Throttle plate mod

I did this last nite: http://www.blueblazer.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=11583
And I want to tell you...this is awsome. Before I did this I was running at around 2300-2400RPM @ 70MPH, this morning on my way to work I was running 2000-2100RPM @ 70MPH. I dont know what kind of MPG Ill be getting but I know that is a drastic change for a 15 min mod and no money involved. The Blazer runs alot better now and the throttle response is way better than it used to be. It feels like I just unleased a bunch of horses hiden under my hood.....NOW THIS IS HOW A 4.3 V6 SHOULD RUN!!!!!!!!

http://www.sshotrods.com/fullsize/4.3/maf/

http://www.sshotrods.com/fullsize/4.3/tb/

Yeh its pretty common, good thing you didnt remove them rivets or you would be idling at 40 mph. I know this from my friend who did not listen to me. Did you cut the bottom of the air box too or do you have an intake? Because now you should do that and exhaust.

I have been wanting to try this, but keep talking myself out of it. Evidently I am gonna have to get rid of my scaredy cat attitude and just bite the bullet.

Its not to hard just follow the link in the thread power of a v6 instead of v8 or something like and its in there. Just have a set of hands there too.

yea Im going to do the box tonite, the instructions even say...DO NOT REMOVE THE RIVETS. I just ground the ends off and when I got the half moon POS off I used a pallpeen hammer to flaten the rivets and keep them from falling out....when the weather warms up ill be removing the cat.....
Just follow that link in my frist post.....and Cloud?....there is nothing to be scared of. Unless your scared of horses....lol

Thanks Guys! verry helpful, cant wait to do it, some have expressed that they DO NOT know what it will do to the gas mileage, does anybody know?

As for gas milage Im not sure...I just did this yesterday...but common sense tells me that if you can hold the same speed at a lower RPM you should get a better MPG....am I right about this?...let me know

I found this one out on the net with pictures. http://www.sshotrods.com/s10/new4.3/tb/

http://midgar-dreams.net/files/throttlebody.JPG
http://midgar-dreams.net/files/throttlebody_done.JPG

Yup thats the link most guys follow for it, it has been posted lots of times

Hey, quick question everyone -

Is this something that can be done to a '95 VIN "W" 4.3 Vortec motor too? Always willing to squeeze any fast, easy HP out of my rig. :D

Hey, quick question everyone -

Is this something that can be done to a '95 VIN "W" 4.3 Vortec motor too? Always willing to squeeze any fast, easy HP out of my rig. :D
Wolfox, This Mod is only for TBI fuel systems. Your VIN says you have CPI. So it won't work for you. Now if there is someone out there that has a Mod for the CPI System. Please let us know.

Oooooooookaaaaay, got it now. No wonder the intake design looked so different. But I thought that there were a few "downdraft" CPI makes out there too, VIN "Z" if I am not mistaken, that looked awfully similar to the series of Photos I was looking at. I guess I got a little too prematurely excited. :) Glad I asked before I started yanking my Intake off. It's too cold to be out there putzing with the truck right now. :(

No if you have that TB hat under your hood you can do this mod. TBI cant do it i dont have that plate. CPI should be able to.

No, I do not have a hat. It's a stright pipe from a modded air filter box + K&N drop-in square filter, up through a modded intake (cut all of the factory resonators off to make a straight CAI using the stuff that came with the truck) into a 60mm or so intake bore and plate that nestles above the tensioner and between the A/C compressor and the alternator; the intake bore itself facing the fan. The plumbing and the IAT sensor makes a sharp detour around the font of the engine to the driver's side headlamp. I have seen some '95s with the "Z" designation that had an intake hat, downdraft style throttle body and horizontal plug wires coming out of the distributor that still used CPI. I figured since I was in the neighborhood, I would ask before I started yanking parts out of a *finally* perfectly working truck. I guess I should be happy that she will spin tires at more than a 50% throttle take off? :evillol:

I have heard some rumors that doing this mod would cause the front 2 cylinders to run lean. Is there any truth to this??

I have heard some rumors that doing this mod would cause the front 2 cylinders to run lean. Is there any truth to this??
I dont see how or why it would make them run lean. Again common sense here would say "no" seen as how all the cylinders use the same intake, program, sensers and everything else used to make the engine run properly.
actualy doing this mode is good for your engine. it doesnt have to work as hard to do the same amount of work it did before the mod. Remember, All car manufactures do stuff like this to make more revenue, safty, laws and what not. The things to look for are the grimlins that are on the vehicle just to create revenue, not just for the auto manufacturer either, theres the oil companys and the parts makers to consider also.

