The reference I made about the customer who raced his neighbor was just 1 scenario...I only brought it up because I had literally spoken to that customer only minutes before typing that post. In Dec of 2012, we actually took a 2012 QC to the track down here. His only other mod was a Moe's 85mm throttle body. With just the TB, he ran a 15.2...with a K&N, he ran a 15.1...with an S&B, he ran a 14.9...and with the Vararam, he ran a 14.8. All these runs were done on the same truck on the same night. On top of this, I have had dozens of customers call and email us saying they have dropped anywhere from .2-.4 off their 1/4 mile times with just the intake.
Then we had the dyno last month where Vararam gained 16hp over a Legmaker intake which is very similar to yours except it has a carbon fiber tube that dissipates heat much better than the metal Spectre tube. If it gained 16hp over that, it would have been an even higher number had we run it against the stock intake assembly. And all this is while sitting still on a dyno with nothing more than a shop fan in front of the truck. The Vararam is designed to force air into the motor as you drive, so the faster you drive, the more air you are forcing into the motor, and the more power it will make.
You have already mentioned a few of the reasons why the Vararam wins...short intake tube with no bends or restrictions, large filter with a lot of surface area, forces cold air in from the front grille as apposed to sucking it out of fender like most other kits, cooling vents on the bottom of the airbox to keep engine heat away from the filter. These are all reasons why it outperforms every other kit out there.
You said not to bring up the metal vs. plastic tube, but put your hand on your intake tube after driving for 30 minutes, and it will burn you. That heat is transferring into your motor and is not helping power. There is no arguing that.
And finally, the reason why we don't sell Spectre intakes is because they are ineffective. The same reason why we do not sell the Hypertech Interceptor, Jet chips, or throttle body spacers. I wont sell a part to a customer that does not show gains, and that is the sole reason why we do not sell Spectre.
The OP has already stated that he felt a gain by switching from the Spectre to this Vararam. How much power do you think you have to gain to feel a difference in a 5500lb truck? I can tell you that it is more than 10hp. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and they can run whatever intake setup they want. In the meantime, the guys that actually want to see gains will keep buying the intakes that work.
