast 2.0, so far. the torquer is the best for hood clearance I can do. The aircleaner is about 3/8" from the bottom of my 6 pack scoop. the four corners runners of the torquer are the low flowing ones, especially the rear, equalize them and its not as terrible as you think. will out flow an rpm , which is taller. I just don`t have room for it or anything else, unless I go to a smaller air cleaner. I think 505 cubes need a good flowing filter.---just another combination, and opinion. the 2.0 has 8 injectors in it, I don`t like the dual plane just for that reason to start with.
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To each their own. Most "small'' engines don't care for the plenum design of the torquer, but with 505 cid you are a little different animal. I guess I made a general comment more aimed at a sb. By all means if that's all working for you then I'm not trying to knock your setup at all! Glad it's not giving you any issues.
 
FWIW, the one pix I could find of the underside showed crossover passages connecting all 4 throats together.

BTW, if you are not running it much yet, then the rich AFR's are not surprising. The O2 sensor takes some time to warm up and FI systems will go rich while that is taking place to be safe, since they can't see the output free oxygen levels while the O2 sensor is still offline.

How does the AFR display? While the engine is warming up, the burn of the fuel is not complete like it is when running hot. This lack of complete fuel burn leaves more excess oxygen in the exhaust stream; the computer interprets this from the O2 sensor readings as being too lean, and may richen up the mixture. If the FiTech's computer is estimating the AFR readout from it's fuel command signal plus MAP sensor, and not directly interpreting from the O2 sensor, then it would show low AFR during warmup.
 
Johnny Pace said:
To each their own. Most "small'' engines don't care for the plenum design of the torquer, but with 505 cid you are a little different animal. I guess I made a general comment more aimed at a sb. By all means if that's all working for you then I'm not trying to knock your setup at all! Glad it's not giving you any issues.
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yeah, I always like to be a little diff., don`t want to ever see a carbon copy of my ride. LOL
 
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