differences between CAIs and SRIs

[Stealth5]

i was interested in an intake and went on corksport...first off whats teh difference between CAI and SRI and which is best, i was deciding between the AEM Short Ram Intake, the HKS Super Mega Flow Intake, and the RACTIVE CAI...also i looked at the Injen. whats the differences between these and do they all basically perform the same?

 

[Stealth5]

anyone have a preference?

 

[protege52nr]

I got a SRI under the hood. If you live in places where its prone to floods etc. I would go with an SRI, unless of course you get a bypass for a CAI. The SRI is exposed to a bit of heat from the engine, so you might want to consider a heat shield, but it depends on which SRI you go with. I think its more of a personal preference, I like my SRI, and its cheaper (about half the price of a CAI) but yeah its totally up to you, each has its pros and cons.

 

[syn_lube_nut]

I would definetely go w/ the HKS unit and to save even more, you might try www.optauto.com and buy the universal HKS filter for only like $80. The universal one of course, does not come with a moutning bracket or coupling. you can make your own bracket (like I did) and buy a coupling for like $10 and still save $30 or so.

OF course, the HKS unit comes with a very nice and well thought out bracket and mounting position. I would call or email corksport to find out what the diametre of the HKS filter that they sell for our car is though. Theres a 300mm unit and a 150mm unit I believe. Or the first one may be 250 but you want the right sized filter for our engine. The filter DOES have to be replaced every 15K miles or so BUT, its only $13 and the filter FLOWS AWESOMELY and filters very well.

LAstly, there is a book on turbocharging that is out of Britain (ive read it) and they actually analysed it and a K&N filter and the HKS unit DID make more power. I think about 1.6hp more than the K&N. Whether or not you want the extra hp and flow vs. replaing the filter is your call but, it is a VERY well designed filter and I cant wait to get another one. I had one on my 99' Si(R) before It sold it(the filter and the car).