The best performance modification that I have made to my Boxster-S to date!
 

I was researching the web and read the write up on Pedro’s garage about his Techno Torque2. I recall another article that I read earlier this year in one of the European Automobile magazines about the Cayman-S with IPD plenum and sport exhaust upgrade. So after Googling a bit more I found several IPD plenum kits for the 911’s, Boxster (3.4L), and Caymans but not for Boxster 3.2L. So I found the phone number for Mike at IPD, he is the designer/developer and had a good conversation about his 3.2L solution. He eMailed me back with his new 3.2L setup that he recently developed for a customer in England for his 2001 Boxster-S.

This setup includes an upgraded throttle body from 75mm to 80mm and a 3.4L Cayman-S IPD plenum with huge silicon hoses to replace the restricted factory intake hose. I believe it is all about the science of air flow, the bigger throttle body and the large silicon hoses get more air in and then through a larger plenum with Mike’s patented design to get the air flow distributed evenly and quicker to each bank. The result is lots of torque, and you can feel it more than any other modification that you may have made to your car (of course except for putting turbo or super charger kit).

Here are my existing modifications before IPD upgrade:

• EVO cold air intake
• Competition headers (no cats)
• By pass pipes
• - FVD sport muffler (the best damn muffler in the market, I had them all before this one; best sound, best performance)
• ECU upgrade
• PSS9 shocks

The installation was very easy and you can do it within one hour and it is all plug and play. After the install, the first thing you notice that the car will not struggle to rev up from 4000 to 7000 RPM and the power comes fast and it keeps going faster. Before the IPD upgrade, above 4800 RPM, I felt the car was running out of breath. Now it does not. Also, there is more torque than before, you notice this when you shift the gears and the rear of the car deeps more even with my PSS9 suspension. The last piece which was icing on the cake is the improved fuel economy. I am getting 2+ mpg more on the highway with the IPD setup than before. I measure my mpg regularly on the highway. I am planning to dyno the car next week and will post the results.

I have some great pictures for you to see the difference between standard equipment and the IPD setup for 3.2L. If you are interested let me know and I hook you up with Mike at IPD. I am not sure if he has the 3.2L kit distributed to his dealer network yet. There are several distributors that sell IPD gear. You can contact me at kias@tampabay.rr.com.

Great info. How much did the kit cost? How long did it take to install?

Very interesting write-up. Seems providing more air could be a good thing, as long as the ECU knows what to do with it and you have an exhaust that lets the air flow through the system.

Any experts out there that wish to comment? Has Jake Raby tried the larger plenum on his engines?

Good points jmatta,

I am certainly no expert. Just an old hot-rodder who has tuned a lot of cars and bikes. In my experience tuning an intake is a balance between air volume, air velocity, and intake resonant frequency. If you get these things right you are rewarded with faster lap times.

Also you need to consider your goals. A 1/4 mile car may want to maximize hp near redline to improve top speed through the trap. A road race car may choose to maximize a wide torque curve for better corner exit speed. These two intakes would probably look very different. Bigger isn't always better depending on your end goals.

The IPD plenum and the Pedro Techno-torque are interesting because they appear to improve intake velocity. Any time you can reduce or eliminate flat surfaces or right angles tends to improve velocity. The proof is found in measurable results. Improved dyno curves are good, faster lap times are better.

Would I use one on my car ? Nope. I compete in a spec class which requires stock intakes. But I do find these designs interesting.

The stock ECU will adjust for the changes within the first 50 miles or so. No need to remap the ECU for this modification.

If you guys interested, just eMail: sales@roadsportsupply.com

He has 2.7L and 3.2L kits for Boxster.

Strange how the exact same post (verbatim) appears on several websites on the same day..........

Under different names, but same post with the same pictures..............all promoting the same product...................and suggesting you contact the same email address for more info…………..and yet forgets to mention this plenum costs $900………….

I have posted the same exact information on the websites that I am a member. Why do I need to mention price (is that you requirement?), if you need to buy it do it. I am not on commissions on this nor do I want to be a sales person for this product. Just try to share my exprience with this product, I like to know the same thing if some one else had the same experience. If I known about some of the other products that I have purchased with feedback, I could have saved some money.

Spamorama!
Good eye JFP :cheers:

I didn't take it as spam, just a member sharing an update that he found interesting...and it is. I'm a fairly good track driver (and instructor), but I don't have great knowledge of how to improve upon the application Porsche has given us...I rely upon the "techies" that post on this board; JFP being one of them.

thats interesting I always looked at an engine like a breathing person. The more Air you can get the better. (IE for runners the better their body can get the air to the blood stream etc the better) I didnt know there was more to it than just volume available to the engine.

