Cold air intake suggestions

[funksilver07]

I've had both SRI (CP-E Nano) and now I'm running the Mazdaspeed CAI and there's virtually no "seat of the pants" difference in how the car performs. So less torque more torque is a useless debate because you won't feel it when driving down the road. The one thing I have noticed is cooler IAT-BAT temps in hot weather. Which can't be a bad thing. As far as the hydrolock debate, I've run CAI's on virtually all of my cars and NEVER have I hydrolocked my engine. I don't feel dyno numbers are the end all in the argument CAI vs SRI because of the inconsistent numbers we have seen. Not saying it's not a good thing to have a dyno just that we won't necessarily feel the small difference in day to day driving. Once you start moving on the road and air is being pulled into the engine bay the results from both are pretty much the same...get whatever you feel more comfortable with, they both work well and out perform the stock air intake system. (enguard)

 

[Darth Vader]

I've used the Cobb and the AEM CAI and, contrarily, I think seat of the pants is the only difference between the two. The Cobb made the car more explosive down low, which is of limited value anyway since the car blows its tires off in the low gears stock. The AEM makes the car feel a bit softer and less ferocious but, dragstrip testing reveals no incontrovertible performance advantage to either.

 

[funksilver07]

Really? That's why this subject is so debated I guess. If you can actually feel 1-2 WHP/WTQ "seat of the pants" more power to you. I'm not sure how you register that without putting it on a graph and seeing it. (killit) I can't believe I'm back in this debate again, I keep telling myself I won't go there and yet here I am, DAMN...haha. (stooges)

 

[camrycev6]

SRI vs CAI fight lives on !!

Its really minimal. They are hard to compare because dynos are often inconsitant. The difference, if any, is so minimal that it is hard to diagnose. You can run the same car 3 times and end up with variance of +/- 3 whp every time. Bottom line is the CAI "MIGHT" net you 1-2 hp more but, because of the longer tube, you will lose a smidget of torque. So the SRI gives more torque than the CAI and better throttle response.

Huh? Why would a longer tube cause you to loose torque? Conversely, how does a shorter tube give an overall superior increase in torque, but not in HP over the longer tube?

 

[MaikuMS3]

one thing for sure

need to take off bumper to install CAI, not SRI

yes. SRI vs CAI fight lives on!

CAI sounds better or SRI when revving?

 

[funksilver07]

Not true, I did mine without removing the bumper. No big deal installing the CAI unless your not too mechanically inclined. I'm also not one of those guys who puts my car back to stock when going to the dealer so the argument that the SRI is easy to install/uninstall doesn't really matter, at least to me. Again mis-information that leads to the endless perpetual debate over which one to choose.

 

[Darth Vader]

Now you're just being a git. I put my CAI on w/o removing the bumper in about 1/2 hour.

Both are monumentally loud, that's for sure....

long tube/short tube, you can't think naturally aspirated when we're talking about turbo intakes. There's little need to manage the airflow to produce torque, as in an n/a car. The turbo draws all it can. What you need is a gigantic volume of preferably laminar air to draw from. The sooner the air column hits the tc, the sooner it gets turned into boost pressure and thus torque production. The long runner and smaller tube diameter of the CAI delays this slightly, making the car slightly less grunty off the very bottom, the SRI + a giant velocity stack (Cobb) accelerates the airflow into the tc, producing a touch more grunt, possibly at the expense of top end flow. That's my theory on my experience with both.

 

[GoFast]

..... Again mis-information that leads to the endless perpetual debate over which one to choose.

ahh see you are not quite right here....it is the failure to use the SEARCH function that leads to the endless perpetual debate....

 

[funksilver07]

I'm with you on that one...

 

[MSMS3]

Now you're just being a git. I put my CAI on w/o removing the bumper in about 1/2 hour.

Both are monumentally loud, that's for sure....

long tube/short tube, you can't think naturally aspirated when we're talking about turbo intakes. There's little need to manage the airflow to produce torque, as in an n/a car. The turbo draws all it can. What you need is a gigantic volume of preferably laminar air to draw from. The sooner the air column hits the tc, the sooner it gets turned into boost pressure and thus torque production. The long runner and smaller tube diameter of the CAI delays this slightly, making the car slightly less grunty off the very bottom, the SRI + a giant velocity stack (Cobb) accelerates the airflow into the tc, producing a touch more grunt, possibly at the expense of top end flow. That's my theory on my experience with both.

