[Alan Roehrich]

Your problem will be that there will be a question of whether or not you polished the outside in order to disguise illegal cutting, welding, and/or grinding, or other alterations.

I'm with Lee. Make little effort, and spend little money, upon appearances until the car is very competitive. It need only be presentable and not embarassing. There's nothing wrong with wanting it to look good. But not at the expense of making it faster. If you're polishing the intake yourself, there are other things to better spend your time on. If you're paying someone to do it, there are other things to better spend your money on.