[Raptor]

The balancing out is the main point. Depending on how the car is setup and the conditions it runs in, there are two possible scenarios. On one hand the underhood temps are likely higher than the intake charge and on the track only vehicle it would be the opposite. In one case you would want to protect the cooler intake charge from the higher underhood temps so a pipe with better insulating properties is going to be the better choice, in which case SS is correct. In a car prepped for track only with low underhood temps and cool down between runs etc, a pipe with higher conductivity would be appropriate. So in reality, everyone is right in one way or another. As far as once the pipe getting hot and staying hot, it matters less with SS because it will transfer less heat into the intake air for the same reason, less thermal conductivity. if you had two pipes one SS and the other Aluminum, and both physical pipes were the same temp, the air inside will be less effected by the one with less conductivity. Not drastically in either case just for the fact the air is moving quickly.

As far as the phenolic spacer goes, the ones we use are a glass fibre composite, they don't warp but they do need to be sealed properly. Andy's is the only one I know of that ever leaked and it had a problem right away, so likely there was a defect with it. They have been run on many types of cars for many years boosted and NA with no issues. It isn't logical to assume from one bad one that they all will fail.