I was wondering what the best cold air intake would be and where to buy it at any help would be apreciated.

 

At the bottom right hand of this page is a search feature, it will help you in your quest to determine this answer.

The reason being, is there isn't a correct answer, it's all up to opinion, usage, other mods, tuning, etc, etc, etc...

all CAI's claim one gain or another, but in all reality, they're all pretty much just straight pipes, with big round filters on them that increase air flow over the stock intake.
Is any one of them THAT much better than another? Not really.
(I am refering to full CAI setup's with high flow intake tubes, and not the systems that simply replace your stock airbox but leave your stock intake tube in tact)

You can search the sponsors on the page for various CAI's, but in the long run, it's really up to your opinion

 

i have a steeda just because i got it for $100. there is not much difference in power from one brand to the next. many claim that you need no tune(reflash)for their cai but the only one that i have heard that definitly does not require a retune is the k&n. so if had bought one new that is what i would have gone with.. and then tune it anyway just to be safe. look around there is a lot of people putting superchargers on that have already bought a cai. you can pick up one from them cheap since they won't use it on the s/c system.

 

I'm trying to figure out why a car with Mass-Air would need to have to be re-tuned for a new CAI. Mass-Air was invented to handle various conditions, less air or more and adjust accordingly. Is this an ODB-II thing or a gimmick?
I have yet to get an answer from someone who isn't trying to sell one.

 

I can answer that for you and I don't even have anything to sell. You are correct in that the mass air sensor is good at handling various conditions. It senses the temperature of the air, feeds that information back to the PCM so the PCM know just how much fuel to deliver. It is actually only 1 of a few sensors that play in that decision.

However, you still want the intake air temperature to be as cold as possible. Colder air is denser meaning although the engine may take the same volume of air through the intake plenums which is restricted by the opening sizes, piston sucking, blower sucking or whatever, the amount of burnable O2 in that volume of air is greater for colder air. I have the formula somewhere but it's something like for every 10*F cooler air, you gain 1-2hp. It may not sound like much but when the intake filter is placed where it can suck in heat off the engine, that can drive intake temps up to 200*F. The best solution for cold air is to mount the intake filter low and front except then you have to worry about water getting in if you would drive through heavy rain/puddles. You could then reduce the intake temps to very close to the outside temperature. Sometimes that is 100*F difference giving about a 10-20hp gain. -Joe

*EDIT/ Ooops, I mised part of your question. Mass air is not re-tuned for a new CAI. You typically have a MAF tuned to injector size. The PCM is re-tuned for a CAI because now you are allowing a larger volume of air at the same TPS so the computer tables need to be adjusted.

 

I added the Airaid Intake on my GT and I love it. Easy install and also made a a really nice power increase.

I bought the kit at http://www.premiertruckaccessories.c...aid450172.html

I just bought the Airaid kit for my wifes V6 from them as well. Part's were all in stock and shipped same day.

 

Jbailer is correct, the colder the air the better performance....1st rule.

Also look into C&L, they have a power tube that replaces the grubby rubber one to the tb, it includes maf housing...
Tripp

 

I agree with you, however my previous 5.0 was able to be supercharged and well, modified in other ways with only a mass-air meter change and bigger injectors, no change to the computer was needed, the damn thing ran 11.10@125 this way with a stock computer. This is why I'm asking the question, does the OBD-II computer have to be so strictly setup? Reading I've done this morning leads me to this thinking since a variation of a small % can lead to warning lights etc... I may have answered my own question but would like to hear errrr or read yours.

 

I think I better understand your question so let me take another stab and see if this helps. As I mentioned before, the MAF is tuned to the injectors. If you increase the size of the injectors, the MAF should be calibrated to the injectors. That is why you were able to make that change before, you replaced those 2 together and the PCM tracked well.

Yes, this is partially an OBD-II issue. With OBD-II, there are many more tables than OBD-I, it is much more complex. As you start changing parts to alter the way the engine runs, you need to make appropriate changes in the PCM or it thinks something is wrong. It's not that there is a problem, you just need to tell the computer what normal is now. Additionally, you need to re-adjust some things. I just replied in another thread about why simply putting on a CAI could necessitate a re-tune. I think that response is more what you were looking for. In a nutshell, when you allow more air to come into the engine than the stock setup allowed for, the A/F or O2 sensors from each exhaust bank report back that the engine is now running lean (too much air). The PCM responds by increasing fuel until the ratio is at 14.7:1 for closed loop operation. If it has to adjust too far, it thinks something is wrong and sends an error. The PCM doesn't know why the engine is running lean, it could be a clogged injector or a loose intake connection or a bad sensor, it just knows something is not like it was designed. That's why it's a good idea to get to know a tuner well and use a product like SCT if you are going to do performance mods. -Joe

 

check out K&N, they have an outstanding reputaiton for high quality, great performing intake