I was just thinking on the way home from my g/f's about this mod. If you remove the restrictor plate, wouldn't you have to reprogram the computer for the extra airflow you are now getting? Or will the computer adjust itself pretty quick.

It may take a couple of days to re-learn. To speed the process up, hook up an OBDII scanner and reset it. It will learn immediately.

It took my truck about 10 seconds to relearn, after I did this mod. the thing is I warmed my truck up and did the mod while the engine was hot.

It took my truck about 10 seconds to relearn, after I did this mod. the thing is I warmed my truck up and did the mod while the engine was hot.


How do you know that ur comp relearned this mod?
Did i like run bad than run good or was there like a CEL that came up than went away? you know what i mean

How do you know that ur comp relearned this mod?
Did i like run bad than run good or was there like a CEL that came up than went away? you know what i mean

The OBDII keeps in memory, fuel mixtures that it has used under different driving conditions. This memory is called long term fuel trim. This data builds a history file that the computer can draw on until the codes are erased, or "re-set". At that point, the history starts building again. In the case of a sensor failure, the long term fuel trim history file is searched for a fuel mixture that was used under a particular driving condition and applies it. Any time a change from the norm is noticed, as in the case of a tune up or the throttle body modification, the computer will keep looking at the history and adjust fuel trim as necessary to achieve the proper fuel ratio. The larger the history, the longer it will take to "learn" the new condition. If the OBDII codes are re-set at the time of the throttle body modification, it has no history file and therefore will "learn" immediately.

Well I did the TB plate mod a few weeks ago and it was a nice improvement. I was not aware of the MAF sensor deal. I did it tonight (actually took about 10 minutes) and will try it out tomorrow. Thanks for the info.

Your very welcome, What happened after I did the plate mod: I started the truck up while it was still warm, it ran rough for about 10 seconds and then started purring like a kitten. The idle rpms are like 600 at idle instead of 500 but that doesnt bother me. If you want im sure there is some way to turn the rpms back down to 500. There were no codes thrown.

Not sure I understand how this mod would affect cruising RPM. With tranny in OD and the converter locked up the motor should run the same speed at the same MPH I'd think. GM has been restricting air intakes for years for different reasons, one is to quiet the engine at full throttle, as if anyone wanted that in the first place. I'd guess this deal is a way to make a smoother throttle response at low rpms or something.

Not sure I understand how this mod would affect cruising RPM. With tranny in OD and the converter locked up the motor should run the same speed at the same MPH I'd think. GM has been restricting air intakes for years for different reasons, one is to quiet the engine at full throttle, as if anyone wanted that in the first place. I'd guess this deal is a way to make a smoother throttle response at low rpms or something.
Before the mod, even with the throttle wide open I would say at least 1/4 of the throttle body is blocked. If you remove that peice that is attached to the bottom of the plate you have increased the air intake at least 1/4. Now we all know that the better an engine breaths the better it runs. In turn the better an engine utilises the air/gas mixture the more work it can perform using less energy.

Before the mod, even with the throttle wide open I would say at least 1/4 of the throttle body is blocked.

Please take another look, take some pictures, take some measurements, do the math (hint 1/4 =25%), take some asprin, sleep it off, and then tell us all if it really blocks off 1/4 of the throttle body area. Please, I'll be waiting.

Not sure I understand how this mod would affect cruising RPM. With tranny in OD and the converter locked up the motor should run the same speed at the same MPH I'd think. GM has been restricting air intakes for years for different reasons, one is to quiet the engine at full throttle, as if anyone wanted that in the first place. I'd guess this deal is a way to make a smoother throttle response at low rpms or something.

You're on the right track here.

This modification can not and does not affect engine RPM at any given speed. Whatever engine RPM at any given speed was before the modification, will be the same after the modification. If you want engine RPM to change, a gear ratio must be changed.

