Hi,I have been wondering this question for a long time now.I searched and couldnt relaly find an answer.If I wire my 5th/6th ports open I lose alot in the lowend.But If I wire the ports for electronic pump activation,I will still lose some torque/hp because the ports are opening all the way.Is this information wrong?So If I just keep the stock 5th/6th ports the way they are(except for cleaning of course),would I benefit more?What aftermarket exhaust would I be able to use so the 5th/6th ports open correctly?Also,will the pineapple racing sleeves have and negative effects on my engine like power loss?Thanks in advance!!

 

S4 or S5???

You have a lot of questions locked in one paragraph...

So if you wire the ports open or close, you will loose performance over what a properlly operating system will do.

Electric air pump systems work well on S5 non turbos, but yes on S4 there is occasionally a hickup if the ports are slammed open at the same time as the 2ndary injectors kick in.

Aftermarket exhaust will only effect aux port operation if you have no cats and a S4, in which case, they probably will not function without some sort of modifications.

I have yet to see anyone with Dyno maps on the Pineapple sleaves show anything but minimal gains (like 1 or 2 HP peak) making them hardly worth the money. Add in the questionable failure mode, and I do not consider them a worthy mod myself. Others may love them, I just don't.

 

Since someone brought up 5th/6th ports... should they open even without load? Say I rev her up manually from under the hood.. at what RPM should they open? Mine either need cleaned or they might not be opening because I don't have enough back pressure from the exhaust. 88 GXL with no cat, pre silencer and some kind of round cannons for mufflers (i never did find out what kind of exhaust is on the car when I bought it) has a big down pipe.. i'd say 2.5 to 3 inch

 

S4 ports won't open up with free revving. You should be able to easily push the actuators down, though. If they don't move freely, pull them off and clean/replace them (depending on how bad they're stuck - I've met some that flat out won't move at all).

-=Russ=-

 

stock aux ports do not open unless there is a load

 

You absolutely want them working.

To test them, run a tube to the actuator, T in a pressure gauge and blow into the tube to check at what pressure they open.
(A cheap boost gauge will do.)
Then reconnect the pressure tube & T in a long tube to inside the cabin, with the gage on the end, and do a test drive to see when they open.

 

There is no benefit to modifying the 5/6 port actuation system unless you have a free flowing exhaust system that doesn't have enough back pressure to make the actuators work any more. Wiring them always open or always closed is WRONG, there is NO performance benefit.

I've got two friends with FC NA's with street ports. One has his 5/6 ports removed, the other gave up on getting his to open at all after installing full exhaust. The one with the 5/6 ports removed has no torque until 5k rpm. The other one has wonderful torque (milder street port) but falls off fast after 5k rpm. A street ported NA with working aux ports not only has low end torque but reasonably flat torque above 5k too.

There is absolutely no reason to disable the stock 5/6 port actuation system if it works. If it doesn't work, you will lose torque somewhere in the power band compared if it did work.

-one guy's opinion

 

I agree with you entirely about keeping the 6PI system working, but since the auxiliary ports should open at ~3500rpm, so they can't really be blamed for a lack of torque above that.

 

I have worked on an S3 and my S4, both have headers and gutted cats or not cats. In the pic below you can see a copper tube coming off of the header, between the port actuators.

With this mod, the 6th ports work on both cars and both of them will open the ports free reving.

 

Yeah, you have crap for torque at the low end with the aux ports wired open. Not quite until 5k, but at least to 2500 or 3k. Anyway, if you get the RB presilencer, it will the aux ports will work fine. I had the bonez street pipe and they didnt work, and worked fine with the RB presilencer.