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- MazdaSpeed3
I am wanting the AEM cold air intake any other suggestions?
Cold air intake suggestions
- Thread starter Kyrosfactor
- Start date
You'll like the AEM. I have the second generation MSCAI, which is just a rebranded AEM.
Car and Driver and Road and Track both tested this CAI and got 20 whp gains. They all probably do close to the same thing, but this is a very high quality product with good, clear install instructions.
I am very happy with mine.
Car and Driver and Road and Track both tested this CAI and got 20 whp gains. They all probably do close to the same thing, but this is a very high quality product with good, clear install instructions.
I am very happy with mine.
SRI and CAI comparison. i didnt write this. just copied and pasted.
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Cold Air Intake (CAI)
PROS: Since its farther away from the engine it get colder air wich carries more oxygen thus creating bigger explosions in the engine thus giving more horse power.
CONS: Since its a longer pipe it takes longer for the air to get to the engine (less throttle response), since its closer to the ground there is a risk of getting water into the engine causing it to stop.
Neutral: Poorly designed CAIs can gain little, no, or even lose power.
**The cold air intake may have risks but they can be avoided by intaling a bypass valve which is designed to take in large volumes of air with a sudden thrust of the gas pedal and will safely level off and switch to your primary air filter as you coast on the highway. **
Short Ram Intake:
PROS: Smaller pipe so air response is faster, almost no chance of water getting into engine.
CONS: Since it is closer to the engine it heats up when the car is at a stop and delivers hot air with less oxygen molecules causing the HP to go down.
Neutral: Louder, deeper sound- pro to some, con to others
** Temperature difference is gone when the car is in motion, there is enough air flow to forceably scavange hot air out of the engine bay to be replaced by colder air. **
**However, SRIs with a well designed heat shield can lessen the issue of hot air.**
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Cold Air Intake (CAI)
PROS: Since its farther away from the engine it get colder air wich carries more oxygen thus creating bigger explosions in the engine thus giving more horse power.
CONS: Since its a longer pipe it takes longer for the air to get to the engine (less throttle response), since its closer to the ground there is a risk of getting water into the engine causing it to stop.
Neutral: Poorly designed CAIs can gain little, no, or even lose power.
**The cold air intake may have risks but they can be avoided by intaling a bypass valve which is designed to take in large volumes of air with a sudden thrust of the gas pedal and will safely level off and switch to your primary air filter as you coast on the highway. **
Short Ram Intake:
PROS: Smaller pipe so air response is faster, almost no chance of water getting into engine.
CONS: Since it is closer to the engine it heats up when the car is at a stop and delivers hot air with less oxygen molecules causing the HP to go down.
Neutral: Louder, deeper sound- pro to some, con to others
** Temperature difference is gone when the car is in motion, there is enough air flow to forceably scavange hot air out of the engine bay to be replaced by colder air. **
**However, SRIs with a well designed heat shield can lessen the issue of hot air.**
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Darth Vader
Member
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.
please don't post crap.
SRI on the MS3 is QUIETER.
You CANNOT install a Bypass Valve on a CAI on a Turbo car...unless you like sucking foam into the turbo and grenading your turbo and possibly motor.
Response is the SAME on a turbo car between the two intakes. Especially since your foot isn't directly connected to the throttle body. Your throttle body opens on the compressed side of the turbo, so there is no response difference.
Your whole post clearly comes from an intake debate regarding NA engines.
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There is negligible difference between CAI and SRI. Power gains will be the same. Just be sure whichever you buy has the air straightener otherwise your MAF will be skewed, possibly resulting in a CEL.
Yes cai in theory pull colder air, im not going to get into hydrolocking because it will just start an arguement. Its a pain in the ass to clean/replace the filter when needed.
Any colder air seen by one or the other is negated by the fact it is going into a turbo and being heated to 150 degrees anyway before hitting the intercooler.
Yes cai in theory pull colder air, im not going to get into hydrolocking because it will just start an arguement. Its a pain in the ass to clean/replace the filter when needed.
Any colder air seen by one or the other is negated by the fact it is going into a turbo and being heated to 150 degrees anyway before hitting the intercooler.
So if the IAT sensor is reading 80 degrees or 130 degrees, it makes absolutely no difference whatsoever?
I have to respectfully disagree. There are well established math formulas for intercooler efficiency that dispell the idea that IAT's (intake temps at the air filter) don't matter on turbocharged and intercooled engines. The formulas, once you work through them show that IAT very much matters. The formulas start with IAT as the beginning point, because there is a direct one-to-one relationship between change in IAT and change in BAT (boost air temp) coming out of the intercooler.
In other words, if IAT goes up 20 degrees, then BAT (regardless of its absolute reading after coming out of the intercooler), will be 20 degrees higher.
For every 10 degrees rise in temp, there is 1% loss in horsepower. It's not unusual for under hood temps on a hot day sitting in traffic (or in the staging lanes waiting for your next run) to be as high as 170 degrees, while ambient temperature might be in the 80's or lower. This is a huge difference in resultant BAT.
And unless the SRI has direct access to air coming in unobstructed through the grill once the car gets underway, all it is going to get is air that has already had its ambient temp go up by having to pass through the radiator. This is also why factory installed FMIC's always go in front of the radiator, not behind it.
The data also shows that even with access to true ambient air once the car is under way, it takes 15-20 seconds for the change in temps to impact BAT's. But then your drag strip run is over. So is your need for that power if you hit an Interstate ramp after being stuck in traffic.
Do the math: Say there is "just" a 50 degree differential between underhood temps and outside ambient. That's 5% on a 250 horse engine. That's a loss of 12.5 whp at a time you might really need it.
This is also why SRI cars dyno lower unless they open the hood during testing. Even then, power will be down until the engine gets cool air for 15-20 seconds.
The OP wanted to know which CAI to get, not get us into a debate (again) on SRI v. CAI. Apologies, but I just can't let the claims about equal IAT or BAT's go unanswered. Most of the time the differences will be modest. Some times they are huge.
And two piece CAI's once installed, have very easy access to the filter.
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Sorry no that is not correct. Intake temps do make a big difference. If you had either intake at that temperature losses would be equal. its the difference between the 2 intakes under same conditions that is negligable
I agree with what you are saying. That is correct. I believe my original wording was incorrect.
I was stating that under the same conditions the difference in temperature between the sri and cai is negligable. I have the cobb sri and when driving around at any decent speed i typically see IAT 2-5 degrees above ambient. A cai, while sucking in air from a potentially cooler spot still has to route that air through the hot engine bay so it is still warmed, tho perhaps not as much. All i am saying is that at best it would be a 2-5 degree difference. The last thing i want this to turn into is another one of those debates.
When sitting in heavy traffic, or at the line at the strip, the biggest concern is the intercooler being heatsoaked, affecting BAT not IAT since its in the worst damn place it could be. That huge chunk of metal on top of the engine does take a while to cool.
TheRealDefman
Member
- :
- 2008 MS3
+1 for all other same reasons.
I was able to get my Mazdaspeed CAI. I got it back in April and have had it on the car all summer. Mazdaspeed Released like 600 of them at the time. I have no complaints about the Mazdaspeed CAI so far. My MS3 is my daily driver. Just have to be careful about the water issue. But that is the same with any CAI. Mazdaspeed CAI is protected by the bumper and under molding and sits in front of your drivers side front wheel. Hope this info helps.
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.
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.
