First of all, would it be better to run the stock intake with lower portion removed (part before the airbox) than a short ram intake? Can I use a stock '96 LS intake arm or is the bend different. I know my friends '99 gsr has a different bend b/c of the placement of the throttle body and intake manifold. Thanks.

 

Any short ram should work fine as long as it fits, also the stock piping should work but has grooves in it that might slow down the incoming air. I modified my AEM to fit and still runs the cold-air setup . Just had to trim it alittle.