CTS aircharger test

[Bruce Nunnally]

Tested the K&N aircharger on my 2004 CTS 3.6L and put up some charts here:

http://www.caddyinfo.com/ctsairbox.htm

Results look fairly consistent, so I am content with the testing methodology as a whole. I am still digesting the results, but they do not show much improvement with the add-on.

The Aircharger does make a terrific howl at part and wide open throttle that may be worth the investment to some, and it does appear to help at 70+ mph, but at a cost getting off the line I'd say.

Comparison Charts: Time in seconds for each run: Stock 1 Stock 2 K&N 3 K&N 4 mph sec sec sec sec 10 0.71 0.71 0.75 0.75 20 1.48 1.48 1.52 1.55 30 2.46 2.45 2.49 2.53 40 3.53 3.53 3.55 3.58 50 4.88 4.88 4.87 4.92 60 6.40 6.40 6.37 6.40 70 8.21 8.18 8.12 8.16 Wheel hp for each run: Stock 1 Stock 2 K&N 3 K&N 4 mph hp hp hp hp 10 68 71 66 70 20 110 112 112 108 30 150 149 149 149 40 173 172 176 176 50 179 181 179 181 60 194 196 196 201 70 189 194 194 197 Peak HP for each run: mph time dist hp Stock 1 77.3 9.74 664 209 Stock 2 68.0 7.78 455 212 K&N 3 68.0 7.72 448 218  K&N 4 66.4 7.46 420 217

[Bruce Nunnally]

 But wait there's more:

In order to ensure fairness, I reran the

K&N tests the next morning, to see how the aircharger might do with no

heat soak from traffic, cooler air, etc. Vehicle weight reduced 18 lbs on the AP-22 to account for 3 gal of fuel used.

Temperature	70 °F / 21 °C
Humidity	46%
Dew Point	48 °F / 9 °C
Wind	North at 8 mph / 12.9 km/h
Wind Gust	-
Pressure	30.13 in / 1020 hPa (Rising)
Conditions	Partly Cloudy
Visibility	10 miles / 16 kilometers
Clouds (Above Ground Level)	(FEW) : 25000 ft / 7622

 

Run 5 Data: K&N Aircharger, 

mph	s	g	ft	hp
10	0.74	0.65	5	69
20	1.49	0.53	22	113
30	2.44	0.47	57	152
40	3.46	0.41	109	180
50	4.76	0.33	195	184
60	6.21	0.3	313	205
70	7.92	0.23	476	199

Run 5 Peaks:

Pk Power:	68.0mph	7.54s	438ft	215hp
Peak G:	13.3mph	0.96s	9ft	0.66g

Average: 155.8 hp

Run 6 Data:

mph	s	g	ft	hp
10	0.73	0.64	5	68
20	1.48	0.54	22	115
30	2.43	0.47	56	152
40	3.47	0.41	110	180
50	4.77	0.33	196	184
60	6.25	0.28	316	198
70	8.00	0.23	483	194

Run 6 Peaks:

Pk Power:	67	6mph	7.5	3s	436ft	213hp
Peak G:	17	1mph	1.2	3s	15ft	0.64g

Average: 157.4 hp

 

	Stock 1	Stock 2	K&N 3	K&N 4	K&N 5	K&N 6
Average hp:	151.9	153.6	153.1	154.6	155.8	157.4
Average of the hp values at 10-70 mph; one way to measure the overall improvement of the adder.

My Conclusion?  still

thinking.  But the 6.21s at 69F with the K&N is a new fast time for

this car; the quickest previous time was with 1/2 tank less gas in the car,

and at 37F instead of 70F.

[Dynomite98]

Hey, I live in the Dallas area too. I wondering were you do all these test runs.

[Bruce Nunnally]

At an undisclosed location

The important part from my point of view at this point is that I use the same location repeatedly, so that I limit the variables. Any flat, dry spot would work well though. Best is a location that allows 2-way testing over the same ground, but my test area is a deserted one-way section.