Im going to be replacing my stock piping so I have to figure out if I should go with a maf or speed density before I buy new piping.

 

Hello fellow Arizonian lol.

I havent made the switch from MAF to SD yet, but from research and also info from moon performance; SD allows your car to keep going in the event a piping coupler gets blown off.

Also I have read that SD can dial in a smoother tune.

https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/ev...-no-maf-2.html

 

This basically comes down to what you plan to do with the car.
SD has benefits as does MAF.

SD will run if a coupler pops off where MAF will run like trash if at all.
The MAF itself also is a restriction over so much HP.

I think the general direction here would be to go SD as that is what most people do but the MAF is nice for lower HP setups.

 

Hey Schuhie, great advice.

My build goal is 450hp with a HTA71, evo 9 stock cams and a built block with forged internals. *Manley Hbeam rods.

Car will be used for street and I would love to do cones or autoX casually.

SD worth it? I am more focused on reliable responsive power, than hitting the 450 hp mentioned earlier.

 

You can likely get to that target with either setup. I mean the MAF is something extra to fail and can make the car undrivable if something pops off so I'd probably still suggest SD.
Its a pretty easy conversion and the ROMs have come a long way in terms of drivability from way back when.

 

Thank you! All I needed to hear.

 

I would go against this because I would have had a harder time making an airbox/heatshield with aftermarket plumbing. I also prefer keeping the stock battery tray

I was happy with MAF but I've recently heard about MAFs falling apart so went SD since my car was in the shop anyway

 

If the power goal is anything above tuning a basically stock car with a boost controller upgrade (so anything above 300 wheel), you should go speed density.

Speed density has better drivability, and the air straightening screen in the factory MAF can get pulled into the turbo when the airflow starts going up. Not a risk worth taking.

 

Think everyone said the important points SD for sure if making the choice my .02 would be, better drivability but depends on the tune. When I switched over (MANY MOONS ago, somewhere 10 years+) the car drove like crap. The tuner blamed it on the parts selected but in the end it was the tune. So make sure you use a reputable shop and or tuner to take care of it. If it does not drive super nice then somethings wrong.

 

Currently deciding the same thing has I'm putting a efr8374 with the sxe cover and deciding if I wanna make my injen intake with stock maf work with the 4in inlet on the turbo or just go speed density and get a custom intake made

 

MAF is the superior option. SD does not provide accurate metering of air so as far as tuning potential goes, a MAF will be higher. Generally speaking, the car will run better in various conditions with MAF over SD.

People saying that SD is better because the car will still run if the tubing pops off - who cares? That's like the dumbest reason to choose SD when given the choice to have MAF. Like if your intake tube pops off why wouldn't you pull over, and also, why wouldn't you use proper clamps to ensure that doesn't happen in the first place? The only real benefits of SD are ease of implementation, because you you can vent excess boost to atmosphere rather than having to use a diverter valve and you're not "stuck" with the inlet diameter of the MAF sensor unit, so you can freely experiment with different intake tube diameters.

BTW if you want reliable power with consider not exceeding 400 whp, or in other words, what you can achieve with the stock turbo around 22-24 PSI. Once you go north of this you're going to be taxing the drivetrain and replacement parts are neither cheap nor readily available these days.

 

ok so you understand why I can't sleep at night lol dude I am in the same position