I have searched and seen that the common consensus for the sleeves is to not remove them. However, I am running an aftermarket manifold and ITB setup that does not have the provisions for retaining the actuating system. While I have the LIM off, would it be wise to remove the whole sleeve system as I have no way of utilizing it? Or should I just leave the factory sleeves in their place?

 

Personally I would remove them. Without actuators there is no way to open/close them and without the rods there is nothing to hold them in the open position unless you epoxy them in place somehow so I would just remove them.

 

I would add, that when in operation, the sleeve doesn't open "all the way" The top edge of the port in the sleeve stops at right about where it's closest to the face of the plate, just a little bit past. I suppose one could epoxy a sleeve in where you want the closing of the port to be. One could even close it a little, pick what you think is best. One could also epoxy in an Atkins sleeve or make their own and shape/close it how they feel best. I was just saying that if you view the aux port sleeve, actuated by the actuator, on an assembled engine, It doesn't look like you might think it does.

 

Thanks for the insight, I was about to bolt my manifold up until i saw the sleeves and rods staring back out at me. I know that I have no way to operate them with my setup, I just was unsure if there was any benefit to leaving them in there considering the negatives of removing them with stock intake manifolds.

 

Other than the claimed loss of low end power when wired open/removed I'm not aware of any other negatives. If you have no way to actuate them and epoxy them open it's a wash as the negative effect is the same as removing them. Unless as mentioned before you have some Atkins sleeves you want to use or put them in some partially open position I see no benefit to keeping them.

 

I have always removed them and the actuator shafts from every 6 port I have had. The actuator shaft represents a significsnt flow restriction that almost all of the secondary air has to flow past and without the shaft there is nothing to hold the sleeve in place, so out it goes.

I could never trust any kind of product to hold the sleeve in place. Plus the sleeve is just as badly designed (airflow wise) as the empty port but smaller and with that cross piece in the way. Out it goes. Never missed having it.

I have driven 6-ports with the sleeves in place and they felt softer everywhere than my engines.

 

ditch 'em. if you've already identified that you won't be using them, then there's no point to keep them.

 

Sweet. They will be yanked out tonight. Thanks everyone.