Background:
Ongoing development of the MGM7 intake has progressed to printing another model for test fitting and flow testing.
The turbocharger installed in my GTI is driving some changes. For a while, I had been using the Mabotech M520, but then I switched to a prototype that Mabotech is developing, the M720, which uses a substantially different inlet adapter.
Looking to the future, I expect to swap over to a Shuenk IS48 turbocharger, which uses a ‘typical‘ inlet, so I am revising the intake design to work with a 3″ turbo inlet elbow.
Shuenk is also going to offer a ported shroud version of the IS48, and the MGM7 intake will also work with this version since I’d like to test the ported shroud.
Design Changes:
The latest update incorporates an overall curvature, whereas earlier versions, like the Beta-8, had a straight inlet.
This change aims to lower the air filter and increase clearance with the hood. Additionally, the centerline radius of the bend is larger, which will help to reduce pressure losses compared with the straighter inlet joining to a tighter bend.
Curvature analysis of the Beta-12 does not show any areas of concern:
Along the way to the Beta-12 I also ran an air pressure and velocity check on the Beta-11.
Flow Testing:
Since the intake is now being designed with a different elbow in mind, I conducted a flow test with the latest Beta, a previous version(9), and a commercial intake (Blaze ATOM) to have information to compare with prior results that used a different inlet elbow.
The adapter is 3″ in diameter, larger than the adapter used in the last flow test. Because this will allow for increased flow rates, the test pressure was lowered to 16″ of H2O.
The MGM7 Beta-12 flowed 589 CFM @ 16″ of H2O.
Next, the Beta-9 intake was tested.
It flows 576 CFM @ 16″ of H2O.
The commercial intake is a Blaze ATOM Race.
Since the ATOM uses a silicone hose in place of the inlet elbow, it is connected directly to the flow bench adapter.
The ATOM flows 440 CFM @ 16″ of H2O.
A comparison of these values is shown in the chart below.
Next Steps:
Test fitting will be next. Since the changes with Beta-12 are minor, I expect fitting into the engine compartment won’t be an issue. The focus now is fine-tuning the placement of the filter.