Thread: Can I remove the throttle body screen??

Originally Posted by TDCRacing

i am about to port it and was just wondering if i could leave it off for maybe a little better ailflow.i know it is suppose to even out airflow but just wanted to make sure it wont have any side affects.tia

The quick answer is leave it on. The MAF needs that screen so it's calculations won't be skewed.

Yes, you can remove the TB screen. Should you? Nope. People starting doing that a couple years ago because they thought it would improve the air flow. While it does do that, it will allow the incoming air to create turbulence and cause erratic MAF sensor readings. So while your car may run a little better because of a very small amount of air extra, it will run worse because it won't be able to meter the air accurately.

Originally Posted by 19SE92

It will have no affects on the maf reading's I've talked to tons of gtp and gt owners with the Screens out they've had no I'll affects from it being out

So you have no first hand experience with this?

Believe me, it will mess up your MAF readings.

Or if you don't believe me, read up.

Originally Posted by TDCRacing

Just took the screen out and reasembled everything and drove it around and it killed at least 4 times every time i stoped/floored it then let off to an idle.looks llike you been talkin to the wrong people. I didnt mean to sound like a butt hole but i figured i would just try it for myself and see.Thanks for quick responses.

No surprise to most of us. Glad you tested it for yourself.

Apparently some turbo guy even make screens out of screen door replacement material to straighten out airflow and have founds gains in doing so.

take it off and send it to me. i dont have one, hah.

way to open another can of worms, haha. I have been guilty of it a couple of times though.

This debate could rage on and on, as it is a huge debate among gm ls based/lq truck owners (aka silverado 4.8/5.3/6.0) to gain a minute performance for no money whatsoever. Jist of it is that there is proof that it gains performance and there is proof that it loses performance, so most people just leave it on for the fact that it doesn't hurt anything as far as hp (maybe 1-2 at most).

I would leave it on for the simple fact that most people agree that it doesn't hurt anything.

In case you want even more info it is discussed almost daily on ls1tech.com in the 5.3 truck section and fullsizechevy.com also pretty regular and I know they have dyno sheets to support both ends of the "argument".

GM didn't put that screen there to stop rodents from crawling in to your engine or to restrict airflow to limit your HP.

There is a book called Engine Management Advanced Tuning by Greg Banish. Greg is a GM OEM Calibration Engineer. His book is a great read. Referencing this subject, checkout pages 25 though 28 on the MAF sensor. He talks about the removal of the laminar screens.

Originally Posted by IndeedSS

There is a book called Engine Management Advanced Tuning by Greg Banish. Greg is a GM OEM Calibration Engineer. His book is a great read. Referencing this subject, checkout pages 25 though 28 on the MAF sensor. He talks about the removal of the laminar screens.

Oh man. Don't post info about tempting technical books. My wallet doesn't like that.

Originally Posted by IndeedSS

There is a book called Engine Management Advanced Tuning by Greg Banish. Greg is a GM OEM Calibration Engineer. His book is a great read. Referencing this subject, checkout pages 25 though 28 on the MAF sensor. He talks about the removal of the laminar screens.

So for those of us that are not going to by the book, what does it say about it?

do not remove the screen i would hate to say it but it is there for a reason dure to this fact: there's a problem with removing it. The airflow isn't very laminar coming into the car and the system was designed with the screen to ensure air hit the maf sensor straight on. By removing the screen your maf may not register all the air entering the engine. This leans out the engine (aka bad) and makes the PCM compensate via the O2 readings. If your fueling trims are high to begin with, this can push the PCM past it's limits.