Our test vehicle utilizes...
Our test vehicle utilizes a 300ci engine with Fox Lake ported Three-Valve heads, stock camshafts, Vortech SQ-trim H.O. kit (15 psi of boost), and shorty headers. With the stock intake in place, it produced 515 rwhp and 438 lb-ft of torque.
"This intake is not meant for the guy with a stock engine. It was designed specifically for a healthy Three-Valve street or race engine-particularly a supercharged one," commented Justin Burcham of JPC Racing when we asked him about the JPC intake for Three-Valve modular engines. This was the first mass-produced aftermarket Three-Valve intake available for sale-it went on the market over a year ago.
Moreover, this isn't our first glance at the piece, as we first saw this intake nearly three years ago as a raw prototype when it went through rigorous real-world testing on dozens of different Three-Valve engine combinations. Now, only after extensive R&D, we're finally ready to present a real test the way you'd expect from us.
The intake was removed easily...
The intake was removed easily once the lines and blower inlet were detached from it.
JPC teamed up with Custom Performance Engineering to bring the intake to market and the final design is a proven performer. It's been revised, refined, and finally cast into an intake that will help your Three-Valve breathe easier, enabling more horsepower and performance from many '05-present Mustang GTs.
As many times as we have been to JPC Racing, this is the first time we have actually conducted an official MM&FF test on this product. Our one request to Burcham was that he hand an intake over so we could independently test it against the stock intake.
The JPC intake (right) features...
The JPC intake (right) features shorter runners, but torque didn't fall off as one would expect when swapping to a short-runner intake manifold.
The JPC intake was shipped up to Dez Racing (Seekonk, Massachusetts), where Mike Dezotell (Dez) and Brian Machie handled the installation and chassis dyno testing. Dez dug up a suitable candidate for this intake comparison, a supercharged 2006 Mustang GT with a 300ci stroker engine that features forged pistons (9:1 compression), steel rods, and a steel crankshaft. The short-block was more than capable of handling a decent amount of horsepower and rpm. The upper half of the engine features Fox Lake-ported Three-Valve heads, stock camshafts, stock intake and throttle body, and a Vortech H.O. kit (SQ-trim and air-to-water Vortech Powercooler).
Cutting right to the results,...
Cutting right to the results, the JPC intake made significant gains over the stock manifold once above 3,900 rpm. Both peak results increased but the area under the curve and the broader power curves make this intake worth the cost involved.
The JPC intake was just right for this combination given its larger cubic inches and the supercharger huffing into the potent mod motor. The car cranked out 515 rwhp (sans meth injection and on pump gas) and peak horsepower came at 6,500 rpm. The stock camshafts are in place and are probably hurting the engine's potential for 7,000-plus-rpm pulls. Despite the 6,500-rpm limit, the mid-range numbers with the JPC intake far exceed the stock intake. "This is typical of short-runner intakes because the power band is shifted up. The runners are also slightly larger than stock to aid in airflow," stated Burcham.
The installation was simple and thanks to our test car being equipped with an -8AN feed line, the JPC intake went on in less than two hours. Experienced mechanics can probably get it swapped in an hour or so. We ordered the intake with new JPC Racing fuel rails and Steeda charge motion delete plates. Burcham sent us a set of delete plates that were milled down a quarter-inch to clear our stock hood. Those with a cowl hood or similar rise in the center can get away with uncut delete plates.
We continued to employ the stock throttle body for two reasons. First, the intake was designed to enhance the airflow behind the throttle body. According to Jordon Gartenhaus of Custom Performance Engineering (CPE), "The throttle flange inlet measures 62 mm to take advantage of larger-than-stock throttles, and features a diverging taper that expands into the plenum. This diverging taper, or diffuser, allows for a gradual expansion in volume, which preserves kinetic energy, but the angle is low enough as to not induce flow-separation. This reduction in energy loss when entering the plenum will result in lower required boost pressures for forced induction applications, which reduces the intake air charge and increases engine pumping efficiency." Gartenhaus and his CPE team worked side-by-side with Burcham on the design and manufacturing of this intake.
Peeking into one of the front...
Peeking into one of the front opening holes reveals the bell mouths protruding into the main plenum area. Despite this unconventional look, real world testing at Dez Racing and dozens of tests at JPC Racing prove that theory stops when the part is tested on an actual car.
Here is the computer drawing...
Here is the computer drawing of the runner design and fuel injector angle. Two noteworthy items are the bell-mouth openings and the tapered end. Once the computer design model was optimized, the team at CPE moved to the flow bench. After flow bench tested concluded, Burcham tested several prototypes on dozens of different combinations from bone stock Three-Valve engines to his wild mid-8-second, 1,150-rwhp supercharged car.
We continued to use a stock...
We continued to use a stock twin-bore throttle body with its dual 60mm openings.