This was a plenum that was manufactured in Spain. It was called the "Techno Toro". Unfortunately, early dyno testing proved it to be very restrictive. :)

Is the horn being pushed or sucked thru for maximum airflow? :D

It is made in the USA (California) and has a patent pending on it with stamp "Made in USA" on the die cast. The diameter of this plenum is 0.5" larger than stock plenum on each side. Go to utube and there are several dynos on the Porsches with this pelnum. You can even see how big this plenum is compare to stock. Pedro's Torque2 has identical design inside except with plastic glued to the stock pelnum. There is even patent pending on the design submitted by the IPD which is U.S. company.

I thought Pedro's was glued and screwed?

Wouldn't it only make sense to increase the diameter of the plenum if the intakes,throttle body and air filter system were increased as well?

I believe the term "ram induction" was used. :p

For 4x the bucks does the IPD deliver 4x the performance of Pedro's?

On this test of a Cayman S published in European Car, they measured:

Baseline
Peak wheel-horsepower: 260 @ 6200 rpm
Peak wheel torque: 223 lb-ft @ 4400 rpm

Maximum power gain: 13 whp @ 5900 rpm
Maximum torque gain: 13 lb-ft @ 5900 rpm

http://www.europeancarweb.com/features/epcp_0808_porsche_cayman_s_proven_power_adders/index.html

Can one feel this ~5% peak gain "seat of the pants"? Very likely. Is this going to produce dramatic real world performance improvements for a street car to justify the cost? Doubtful, but let's see some objective tests.

Those graphs look like they were made in Excel,not on a Dynojet or Mustang dyno.

Why does it vary so much from what they claim?!
http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/boxster-cayman/83635-new-ipd-cayman-s-plenum-rss.html

They also don't list the variables;gas,,if the car's ECU was reset,other mods and such.(on the 6speedonline)

:confused:

Close. This is actually an example of AA - "abnormal aspiration"

I looked at the msg and immediately though of the word "shill".
 

I consider spam to be off topic.

Shill is on topic but someone trying to sell you something.

The tone of the message was that to me when I first read it. Seeing the same message on multiple forums on the same day caused me to question the motive of the original poster. Reinforcing that impression is the number of other messages the same poster has posted on other topics. Credibility is built over time.

I don't consider the multiple "handles" a bad sign, some of the finest people use em...happy birthday 1stchoir.

I could be wrong ... just my impression.

$70 per HP for an increase you can't use or fell legally....

Good points Mike. All the best for the New Year.......

Check their dyno vid...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFmLlwKD69w

Does not “prove” anything; made by the manufacturer/distributor and makes claims for 20+ HP increase at the rear wheels. Another dyno test, done by a magazine (assumed to be independent) finds less than half the power increase claimed by the manufacturer/distributor, sees most of it at the extreme RPM’s, and only in combination with multiple other modifications.

With minimal HP or torque improvements, if any, within normal driving RPM, and at a cost of somewhere between $70-140 per gained HP; you are paying a lot for small performance increases in engine speed ranges your car will see less than 1-2% of the time.

Very questionable…………………

It is AMAZING how much of a difference there is between the RSS graph touted on 6speedonline and the one in the magazine test link I posted. Not that the magazine doesn't have an axe to grind, but their results seem obviously cleaner, more objective and more believable.

I don't know about you guys, but $250 for Pedro's mod is fun money territory, something I might try because it's not a huge investment. If it didn't totally meet my expectations, I probably wouldn't bother swapping it back out for stock.

My standards for a $1,000 "investment" are completely different. Plenty of newer owners on here that have paid $10-$20k for their cars, me being one of them. In light of what I spent buying the car, $1k is an awful lot for little real world gain. The best "mod" for me would be to spend the money improving my skills at 3-4 DE events, which is my plan come spring.

Another thing to consider is mods add very little to resale value and may in some cases actually hurt it versus a stock car. You'd better be able to derive full value from that mod yourself because it's most likely all money out the window. I've done the performance mod thing on a couple of previous cars and learned my lesson.

Only when a stock part wears out prematurely or doesn't provide the kind of longevity I expect (i.e. certain suspension parts) will I consider a mod replacement and there's only a certain premium I'm willing to pay.