What this modification does accomplish, (besides void the warranty) is reduce air turbulence, and air velocity, while at the same time increasing air flow. Any time a restriction is introduced, the velocity will increase and flow will decrease. The shape of the "baffle" on the throttle plate causes a "venturi" effect, just as the throat of a carburetor narrows down inside. In this case air turbulence is desired. The fuel is introduced at the point where the air is moving the fastest to atomize the fuel. With fuel injected vehicles, the fuel is atomized by the injector spraying the pressurized fuel. Therefore removing the “baffle” will increase air flow allowing a smaller throttle opening, (less pressure on accelerator pedal). Both before and after the modification however, the OBDII system will maintain the desired fuel ratio so any difference in fuel mileage would be negligible. Removing the “baffle” may increase induction noise slightly. Low end performance / throttle response should improve, and may even prove to be too sensitive for the likes of some drivers. Hope this helps.

Your very welcome, What happened after I did the plate mod: I started the truck up while it was still warm, it ran rough for about 10 seconds and then started purring like a kitten. The idle rpms are like 600 at idle instead of 500 but that doesnt bother me. If you want im sure there is some way to turn the rpms back down to 500. There were no codes thrown.


"If you want im sure there is some way to turn the rpms back down to 500."

Not true. The ECM is programmed to control idle RPM at a certain speed. It will adjust ignition timing and fuel mixture to achieve that speed. If it leans the fuel mixture or retards the ignition timing too far, engine performance will suffer greatly.

The ECM noticed a change and it is trying to compensate for it. That's why it's idling at 600 RPM. The longer the period of time since the ECM was reset, the longer it will take to "learn" the change, give it time. Once the ECM "learns" the change, idle RPM will return to where it was before the modification.

"If you want im sure there is some way to turn the rpms back down to 500."

Not true. The ECM is programmed to control idle RPM at a certain speed. It will adjust ignition timing and fuel mixture to achieve that speed. If it leans the fuel mixture or retards the ignition timing too far, engine performance will suffer greatly.

The ECM noticed a change and it is trying to compensate for it. That's why it's idling at 600 RPM. The longer the period of time since the ECM was reset, the longer it will take to "learn" the change, give it time. Once the ECM "learns" the change, idle RPM will return to where it was before the modification.


I know physicaly i won't have a problem doing this to my 97 blazer, But will i run in to computer problems you guys are doing it to an OBDII system, Does any one know if i have the same OBD? or will i have to do other types of computer flashing or what now?

1996 and newer all use OBDII

1996 and newer all use OBDII

Awesome I'll give it a shot suring my spring break
Thanx:)

Please take another look, take some pictures, take some measurements, do the math (hint 1/4 =25%), take some asprin, sleep it off, and then tell us all if it really blocks off 1/4 of the throttle body area. Please, I'll be waiting.

wait no longer...if had looked at the pics in the links before you stuck your foot in your mouth you wouldnt have posted this...also if had done the mod you wouldnt have made yourself look stupid.

here is your sticking pic.
http://www.sshotrods.com/fullsize/4.3/tb/

You're on the right track here.

This modification can not and does not affect engine RPM at any given speed. Whatever engine RPM at any given speed was before the modification, will be the same after the modification. If you want engine RPM to change, a gear ratio must be changed.

What this modification does accomplish, (besides void the warranty) is reduce air turbulence, and air velocity, while at the same time increasing air flow. Any time a restriction is introduced, the velocity will increase and flow will decrease. The shape of the "baffle" on the throttle plate causes a "venturi" effect, just as the throat of a carburetor narrows down inside. In this case air turbulence is desired. The fuel is introduced at the point where the air is moving the fastest to atomize the fuel. With fuel injected vehicles, the fuel is atomized by the injector spraying the pressurized fuel. Therefore removing the “baffle” will increase air flow allowing a smaller throttle opening, (less pressure on accelerator pedal). Both before and after the modification however, the OBDII system will maintain the desired fuel ratio so any difference in fuel mileage would be negligible. Removing the “baffle” may increase induction noise slightly. Low end performance / throttle response should improve, and may even prove to be too sensitive for the likes of some drivers. Hope this helps.

All I am doing is stating what is happeneing to my truck, maybe 550-600 rpm is the correct idl speed for my truck...I dont know. also I dont know if 2000-2100 rpm is the normal rpm while running at 70mph....all I do know is that before the mod, it was running around2300-2400 at 70mph. If you want to argue with my truck...go ahead....anyways when the computer was relearning how to make the engine breath again mabe some other factors were changed Like RPM and the such?
PS:....My truck is a 98= NO WARANTY

The TB mod has been said to sometimes cause a leaning of the front cylinders in some cases, just be aware of that and note any pinging.

As for the MAF descreening, just don't do it.

