The only thing that this Macan has in common with your average soccer mom’s Macan is that it’s lady-driven. ModBargains GM Alan Wei‘s wife’s newest car in her line of builds succeeds “Burbles” the C63, and her R56 Mini Cooper S. Enter the next iteration in the Burbles name, the 95B Macan GTS in Carrara White Metallic.
From the factory, the Macan GTS is a beastly SUV. The twin-turbo 3.0L V6 puts out 360hp and 360lb/ft torque to all four wheels through the famed 7-speed Porsche PDK. With a great platform and plenty of power to build off of, this is definitely going to be a build to watch.
You might ask, what’s first? Well, she’s starting where many other enthusiasts start: intakes.
When Porsche designed the Macan’s intakes, they created a unique design that draws airflow from up through the hood and down the open air ducts. However, the shape of the ducts and flat-top air filters leave something to be desired in terms of efficiency.
Luckily, Flat 6 Motorsports revised the opening of the air ducts, widening the opening of the intake and shaping the duct to better direct airflow in- and downward to where it needs to be. These ducts are made of high quality pre-preg dry carbon fiber, which adds a nice touch to an otherwise plain engine bay.
To complement these new ducts, we’ve selected BMC Air Filters, which remove the flat top of the stock Porsche filters and opens up the entire intake to receive all the airflow without restriction.
Installation of these parts is, in fact, very easy. We had our senior technician Dave show us how it’s done on this Macan GTS, but we could’ve done it ourselves.
The factory air ducts come out with 4 T-30 torx screws. Simply remove the screws (which you’ll reuse for the install), and the duct comes right off. Be sure to remove and hold on to the factory air duct gasket – you’ll need that for the Flat 6 Motorsports ducts.
From here, you can slide the airbox side panel up and out of its housing. Be sure to remove the coolant reservoir bleeder valve from the driver’s side airbox for this step (just pull up on the valve to remove). Now you can pull the stock air filter up and out of the air box.
Now, we slide the BMC Air filter in place of the stock one. Line up the filter’s hole with the opening in the airbox, and slide it in in place. There’s a small tab in the airbox that lines up with a notch in the filters to help guide you in. The filter may seem slightly loose – just slide the airbox side panel back in to place to secure it further. If you removed your coolant reservoir bleeder valve, be sure to pop that back on.
Remember the rubber gasket you removed from the stock air duct? Take that gasket and fit it to Flat 6’s carbon fiber ducts. Seat the gasket onto the grooves in the duct with a firm press. With the gasket on and the side panel in place, it’s time to install the Flat 6 Carbon Fiber air duct. Simply fit the duct over its respective air box and tighten the four torx screws you removed earlier into the new ducts (do NOT overtighten the screws or you risk damaging the carbon fiber).
And just that easy, you’ve installed high-flow air filters and carbon fiber air ducts into your Macan, just as we’ve done on this Macan GTS.
Flat 6 have reported +10hp on their Macan Turbo with their full intake system, but you should expect similarly substantial gains with the ducts alone paired with the intake filter of your choice.
Update 8/9/2019
This week, we’re excited to have installed smoked LED sidemarkers on Burbles the Macan. If you’re like us, then you’d agree that the sheer amount of amber reflectors and side markers on US-market cars is nauseating. Luckily, these smoked LED units are the perfect replacement.
Available in both clear and smoked lenses, these sidemarkers really ties the front end of the GTS together. The LEDs are brighter than the factory incandescent bulbs, too, with a crisper light pattern and more modern feel.
Installation was a breeze, too! Check out our install DIY if you’re interested in updating the look of your Macan with smoked LED sidemarkers!
If you’re interested in upgrading your Macan, get in touch with our Mod Expert team today at (714) 582-3330, or e-mail sales@modbargains.com! If you’re local and not comfortable performing installation yourself, let us handle the install! Schedule an appointment at Mod Auto by calling (714) 582-3330 to get it done right the first time.