I agree with every word, except the "touch more grunt." Let's not forget that our ECU has a torque control feature that prevents full power in first and second gear, regardless of our intake. First is limited to only about 150 whp or so, and second barely 200-220. So any difference is not going to have a chance to show up until you get in third gear. But at that point, the CAI should do better, especially if the SRI has been in a hot engine bay for awhile before being called on to provide air. IMHO.

 

[MaikuMS3]

Not true, I did mine without removing the bumper. No big deal installing the CAI unless your not too mechanically inclined. I'm also not one of those guys who puts my car back to stock when going to the dealer so the argument that the SRI is easy to install/uninstall doesn't really matter, at least to me. Again mis-information that leads to the endless perpetual debate over which one to choose.

o ok. so the hole is big enough to fit through the filter.

 

[JCurry]

I just bought and installed the corksport intake kit, its a short ram kit but also includes the turbo inlet pipe...fit nice with no problems and nice price too, no cel

 

[Darth Vader]

The ECUs parameters don't change whether you have a CAI or an SRI. I can assure you, with the existing engine calibrations/restriction/why, that the SRI is hotter off the bottom than the CAI.

 

[ericrapp]

Well how can i not bring forth my opinion? You all have done a reasonable job of not getting sucked in( ha) to the cai sri stone throwing we so often do. In my experience with the Mazda Speed 3, I ordered the MSCAI before delivery in May 07. So i cannot compare. and there is no one around here that has and sri or different cai. So i will tell you this sir. The proof is there. The dyno testing has been done on the AEM (Mazdaspeed) unit. And that is a nice increase in HP i think. Also knowing that you are always pulling the best air in makes me feel safer. As far as changing the dry filter, it is pretty easy but a tight fit and a little more work than an sri. No bumper removal or any malarkey like that. I actually removed the whole thing today to install a turbo inlet pipe. The big point of contention is the HYDROlock issue. This is put forth by the folks who get heavy downpours or drive through deep standing water and suck water into their intake causing big problems. We just had a rainfall that was one of the heaviest i have seen in many years and i was caught driving in it. All i could think was that, this is what those Florida guys are talking about. I drove slow, mostly because i could not see but did go through some rivers it seemed. I was ok. So after all that. I like my intake alot and prefer cold air intakes. Stay with a reputable name and i think you will be fine. And you will definitely feel it when compared to the stock box regardless of which style you choose. Good luck!

 

[coyfish]

SRI vs CAI

SRI
pros: install / maint a bit easier, no hydrolock, more throttle response, bit more tq
cons: "slightly" less hp (1-2 at the most if any)

CAI
pros: slightly more hp
cons: sligthly less throttle response / torque, hydrlock

 

[MoSpeed3]

i want mazdaspeed CAI but it is taking forever...

also, my friend's brother is working for mazda racing team and he will ask the day of release and pricing soon... i hope

but injen sounds good.

Any update on when the MS CAI might be avail again? Still not hearing anything from the dealers in my area, wondered if the Mazda Racing Team connection panned out for some inside info? Still waiting too... (sad2)

 

[HOBDisease]

Had the Cobb SRI on my car, now I have an Injen CAI. To tell you the truth, you can't really feel any major difference between the two although the Cobb, to me, did give a slightly better throttle response. Injen is a bit louder, you can hear the turbo spool better, and it felt better up top. Just my .02

 

[meicalnissyen]

can you tell me what the heck you're talking about here? You say to install a "safety valve" to allow unfiltered air to be ingested into the engine if you suddenly poke the gas pedal? WTF? Sounds complicated and seems to pose at least as many risks as it solves.

Please tell me who sells this item as well...I'm sure it's right next to the muffler bearings and blinker fluid.

This whole water ingestion thing is totally overblown. You get more water dripping down on the filter from the leaky fenders of a MS3 than you get from below. Don't drive through deep puddles and all should be just fine. I live on the rainy West coast of Canada and have had no issues.

+1
except for the bigger explosions.
I want bigger explosions, thats why I use JDM air, it has bigger molecules and they make bigger explosions

 

[ericrapp]

Maybe there is a misunderstanding here. There is a valve, if i recall, and i think i do. that prevents hydrolock under a serious influx of water. I seriously do not recall the details but i do remember seeing some info or advert for this a long time ago. so be nice guys. I know if i cannot present facts or pictures or timeslips = fail. just saying. And not for nothing, can you really get JDM air?

 

[MSMS3]

AEM makes the anti-hydrolock valve. It's on their web site. It is for NA vehicles only. Will not work properly on forced induction intakes.