The screen is there to straighten the airflow for a proper reading and the 4.3L MAF with a screen doesn't limit airflow. It is the same MAF they use on 454 engines and it is capable of not hindering airflow even when that huge engine is floored.

Descreening the MAF is a craps shoot, but the odds are you will have more problems after than before.

Just letting you know before anyone thinks that the descreening mod has no drawbacks.

"If you want im sure there is some way to turn the rpms back down to 500."

Not true. The ECM is programmed to control idle RPM at a certain speed. It will adjust ignition timing and fuel mixture to achieve that speed. If it leans the fuel mixture or retards the ignition timing too far, engine performance will suffer greatly.

The ECM noticed a change and it is trying to compensate for it. That's why it's idling at 600 RPM. The longer the period of time since the ECM was reset, the longer it will take to "learn" the change, give it time. Once the ECM "learns" the change, idle RPM will return to where it was before the modification.

Ummm...Reprogram the ECM...is one way to adjust RPM.....Didnt I say that there has to be some way to adjust this?...I do think that reprogaming th ECM IS one way....isnt it?
REALY?...Its been about 1 week and its still idleing @ 550-600 rpm.

Quoted from someone else on a diffrent forum about this mod.
Try running the 100 yrd dash with one finger up your nose....

OMG, I can't believe that the manufacture would do this. Couldn't they come up with a better solution where the airflow isn't restricted at an open throttle? That piece of plastic is history as soon as I get the chance to do this. I just hope my wife doesn't have a hard time parking with it.

The TB mod has been said to sometimes cause a leaning of the front cylinders in some cases, just be aware of that and note any pinging.

As for the MAF descreening, just don't do it.

The screen is there to straighten the airflow for a proper reading and the 4.3L MAF with a screen doesn't limit airflow. It is the same MAF they use on 454 engines and it is capable of not hindering airflow even when that huge engine is floored.

Descreening the MAF is a craps shoot, but the odds are you will have more problems after than before.

Just letting you know before anyone thinks that the descreening mod has no drawbacks. Absolutely true!!

I recently did this mod and the mass air sensor mod. Let me tell you for free and 25 min of my time, these are awsome mods. Im idling at around 600 rpms. My gas milage difinatly improved. Thanks for the awsome mod!

Air sensor mod?

OMG, I can't believe that the manufacture would do this. Couldn't they come up with a better solution where the airflow isn't restricted at an open throttle? That piece of plastic is history as soon as I get the chance to do this. I just hope my wife doesn't have a hard time parking with it.
I was wondring about the same thing about parking. Its not to bad realy after I got used to it, I usualy just idle back and if I need to give it a little gas, no prob....Have fun.

Before I did this I was running at around 2300-2400RPM @ 70MPH, this morning on my way to work I was running 2000-2100RPM @ 70MPH.

I can understand this freeing up extra horsepower, but I'm at a loss to explain how this decreases rpms at any given speed...

Also it likely won't do anything for your mpg. While you'll be using less gas pedal to acheive the required horsepower to cruise at any given speed, you'll still be passing x cfm of air and the computer will feed the engine the appropriate amount of gas. (It doesn't matter whether you flow the 100cfm of air required for the 60hp you need at 65mph [just a guess] using 1/2 of a tiny throttle body or 1/10 of a giant throttle body)The only possible effect on mpg is the worse mpg you'll get at WOT because you can now flow more air which requirs more fuel... :p

who goes WOT? besides a racer?

I can understand this freeing up extra horsepower, but I'm at a loss to explain how this decreases rpms at any given speed...

Also it likely won't do anything for your mpg. While you'll be using less gas pedal to acheive the required horsepower to cruise at any given speed, you'll still be passing x cfm of air and the computer will feed the engine the appropriate amount of gas. (It doesn't matter whether you flow the 100cfm of air required for the 60hp you need at 65mph [just a guess] using 1/2 of a tiny throttle body or 1/10 of a giant throttle body)The only possible effect on mpg is the worse mpg you'll get at WOT because you can now flow more air which requirs more fuel... :p

EXACTLY! Couldn't have put it better myself! However, this will not even free up horsepower, it will modify low end throttle response simply by reducing turbulence. RPM cannot change, (read my earlier post in this thread). The RPM change that was referred to a couple of posts back, (changing from 2300 to 2000 at 70MPH) would be the approximate amount of change that the lock up torque converter causes at that speed.

