my caddy has a honneycomb like screen in the intake and i would like to know if its safe to remove it for alittle better flow.
heres a pic of it.

my caddy has a honneycomb like screen in the intake and i would like to know if its safe to remove it for alittle better flow.
heres a pic of it.

No it's not safe to remove it and you won't get any better flow without it anyway. If you want more air flow, get a bigger throttle body from user eldorado1. Check out the Northstar forum. He's got 80mm throttle bodies. Air filters and such aren't going to buy you anything.

There ARE 2 scholls of thought on this subject. I can tell you from experience that there's nothing to fear from removing the screen. As for buying a bigger throttle body, unless someone has a dyno chart or similar evidence to prove a bigger throttle body will have a beneficial affect on your car, I wouldn't bother with one. Generally speaking the OEM throttle bodies are usually capable of far higher flow than the rest of the engine can handle in stock form.

I've removed the screen from my 2000 STS, and have had no problems.

ok ill wait for a few more responses before removing it.
as for the throttle body when i have custom headers and a full exhaust put on sometime this summer. do you know how much he sells them for? and if they are direct bolt up?

ok ill wait for a few more responses before removing it.
as for the throttle body when i have custom headers and a full exhaust put on sometime this summer. do you know how much he sells them for? and if they are direct bolt up?

The "honeycomb" screen is there for a good reason, not just for the health of the guy who designed it. It is designed to straighten out the air path going into the MAF so it can more accurately gauge the airflow into the throttle body. Without the screen in place, the MAF may be giving inaccurate readings under certain conditions, and the car may not run as well as it should. It certainly isn't going to improve performance.

Here's the link to the throttle body discussion:

http://www.cadillacforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=60282

What mcowden said! It is a laminar flow screen. It has nothing to do with dirt. Everyone seems to think they are dirt screens. If that size dirt passes your air filter you have other problems....

http://fullsizechevy.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9332&highlight=descreen
This is a "positive" repsonse on it, but as he noted, it also DID cause to lean at cruise, which is bad for emissions, and has potential to run the pistons hotter, which can cause pinging/preigntion issues that aren't heard and the PCM will be pulling back timing.

No, it isn't a good mod. Free, yes, damaging and irreversable too. You often damage the screen in removing it. If you push it out from the backside, you might be able to save it, but best is to leave it alone.

Also, K&N's and other oil wetted air filters are also not recommend as they often leave oil residue in the MAF causing it to be slower in response and start to meter air incorrectly later in life as mileage increases. If you don't mind periodic MAF cleanings, it might be ok. The LT1 the MAF is easy to work with, the N* (at least the 97 Deville) it isn't so easy to get it out to work on it.

The "honeycomb" screen is there for a good reason, not just for the health of the guy who designed it. It is designed to straighten out the air path going into the MAF so it can more accurately gauge the airflow into the throttle body. Without the screen in place, the MAF may be giving inaccurate readings under certain conditions, and the car may not run as well as it should. It certainly isn't going to improve performance.

Here's the link to the throttle body discussion:

http://www.cadillacforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=60282

Just to make it unanimous, it is not a screen but, an airflow straightener. You'll gain nothing by removing it except possible drivability problems.

ok thanks for the info it stays. im looking into doing the throttle body after they get some dyno results so ill have a few more hp.

just wondering if i have custom headers made that are direct bolt ons how may people would be intested? these would be based off of a 1996 sedan deville.not sure what other models they would fit.

I think you are gonna have trouble finding room to fit custom headers.

I have a problem with the conclusions drawn with respect to the larger TB install. Just installing the part and running the car on the dyno isn't really a great test. I would guess that you WOULD see a power gain in upper rpm range due to it leaning out the A/F ratio. The problem is that the PCM will counter that over a period of time. My guess is that you will see an immediate power gain but after a while, the gain will be gone. Chances are at that point, there "may" be a slight flat spot in the lower rpm range due to the larger TB. It's well documented that these cars are fat in the upper rpm range for safety sake. The OEM programs that in on purpose. If you want any LASTING power gains that are A/F ratio dependent, you need to effect a calibration change in the software.
And as far as the MAF screen removal mod, I know many people who swear by it. Personally, I saw no difference with or without it. This was backed up by multiple runs at the track. BTW, I reset my PCM between runs so as not to skew results based on fuel trim changes.

I have a problem with the conclusions drawn with respect to the larger TB install. Just installing the part and running the car on the dyno isn't really a great test. I would guess that you WOULD see a power gain in upper rpm range due to it leaning out the A/F ratio. The problem is that the PCM will counter that over a period of time. My guess is that you will see an immediate power gain but after a while, the gain will be gone. Chances are at that point, there "may" be a slight flat spot in the lower rpm range due to the larger TB. It's well documented that these cars are fat in the upper rpm range for safety sake. The OEM programs that in on purpose. If you want any LASTING power gains that are A/F ratio dependent, you need to effect a calibration change in the software.
And as far as the MAF screen removal mod, I know many people who swear by it. Personally, I saw no difference with or without it. This was backed up by multiple runs at the track. BTW, I reset my PCM between runs so as not to skew results based on fuel trim changes.

There are a lot of people out there who think removing the MAF screen will improve airflow. That doesn't make them right. Some of those people also bought "R-Type" stickers for their Civics and thought that gave them another 15 HP and made the car corner better. There are facts, and then there's hype. The screen falls into the hype category.

There are a lot of people out there who think removing the MAF screen will improve airflow. That doesn't make them right. Some of those people also bought "R-Type" stickers for their Civics and thought that gave them another 15 HP and made the car corner better. There are facts, and then there's hype. The screen falls into the hype category.

Basically, I agree with you. As I said in my last post, I couldn't verify a positive or negative change after removing mine. I guess that points to the removal of it as being a "performance mod" as being hype but I would suggest that there's also nothing wrong with NOT having one either. At least that I could verify.

Basically, I agree with you. As I said in my last post, I couldn't verify a positive or negative change after removing mine. I guess that points to the removal of it as being a "performance mod" as being hype but I would suggest that there's also nothing wrong with NOT having one either. At least that I could verify.

I don't doubt you at all. When I say it's not safe, what I mean is that the screen is there to help ensure accurate MAF readings. Without it, the MAF could be less effective. The other sensors probably cover for the discrepancy, but under certain conditions it might cost performance or mileage. We'd have to chart the various sensor readings during identical runs to show it positively, and that's not likely to show up here any time soon. In my mind, that's a risk, and since there seem to be no performance advantages to removing it, I don't think it's worth doing it.

It's hard to say if any inlet turbulence has a negative effect on performance at any given time. Hell, it's "possible" that the turbulence could have a positive effect right? To be honest, the only reason I never put mine back in was that I gave it to a freind who was anal about having one in his car and had damaged it when he removed it.

I think you are gonna have trouble finding room to fit custom headers.

i knew that there is limited space. but my friend has told me of a good custom turbo shop. if they can make a set based off the stockers making them a direct bolt up. matching the stock ones for size that they would fit.

ok lets just admit it, the only way that you are going to substancially going to make a difference on your intake it a flowbench. As far as trying around different stuff it is all kind of tinkering around. The way i think about it is if you are going to mess around with the intake have someone do it with a flowbench and try different areas to remove and add material. I would be interested to see what kind of result you get. After you are done get back to me because I have a 96 deville too.