Hi all.
I'm in the middle of rebuilding my motor and was wondering, Do I really need to put the steam pipe on the back of the heads and run a hose to the radiator? Can I just plug the holes?
I'm not going to connect it to the throttle body so is there really any reason to keep it? Is it needed for the cooling of the heads or anything else?

Thanks.

 

I wouldn't. It is a "vent" back to the radiator in the event steam forms in the coolant passages of the cylinder head. Pockets of steam would cause uneven coolant flow to the heads. If you reroute direct to the radiator (i.e., unless you live in the arctic, there is no reason to have it pass through the throttle body), there is absolutely no loss in power and you have the safety of having the steam vent.

 

Cool, That's what I was wondering. Thanks

 

due to the reverse cooling flow on LT1s, pockets of steam normaly generate at the back of the heads causing hot spots that may lead to potential over heating and even cylinder head damage. LT1 engineers havent added the steam vents for no reason.
Steam pockets will also cause the rear cylinders to run hotter than the front ones, so i guess that may also affect performance in a way.