Anyone else give this a whirl yet?

Yes, I just did this this past weekend. Unplugged the battery, took the screws off that holds the throttle plate on, then opened it up to full throttle with a screwdriver holding it open, then just pulled out the throttle plate. It was a struggle to pull it out because of all the dried grease on it. I need to pull the intake and clean that out soon, the buildup was all over inside. Next I took out the dremel tool, cut the plate and smoothed it out. Cleaned it up and put it back together. Plugged the battery in, started it up and I didn't really notice any bad fluctuation in idle, maybe just a couple of hundred rpms for a second, but nothing really that noticeable. Basically the truck runs a little smoother and the throttle response is a little better along with a bit more HP. I noticed that it drives like every other car/truck now, I don't have to give it half the pedal to get it to move.

I Just read the whole thread. Please forgive me for saying this, But doing these mods will defintly give you more HP. Can anyone tell me how the throttle works? It is basicly a tube with a lid, when you want air you open the tube (rotate the lid) when you don't you close it.
Now put a small hole in the lid to let a small amount of air into the tube, so that air enters even when the lid is closed (idle), the engine runs, to make the engine run faster, let in more air (open the lid) With the lid completely open (wot) theoretically engine runs at full speed, now GM blocked off maybe 40% of the lid (throttle),does the engine run at full speed?
Can the engine get all of the air that it needs? I know that I used the marathon with a finger up your nose before ,but it is still true here. I have done these mods. I had to! I also had to port my throttle to make it even bigger to give my engine all of the air that it needs.
The gas metering is handled by a bunch of sensors, everything from the MAF sensor to the TPS to the o2 sensors the computor handles all of the complex functions and will adjust itself to give the propper amount of fuel for all of the extra air.
Sometimes the computor needs a little kick to make it learn faster,as mentioned in this thread. The fastest way is to remove the battery cables from the battery and touch them together. Caution if you have a aftermarket program doing this will remove them!!
Remember you can't please all of the people all of the time, But you can try to find a basic leval for most of them.

Do what? You say to clear your Blazer's computer you just take the hot and ground wire of your Blazer and touch them together? Do explain.....

Edit: Is this similar to clearing the CMOS on your computer if you are having issues?

I Just read the whole thread. Please forgive me for saying this, But doing these mods will defintly give you more HP. Can anyone tell me how the throttle works? It is basicly a tube with a lid, when you want air you open the tube (rotate the lid) when you don't you close it.
Now put a small hole in the lid to let a small amount of air into the tube, so that air enters even when the lid is closed (idle), the engine runs, to make the engine run faster, let in more air (open the lid) With the lid completely open (wot) theoretically engine runs at full speed, now GM blocked off maybe 40% of the lid (throttle),does the engine run at full speed?
Can the engine get all of the air that it needs? I know that I used the marathon with a finger up your nose before ,but it is still true here. I have done these mods. I had to! I also had to port my throttle to make it even bigger to give my engine all of the air that it needs.
The gas metering is handled by a bunch of sensors, everything from the MAF sensor to the TPS to the o2 sensors the computor handles all of the complex functions and will adjust itself to give the propper amount of fuel for all of the extra air.
Sometimes the computor needs a little kick to make it learn faster,as mentioned in this thread. The fastest way is to remove the battery cables from the battery and touch them together. Caution if you have a aftermarket program doing this will remove them!!
Remember you can't please all of the people all of the time, But you can try to find a basic leval for most of them.

Thank you Blazer SS, I have been biting my tung becouse I knew if I had responded it would have just started an argument.

http://www.sshotrods.com/fullsize/4.3/maf/



Rather than destroying the screen to remove it, why not just remove the snap ring, and then remove the screen intact? That way when you realize removing the screen hurt performance, and cleaning the sensor wires improved it, you could re-install the screen and snap ring. This would save having to buy a new MAF sensor. The screen is there to straighten and stabilize the air flow so the MAF sensor can get a more accurate reading. Cleaning the wires is a good idea; permanently removing the screen is not.

I am going to write up a good explanation why this screen needs to be in place using engineering terms tonight when I get the chance.

Well its been a good while, since I have done these mods and I havent had any problems as of yet....As for Engineers, I do not put much stock into them becouse for one...who do you think put this crap on my truck, and 2, I am a 21 yr machinist veteran, and what I have seen them try to do sometimes.....well to but it bluntly....not very smart....Numbers are not always right....all I can say right now is, I realy dont care if you try it or not, I know my truck runs a hell of alot better now and Im happy with it...I guess thats all that counts......But dont knock it till youve tied it.

