Engineering a Composite Intake Manifold for the Performance Aftermarket

Historically, the intake manifold for the automotive engine application has evolved from a crude cast iron machined component to the highly engineered and precision manufactured component of today. In the high-volume (Original Equipment Manufacturer) OEM market, injection molded composite intake manifolds have been growing steadily in application for the past 20+ years. Now, with the continued experience and manufacturing developments, even the relatively low-volume applications of the performance aftermarket intake manifold can benefit from the described advantages that injection molded composite materials offer. An engineering process that is very similar to that which would be used for an OEM product is applied to this low-volume niche-market product. This process utilizes a clear understanding of the outlined program's requirements that leads into an innovative prototype stage to prove the design and manufacturability. The production manufacturing stage, which is the most important, employs some described new and different methods, which ultimately make the whole program viable.