PS not all engineers are this way...just most that i have seen.

Ok I am referring to the so called "Screen mod" when I explain this.

I will start off with the easy terms.

The way the stock air box is set up is in a rectangle. When the air is being pulled through the filter, it will not be pulled through the filter at an even rate at every portion of the filter. Most of the suction will come from the middle of the filter.

When you open up your throttle it pulls all the air into the manifold. There will be a slight whirlwind effect. If there is was no screen present, it is quite possible for this effect to stretch all the way to your air flow sensors. The screen there breaks this effect in a way where the wind will cross the filaments in the air flow sensor at an EVEN rate. Because if it wasn't present, there would be a chance that the velocity the air travels over these filaments will change due to the "whirlwind" effect. Just like a tornado, the wind is strongest near the center of the "whirlwind". If one of these were to hypothetically come across one of the filaments, then ONE of the two filaments would sense a higher velocity and would have to trim the air/fuel mixture. The two filaments there are to cross-check each other to ensure that the flow is coming in properly. Because it would quite easy for one of them to detect faster flowing air in the lower portion of your intake tube while the upper filament may not detect it.

The screen must be there to ensure that both filaments take and detect the airflow which should be close to the actual value.

A case study by the engineers most likely resulted in this screen needing to be implemented. Sure the throttle plate could have been put in for a reason, but I cannot justify why. Maybe it was to prevent a lean mixture in cylinders 1 & 2. But I strongly recommend you leave this screen in place in front of your mass airflow sensors.

Sorry for using an engineers methodology. I am one BTW. :)

Cloud Strife - that all makes sense, What are your feelings on the thottle plate mod?

...Sure the throttle plate could have been put in for a reason, but I cannot justify why. Maybe it was to prevent a lean mixture in cylinders 1 & 2...

Assuming each cylinder is functioning properly, (rings, valves, head gasket) including fuel delivery and exhaust, each will produce the same negative pressure. Provided there are no leaks in the intake manifold/plenum, there is no reason that modifying the throttle body would affect any cylinder any differently than another.

Assuming each cylinder is functioning properly, (rings, valves, head gasket) including fuel delivery and exhaust, each will produce the same negative pressure. Provided there are no leaks in the intake manifold/plenum, there is no reason that modifying the throttle body would affect any cylinder any differently than another.

I agree with you on this.

I do not know how it affect fuel economy when you do complete the TB mod. I know that you will be using less throttle, but if what I understand about the computer correcting the AIR/FUEL mixture, then when you complete this mod the results should still be the same. Reason being is that the TB is still doing its job either way.

The only way I can think of this benefitting would be when you near WOT and could benefit from the extra volumetric input of removing the restrictor.
But if we only had some real-word results here to work with. The user opinions here seem to favor the mod, but number speak louder than words.

Here is something I am wondering. If the TB is positioned directly over the center of the manifold, then this restrictor would not be needed. But maybe it is in place due to it being positioned near the rear of the manifold. Hell I am just pondering things here, don't mind me.

Who has seen a MPG increase?
Please list IDLE RPMs.
Filter type or Cold Air Intake?

Cloud Strife - that all makes sense, What are your feelings on the thottle plate mod?

I am leaning at doing it, but have a few things that need answered first. Please see my above post for my thoughts.

Has never been proven to add power or anything.

Just like the Throttle body spacer.

You know what I did?...I went to a junk yard and got a throttle plate cut the resticter off and pulled the one in the truck out. that way if I had to I could put it back to original......guess what...the one with the resticter is still sitting on my shelf.....and the plate at the junkyard only cost me 5 bucks....so if you want to try it, and your afraid it will mess something up, that is one option.....as for the screen on the MAF?...mine didnt have any clips or springs...I had to knock it out...but no biggy...I can get anouther one at a junkyard for about 10 bucks....but I havnt found any need for it yet. Truck still runs fine.

Not to be negative, I just wanted to share some information with everyone.

The MAF descreening is NOT a good thing to do, the screen is there to straighten airflow so the sensor can take an accurate reading.

The screen doesn't hinder flow and the MAF on a 4.3L is the same size as the ones used on a 454 and it can supply enough air without restriction to supply that huge engine. The 4.3L is child's play for it.